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Mac users please....

7.62

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Hi guys,

I have a friend that has not had a gaming history. He asked me what I do in my spare time and I told him all about Bad Company 2. I even jumped on youtube and showed him a few videos. Well, lets just say it melted his face, and he is now bald from getting his hair blown back in such a furious manner.

Anyway, he was just given a brand new (like the latest model) Macbook. Its using a Intel i7 CPU at 2.66ghz, nVidia 8600gt? and 4 gig of DDR3. I know the hardware can run it, but how can I get it installed, and more importantly, would it run to his expectations?

PS - He was bought a copy of the game for his birthday too.

Thanks team.
 
boot camp. that's the only way he can run it.

it'll run on medium to low settings. 8600GT isn't exactly the greatest
 
Are you sure 8600GT?? All the new MacBooks come with GT320M/GT330Ms which are way more powerful than the 8600GT M. And if the MacBook your friend has got has an i7 2.66Ghz, its the 15-inch MacBook Pro with a 512MB GT330M. The hardware can definitely run BFBC2. Though i don't think there's a mac version of the game. So you'll have to install Windows using Bootcamp as logan^^^^ said and then install the game.
 
Yup. Run bootcamp, install a flavour of windows. On my macbookpro, I use it for gaming and a few odd windows only programs. Turns his macbook into a dual boot machine.

And I second on the gfx chip. No macbooks ever used the 8600GT. They went from the ATI X1600 to the 9600GT, and the new ones run the GT320M/GT330Ms.
 
Yep your right, it is the GT320M

Thanks dudes, but is bootcamp free? I know windows isnt.
 
Bootcamp just allows you to run a dual boot system, you still need a windows licence key as far as I know.
 
How exactly does Bootcamp run? Like a virtual machine? I would be worried about this degrading the performance... but I suppose an i7 would have enough grunt to handle that without taking a hit.
 
How exactly does Bootcamp run? Like a virtual machine? I would be worried about this degrading the performance... but I suppose an i7 would have enough grunt to handle that without taking a hit.

Bootcamp just configures your mac to dual boot, and install another OS. Using bootcamp windows (or whatever you install) runs natively on the hardware, not virtual. Basically you will get the same performance as if you were running on a laptop with the same hardware. You do have to buy the windows licence though. And bootcamp is free. It is installed with OSX 10.5 or later.
 
Yep your right, it is the GT320M

Thanks dudes, but is bootcamp free? I know windows isnt.

No such thing as a MacBook with an i7 and a GT320M. If it is an i7, the GPU is a GT330M. Bootcamp is a feature of the Mac OS. It's free. You do have to supply a XP SP2 or greater, or Vista, or Win 7 CD to use the feature, however. You partition the existing hard drive using the provided utility in the Mac OS and then just install your choice of Windows OS and then feed it the Mac drivers CD once the Windows installation is done. It's very simple and straightforward.
 
The video card will be a huge bottleneck. I couldnt see BFBC2 running at anything above low settings and with a low frame rate.
 
The video card will be a huge bottleneck. I couldnt see BFBC2 running at anything above low settings and with a low frame rate.

It will run BFBC2 good, my brother could run it on a laptop with c2duo, 4gb ram and bad gfx card. Very laggy, but it worked.
 
Thanks for all the info guys, Ill be checking this out very soon.

Just one more question about the drivers though, seeing that I will be running windows on the machine on a separate partition, would I download and install the windows drivers for that partition, or still use the Mac drivers.
 
Sell the Macbook for a mint. Buy a nice PC gaming based laptop that will put it to shame. :)
 
He just got it for his birthday, and he missus bought it for him. He really needed Aperture 3 apparently. I dont know that much about macs, but I know windows and games. It will not be sold sadly.
Admittedly, it is a powerful machine, and I just need to get BC2 working and all is good :)
 
He just got it for his birthday, and he missus bought it for him. He really needed Aperture 3 apparently. I dont know that much about macs, but I know windows and games. It will not be sold sadly.
Admittedly, it is a powerful machine, and I just need to get BC2 working and all is good :)

1. Use Bootcamp
2. Install Windows 7 64bit
3. Update Drivers
4. Install Bad Company 2
 
Thanks for all the info guys, Ill be checking this out very soon.

Just one more question about the drivers though, seeing that I will be running windows on the machine on a separate partition, would I download and install the windows drivers for that partition, or still use the Mac drivers.

When you set up bootcamp, it will allow you to burn a disc with all the drivers you need. Then just update as needed.
 
You should have shown him the Orange Box. Then he could have just installed Steam and bought it from their.

Since everyone here has already assisted I will simply say, hopefully in the next....say 6 months, all the kinks in Steam for Mac will be worked out, nice shiny new drivers with Mac in mind will be released, and license for distribution of title outside of Valve will be had. Then Mac OSX will get the Breath of Game forced into its lungs filled with thoughts of grandeur, violence, intrigue, love, hate, and all the good and bad that it brings. The PC and Mac users will get together and say, "I see you as a brother now. I still hate your guts, but now I can at least kick you ass to prove it."
 
Thanks for all the info guys, Ill be checking this out very soon.

Just one more question about the drivers though, seeing that I will be running windows on the machine on a separate partition, would I download and install the windows drivers for that partition, or still use the Mac drivers.

The Mac comes with a Drivers DVD that has all the basic drivers you need for XP, Vista, or 7, if the Mac is new enough. You can update those drivers as you see fit after you have loaded the ones that come on the DVD.
 
Not hateing on macs.. but why spend an insane amount of money on overpriced hardware and a subpar OS if ur just gonna run windows on it
 
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