With macOS Sonoma, Apple wants to attract more game developers to the Mac. In particular, the manufacturer wants to lure so-called AAA titles to the in-house desktop platform. The basis for this is to be a new toolkit that is implemented in Apple’s graphics engine Metal and facilitates the porting of games.

Apple’s new Game Porting Toolkit promises extensive support when it comes to bringing games that are already available for other platforms to the Mac. Developers can use it to test how well their games would run on the Mac without much effort and also receive help with the necessary adjustments via the application. Apple promises a significant reduction in development time.

The solution offered by Apple is based on open source developments and uses a variant of the Wine runtime environment called CrossOver. Initial tests have already elicited enthusiastic reactions. Apparently, this toolkit makes it relatively easy to create powerful Mac versions of applications developed for other platforms. Apple’s Game Porting Toolkit functions as a “real-time translator” and can convince with outstanding performance.

But Apple has also made improvements for the user in the area of gaming with macOS Sonoma. The operating system introduces the so-called Gaming Mode, which enables an optimised gaming experience. According to Apple, this gives top priority to the CPU and GPU to achieve an optimal gaming experience with a smoother and more consistent frame rate.

Additionally, the Bluetooth sampling rate is doubled, resulting in lower latency when using wireless controllers and AirPods. Gaming mode will be compatible with all Mac games.

Apple’s new commitment to gaming is also likely motivated by the fact that the company sees gaming as an important application area for its upcoming Apple Vision Pro mixed reality glasses.