Gaming on macOS is still not much of a 'thing' as many enthusiasts would like. In fact, iOS is a far better gaming platform in terms of sheer number of games than is macOS. However, you can get your gaming on if you are so inclined. If there is a will there's a way! So, if you have a Mac mini setup for use as a media center or a file server, why not add some gaming to the mix to get the most out of your $799 investment? Here's how!
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Some caveats
Although I'll be setting up my Mac mini in my living room as an entertainment hub that will offer movies, TV, and gaming, I'd be lying if I said that this was an all-in-one solution. Although many aspects of the Mac mini on its own could be used for gaming, I'll be recruiting the help of some extra hardware and non-Mac software to get us to the point where we can use the Mac mini as a proper gaming hub.
The hardware
2018 Mac mini
For our 'ultimate' gaming Mac mini, I'll be buying the lowest end 2018 Mac mini for $799 Apple. This comes with:
- 3.6GHz quad-core 8th-generation Intel Core i3 processor
- 8GB 2666MHz DDR4 memory
- Intel UHD Graphics 630
- 128GB PCIe-based SSD storage
I know what you're thinking. I can feel your look. Those specs aren't powerful enough to run the latest games. The GPU and CPU is way too weak, and the storage space is far too small. Well, you're correct for most modern games. Not only will we be adding some hardware to the mix, we'll also setup some gaming software that the Mac mini is able to play right out of the box. So sit tight.
We'll be connecting the Mac mini to a 5K display with a gigabit ethernet wired connection to my network. You'll get better performance out of this lowest end Mac mini if you limit your resolutions to 1080p but you can decide if higher resolutions are worth the performance hit.
External SSD (optional)
Extra disk space is completely optional depending on your needs. If you have an external NAS or are simply very good at managing your disk space (installing a single game and uninstalling it when no longer in use to save space), you can get away with not having to add external storage. In my case, I have both a Synology Diskstation, $370 on a gigabit ethernet connection and a Samsung 500GB thunderbolt 3 portable ssd, $299.
External GPU (optional)
If you want to play more modern macOS versions of 3D games, then you'll need a more powerful GPU. macOS Mojave has added excellent eGPU support for AMD Polaris and Vega GPUs right out of the box supported directly by Apple. You can also optionally add Nvidia GPUs but will be beholden to the company for driver updates and support.
You needn't add an eGPU if you plan on using the Mac mini for either emulated console and arcade games from yesteryear, or if you plan on streaming all of your games from a more powerful computer (we show you how shortly).
I do plan on running native macOS games directly from the Mac mini so I got Apple's own eGPU enclosure, $599. It comes with a mid-range AMD RX 580 GPU which is a good match for the Coffee Lake CPU's in our Mac mini. You plug it in to the TB 3 port on the back of the Mac mini, and Mojave just makes it work.
Gamepad
You can use a number of gamepads of your choosing. You can attach wireless bluetooth device such as the Steam Controller, a PS4 controller or even an Xbox One controller that supports Bluetooth. You can also use a regular USB wired gamepad that is Xbox compatible as well. If you plan on connecting via bluetooth, simply pair your controller to your Mac using the Bluetooth System Preference panel.
Windows Gaming PC (optional)
If you want to be able to play any game without limitations, you'll actually need a powerful Windows based PC somewhere on your network. We'll still be using the more aesthetically pleasing and living room friendlier Mac mini as our front-end, but the Windows PC will be our gateway to all things gaming. The PC I'll be using is running Windows 10 with a 6700k Intel Skylake CPU, 16 GB DDR4 RAM, 1TB SSD and a Nvidia GTX 1080ti.
The software
macOS Mojave
In order to get the best possible performance and compatibility, we'll be using macOS Mojave. Mojave offers support for the eGPU connected RX 580 without any configuring or hacking.
Xbox controller support
Download and install the open source 360Controller driver to be able to run your non-macOS native gamepads like the Xbox 360 or Xbox One controller. This will install a new System Preference panel that allows you to configure your gamepads. I strongly suggest to checkmark the Spoofing Preferences option to Pretend to be an Xbox 360 Controller under the Advanced tab if you don't actually have a true Xbox controller for compatibility purposes.
OpenEmu
OpenEmu is a multiple console and arcade machine emulator. It has a slick and easy to use interface where you and just drag and drop your supported game ROMs into the OpenEmu application and things get installed automatically. If you need M.A.M.E. support make certain you download the 'Experimental' version of the software. Download it. Run it. Use the wizard and install all defaults. That's it.
You can then configure your controllers per game or per emulated console. The lowest end Mac mini will likely run all of these types of games without the need of externally connected hardware like the eGPU or need copious amounts of disk space from an external SSD.
Configure your Gamepad settings as needed. Note that OpenEmu tries it's best to automatically bind the proper buttons to your selected gamepad.
Steam
For modern gaming, you'll likely want to install Valve's Steam platform. With Steam, you'll be able to buy and play a mountain of native macOS titles as well as a handful of pretty modern titles as well. If you opted to use a powerful Windows based PC on your network as well, you'll need to install Steam on both the PC and the Mac mini.
Simply download Steam and install it. Create an account and download your games. If using a networked PC to power your games, use the same account for both your Mac mini and your PC.
For a list of owned games that can run natively on macOS, Click Library > Mac. Once you install your macOS native game, make certain to set your eGPU (if you have one) as the preferred device for graphics. You'll need to find the installed game with Finder, Option-click the Application > Get Info and set the check box.
If you added an external SSD for more storage. Be certain to add your SSD as one of the default download directories for steam in Preferences > Downloads > Steam Library Folders.
To Stream games, you'll need the game installed on the machine that you'll be streaming from and on the Mac mini Steam client, click Stream to play the game. The PC will provide the power, you Mac mini will be the interface.
If you have an eGPU and you want to stream from a PC, you can enable more advanced streaming options in Steam Preferences > In home Streaming > Advanced Client Options. Here you can enable hardware decoding for better visual performance capabilities. (Note that at the time of this writing the ethernet cable was faulty. Wireless streaming was used so the performance through streaming was worse than expected).
Your Controllers should also be automatically configured in Steam.
You can enable Steam's Big Picture Mode to get a controller-centric interface where you can sit on your couch and use your controller input to navigate Steam.
Final comments
Above is a near no compromise gaming option for using your Mac mini as a gaming hub in your den or living room. It's ideal since it's sleek, very quiet, and is able to do things beyond gaming such as serving as a media player. Adding the ability to run emulators is an extra benefit as well as simply having a full blown OS at your disposal. The ability to stream via Steam and connect a controller via bluetooth makes this setup very unobtrusive. A more integrated option could have been to use my AppleTV but unfortunately, at this time, Apple has put the kibosh on the Steam Link App from Valve to be able to stream games through my AppleTV. Let's hope that Apple gets with the program on this and makes that happen. Let us know your comments or thoughts in the comments section!
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4.2Eve updates app to add new customization and better iCloud syncing
Eve has updated its Eve for HomeKit app, and version 4.2 has a host of new features!
By Malcolm Owen
Thursday, March 15, 2018, 11:25 am PT (02:25 pm ET)
As newer games are released, the specifications needed to play them smoothly continue to rise, and can end up being unplayable on some desktops. In the event that there happens to be a second computer that's more powerful and more suitable for gaming, the obvious answer is to use that one, but there are situations where it is unfeasible.
For example, the more powerful computer could be in a completely different place in the house to where you would prefer to play the game. Maybe there's a Mac mini connected to a large living room TV that isn't great at displaying games, but a Mac Pro in the home office which can easily do the job, but you don't want to move.
Valve Software's answer to this is built into the app for the Steam online game marketplace: Steam In-Home Streaming.
Using two computers over the same network, the powerful host computer can play the game and send a video stream to a client desktop, which displays the image. Inputs taken from peripherals, like keyboards and game controllers, are fed back from the client computer to the host, which then performs the commands in-game.
The feature also offers the benefit of not having to install the game on the client desktop at all, only the host, minimizing the amount of storage used up by game files. It also expands the Mac's game collection, as the stream works across Windows and Mac desktops, meaning Windows games are playable on a Mac in this way.
Requirements
Two computers are needed for In-Home Streaming: the host and the client. Originally the host was limited to Windows PCs, but it has since been updated to work with Mac desktops, and Linux.
In terms of hardware, Valve recommends a minimum of a quad-core processor for the host. Client desktops can be lower-powered but must be capable of H.264 decoding, preferably using hardware acceleration.
For Mac specifically, the host needs to run OS X 10.8 at a bare minimum.
Both systems need to be on the same network for In-Home Streaming to function. It is recommended to use a wired network due to the high amount of bandwidth required, but there are also claims it will work on wireless N and AC networks and some powerline networking equipment.
As it is a feature of Steam, the software itself has to be installed on both the host and client, which can be downloaded from the store's website. It is also expected that the user has an account set up with Steam, has games they want to play on the account, and has already installed them on the host.
Setting up on Mac
Launch Steam on both the client and the host systems, and log in to the same account on each desktop. For Mac users, the Steam client can be accessed within the Applications folder in the Finder.
On both computers, select Steam in the Menu then Preferences. In the Preferences Window, select In-Home Streaming in the left-hand column, then click the tickbox next to Enable streaming if one is not present.
This window will show other Mac and PC desktops on the network that are logged into the same account, as well as whether they are enabled for In-Home Streaming or not.
Host Mac Settings
To fine tune the host's settings, click the Advanced Host Options button midway down the window.
This new window will offer up a number of ways to change how the stream is generated on the host desktop, with the default options usually fine for most users. If you are familiar with the specifications of the client Mac, you could select or disable the hardware-encoding and capture options to suit your hardware, but it isn't essential.
The top option, 'Change desktop resolution to match streaming client,' will aim to match the resolution of the client system for a better experience, but this could potentially cause performance issues if the host is not capable of rendering the game at that level. Keeping this switched off will instead send the same resolution as the game is already set to run at on the host.
The 'Dynamically adjust capture resolution to improve performance' setting is self explanatory, and is generally a good idea to keep enabled. The stream will try to reduce in resolution if issues occur, like network lag, instead of stopping completely or stuttering at a higher resolution.
If software encoding is employed but it is choking the gameplay, you can limit the number of threads used in the Number of software encoding threads dropdown box instead of allowing Steam to automatically manage it for you.
Lastly, it is highly advised to enable 'Prioritize network traffic,' as for newer routers with network traffic prioritization features, this will limit the impact of other network users on the stream's connection.
Close this window by clicking OK.
Client Mac Settings
The main Preferences window includes three basic options for how users want the stream to appear from the host on the client. Balanced is the default, while Fast will prioritize speed rather than picture quality when decoding the stream, and Beautiful opts for higher quality images but potentially lower frame rates.
More settings are available by clicking Advanced Client Options.
In cases where the network is being used for other tasks or bandwidth needs to be preserved for various reasons, the Limit bandwidth dropdown box can restrict the stream's bandwidth usage. Generally, the more bandwidth is used, the better the stream will appear on the client.
The 'Limit Resolution' dropdown gives the client the ability to limit the stream's resolution, which can reduce the overall bandwidth used or sacrifice the resolution in favor of higher frame rates. The stream can go as low as 480p, with the upper limit being the display resolution of the client system.
There is support for multiple speaker configurations in the menu, allowing clients to request stereo, quadrophonic, and 5.1 surround sound from the host, if available from the game and usable on the client. It is usually advised to stick to Stereo to preserve bandwidth usage for the visual element of the stream.
A tickbox is also available to enable hardware decoding on the client, if it has supporting hardware. If it does not, this is instead performed in software, and may be more taxing to the client Mac overall.
Lastly, the 'Display performance information' tickbox will show data relating to the stream on the client's screen, making it useful for diagnosing a poor quality video feed from the host.
Click OK to close the window.
Starting the stream
Ensure Steam is running on both the client and the host desktops.
On the client, select Library in the main Steam window, and select the game you wish to play from the left-hand column. Available to play games will be brighter on this menu, regardless of whether it is installed locally or streamable.
Best Multiplayer Steam Games Mac
In the selected game's screen, click the arrow next to Play to bring up a dropdown box, and select the host system from the list. Click the now-renamed Stream button to launch the game.
On the first occasion the Host will be used, the client will show a notification that actions need to be carried out on the Host. This refers to drivers that need to be installed by Steam in order to stream.
On the Host, click Install on the Gamepad Driver Update window, and pass through the installation process for Steam Input. Typically this requires clicking Continue, Install, entering your macOS account's password, authorizing it in the Security & Privacy settings menu following the 'Allow' notification, Ok on the notification, then Close once the installation completes.
Attempt to run the game stream again on the client. A second host actions notice will be displayed, this time for audio drivers.
On the Host, click Install on the Audio Driver Update window, and go through its installation process. This time the path for the default installation of Ambrosia AudioSupport will be Continue on the package installation determination notice, Continue on the welcome screen, Install, enter the Mac account's password, Continue Installation at the restart notice, and authorizing the Security and Privacy settings to allow it to continue.
At the successful installation screen, click Restart to reboot the Mac.
Once it has booted and been logged in, load Steam again on the Host, and reattempt to
load the stream from the client. On this third attempt, the host should start up the game and commence the stream, which will then be displayed and playable on the client, if everything is installed correctly. Note that this process is shorter for future play sessions, as the drivers only need to be installed once.
A Word on Windows
As games can be streamed from a Windows host to a Mac client and vice versa, it is worth covering how to perform this in Windows. Handily, the basic instructions are the same for both platforms.
Once installed on Windows, launch Steam, click the Steam menu item in the top-left corner, then Settings. In the new window, select In-Home Streaming in the left-hand column, then follow the rest of the Mac guide above.
The main difference is in the driver installation for the host, as while the initial notice window will be the same for both GamePad and Audio drivers, the process of installing the drivers themselves will differ. Unless there is something specific to the host's particular Windows installation that needs attention, the default options will work fine.
Starting the game stream using Windows as a client is identical to Mac, once signed into Steam.