[100% Unofficial] How to play GW2 on Mac OS after the Mac client is gone - [Merged]

[Gumbolia.5381]

Here are instructions for PlayOnMac:

1. download PlayOnMac
2. download the GW2 64 bit Windows installer
3. run PlayOnMac and click Install a program on the left side of the window
4. down at the bottom-left of the window that pops up, click Install a non-listed program
5. read All The Stuff and keep clicking Next
6. What would you like to do? select Install a new program in a new virtual drive
7. name it something - "GuildWars2"
8. What would you like to do before installation? - leave all unselected and click Next
9. What kind of virtual drive do you want to create? - select 64 bit
10. wait while it creates "stuff"...
11. Please select file to run - click Browse and select the GW2 Windows installer from step 2 (Gw2Setup-64.exe)
12. click Next
13. GW2 installer will start - click Install
14. wait a couple of hours for the download to complete and then play the game...
15. when you quit GW2 the first time, PlayOnMac will ask Please choose a file for PlayOnMac to make a shortcut - choose Gw2.exe
16. name it ("Guild Wars 2")
17. it will ask again Please choose a file for PlayOnMac to make a shortcut - click Cancel
18. now it shows up in the main PlayOnMac window - to run it just click it and select Run on the left side of the window

[ASP.8093]

@Gumbolia.5381 said:Here are instructions for PlayOnMac:

Thank you!

[Talek.6795]

I've tried everything except the bootcamp during the last week, i mostly play pvp and www:

• Crossover, PlayOnMac, Porting Kit - impossible to play even on the lowest settings at any level; fps drops to 1-2 every time you look around
• GFN - i have a good and stable 300mbps connection at home, however i got some issues with the game during ranked matches. I got reconnected couple of times. Yes, the framerate is good, but stability of connection and input lag make impossible to play the game at any competitive mode. (yes i tried to set up a competitive connection type and minimise input lag in GNF settings. It was even worse before, but the difference doesn't not allow you to play anyway)

Anet should really have their own experience playing on GFN before they suggest anything like that to us.

I am very sad. What do we need to do to have the native mac client support continue? Do we need to hire someone to cooperate with Anet on that topic? Where could we send the money?

[Bellefon.1259]

@Qida.5648 said:I tried your suggestion and it works on the M1 Mac! Thank you.

Excellent. Thanks for confirming that it worked for more than just me. Maybe it will help others who try CrossOver.

Although I still ran into issue when downloading the GW2.dat file.. It still crashes after downloading 5% - 10%, then have to restart, but at least the progress is not loss.So instead of downloading, I open my MacOS GW2 version (view package content, copy the GW2.dat into the bottle) And it works.

I was wondering if Gw2.dat was platform agnostic. I was afraid to copy it in case Windows created a different .dat file than the one Mac created. This will save those with lower bandwidth some time if they can re-use a 50gb file. Hopefully someone with more tech knowledge than me can confirm.

In terms of performance. crossover seems to be bad. My mount would disappear and suddenly load in, (Something I always encounter when I used to play on a surface go tablet).

My performance with CrossOver is definitely worse than the native Mac client. But it was at least playable in PvE and PvP. I haven't tried in WvW yet, but I'm a little worried by the way my fps can drop to 8 just by turning. My mounts load in, but the movement animations can take 10-30 seconds to load in however. Could this be a difference between Intel vs. M1 given that GW2 was coded using early 2010s technology?

[Qida.5648]

Here are the steps for Crossover

1. Click the Install a Window's application button
2. Select GuildWars 2 Application
3. On the top click Select Installer (Select the GW2Setup-64.exe)
4. On the top click Select bottle (I tried Win7 64bit / Win10 64bit both works)
5. Then click install.
6. Run thru the installation.
7. Do not double click the application, but do 8)
8. Click on the bottle, open C drive. go Program Files (x86) select the Gw2Setup.exe Open with crossover
9. Let the client download, or you can copy and replace the GW2.dat over from your existing client.
10. Click on the bottle, open C drive. go Program Files, select the Gw2-64.exe open with crossover
11. repeat step 10) every time you want to play.

I believe above works for intel Macs also.

As for Parallels and Windows arm. It's straight forward. Just install the client by double clicking the exe installer. But you need to sign up on the technical preview for parallels and Microsoft Insider account. (Apple Silicon only)

Maybe someone who have existing parallels + Windows on intel Mac and feedback the performance?

[raaahbin.7405]

What confuses me about all of this is... why are Anet actively killing the Mac client (i.e. "it will not run after x date") rather than simply dropping support? By contrast, you can still play the game with the 32-bit Mac client (long since unsupported) - it works, it just has problems (e.g. random coherent host crashes on launch, takes forever to load Lion's Arch)... but gameplay is acceptable and even a slightly better frame-rate on my super old hardware (~10 years old) compared to the 64-bit version. I'd be absolutely fine if they just said "we're not going to support it, any bugs you encounter from here on out will be your own problem" - I'd live with that, and see how the only game I play might affect future computer purchase decisions. For now, my computer is old enough that reverting to the 32-bit Mac client is probably my only option if they force the 64-bit client not to run at all.

They didn't actively kill the 32-bit Mac client - you just can't download it any more and it is 100% unsupported - so why nuke the ability of the 64-bit client to even log on, instead just have it say "this is no longer supported, and may stop working at any time"?

[Aragorn.8157]

@Gumbolia.5381 said:Here are instructions for PlayOnMac:

Thanks for that, I will have look at it.And thanks everyone for trying solutions and reporting it:-)Hopefully we will find a work around to continue playing.

It would be interesting I guess to gather more info on the performance of the different solutions (crossover, playonmac, parallel) depending on the hardware. I would expect bootcamp to have the best perf overall but for the others I don't know. From reading the last posts none seems perfect but hardware is not always mention and as someone mention Intel vs. M1 as well as the rest of the mac perf will have an impact.

As someone playing on a mid 2014 macbook pro with just intel graphic I don't expect any of these solutions to work smoothly but who knows :-) the mac client (64) was running relatively ok for me at least I was able to play PVE with no issue.

I just purchased GFN for 6 months to try it out (I have VDSL2 connection) it works most of the time, very smoothly and with no lag - very impressed tbh and far better than mac client in terms of fps. My only concernes as for the service is a lack of sharpness (especially for text) and contrast.

The biggest issue is the internet connection: if someone else in the house uses internet the alert icon saying the connexion is unstable is alway on (and Red lol) and the game is unplayable. Hopefully optic fibre is on the way in a couple of months so it could be better...

[Healix.5819]

@"raaahbin.7405" said:They didn't actively kill the 32-bit Mac client - you just can't download it any more and it is 100% unsupported - so why nuke the ability of the 64-bit client to even log on, instead just have it say "this is no longer supported, and may stop working at any time"?

The 32-bit client is the Windows client running in an emulator whereas the 64-bit client is native and something they have to maintain.

[raaahbin.7405]

@Healix.5819 said:The 32-bit client is the Windows client running in an emulator whereas the 64-bit client is native and something they have to maintain.

That makes sense - thank you! Hopefully that means I can just return to playing the 32-bit Mac client when they kill the 64-bit client, since that at least still runs and appears to outperform the DIY emulation solutions in this thread (at least on 10 year old hardware).

[Qida.5648]

That makes sense - thank you! Hopefully that means I can just return to playing the 32-bit Mac client when they kill the 64-bit client, since that at least still runs and appears to outperform the DIY emulation solutions in this thread (at least on 10 year old hardware).

Just curious, this 32-bit Mac Client you are using, did they prompt you on Feb 18, they will discontinuing support?

[raaahbin.7405]

@Qida.5648 said:Just curious, this 32-bit Mac Client you are using, did they prompt you on Feb 18, they will discontinuing support?

The 32-bit Mac Client hasn't even been available for download for years. I'm sure it has been completely unsupported ever since. But yesterday evening I tried launching it, and it worked just like it always has. Hopefully - if it's just the Windows 32-bit client in an emulation wrapper as @Healix.5819 said - it will keep running like it does now. It's a bit buggy, and I can both make and drink a cup of coffee in the time it takes to load Lions Arch... but on really old Mac hardware such as mine, it will be the only viable option if the 64-bit native client is actively killed rather than merely left to degrade over time.

[Aragorn.8157]

So I installed the game (64 windows version) using PlayOnMac yesterday, Thanks @Gumbolia.5381 for the detailed instructions (see earlier in this thread).

On my mid 2014 MBpro (Mojave) with intel graphic it seems to work about the same as with the dedicated mac client so far(maybe a little less good in terms of fluidity/fps) with some minor issues like boss (bounties) taking time to load but I think it could be resolved by better setting the performances (erased the mac client settings too fast so I have to fine tune again:-)). At least I did the dailies this morning and it was playable, not perfect but I can imagine continue playing the game with that (to be confirmed with a longer experience).

Comparing to GFN I realise how even with my poor connexion having 30fps (with GFN) is smoother that the 10/15fps I usually have on the mac :-) It really is a game changing experience.I will continue evaluating GFN and PlayOnMac the next couple of weeks to see how it compares for me.

Oh also after playing the game this morning (first time), I tried to relaunch it from PlayOnMac but the GW2 loader act like the game is not installed and starts to DL everything again!! The game is still on the SSD so it is surely just a pointing issue somewhere in PlayOnMac but I did not figure it out yet. If anyone had that issue and found the solution I'll be thankful to know:-)
download 50Go each time i want to play is going to be quite cumbersome!!:-)

[Gumbolia.5381]

@Aragorn.8157:

[PlayOnMac ] starts to DL everything again

Oh no! I have not experienced that and I have run it several times.

Let me look at my setup to see if there's anything else I changed that I missed in the instructions. I did it once to get everything working, then a second time to write up the details, so it's possible I missed something.

[ASP.8093]

PlayOnMac:

I think the redownloading thing sounds like a symptom of setting your fake drives up funny. Try searching your system for "Gw2.dat" and see if any of them appear in some funny location (e.g. in a folder next to PlayOnMac instead of inside the GW2 application folder).

Also make sure you're running Gw2.exe and not Gw2Setup.exe, in the wrapper settings.

[Leila.7269]

I'm working with the Portingkit / Wineskin at the moment. FPS is significantly worse using the same settings for me. The weird mouse bug we used to have in the mac client seems to be a thing ever so often. Sometimes trying to mountup I end up in the ground and stuck, but can unmount and jump out of the ground and be ok... It does it pretty reliably in Lions Arch for whatever reason. Oddly no apparent issues with other people mounting / unmounting that I can tell. I didn't have a script or anything so it's just the basic install. I tried tweaking csmt registry setting, but to no effect.

I was doing the Temple of Kormir event across the bridge at about 9fps on a 2013 iMac with GTX 780M 4096 and 32gigs of ram for some numbers. Their might have ben another 4-5 players their with me.

I haven't messed with Wine stuff in so long I'm not really sure to even try messing with. I did try setting the vram amount instead of auto detect but didn't make any difference.

edit:Did some WvW and fps drop to 4 :(

[raaahbin.7405]

Note for anyone trying the PlayOnMac route: it appears the current version of PlayOnMac requires MacOS 10.15.x or greater. If you have an older operating system, you will need to download a previous version - I understand POM 4.3.4 supports earlier MacOS versions: https://repository.playonlinux.com/PlayOnMac/PlayOnMac_4.3.4.dmg

Also, if you're on a really old system like me, you might need to opt for 32bit (be sure to match 32bit virtual drive in PlayOnMac instructions step 9, and the 32bit installer for GW2) - PlayOnMac failed on my system when it tried to create a 64bit virtual drive.

[Gumbolia.5381]

@"raaahbin.7405 " :

the current version of PlayOnMac requires MacOS 10.15.x or greater

I don't believe this is the case. I am running PlayOnMac 4.4.1 on macOS 10.14.6.

FWIW - I just ran AB meta and it was... playable-ish at lowest settings (set with the auto-detect thing).

PlayOnMac v4.4.1macOS 10.14.6iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, 2019)3.6 GHz Intel Core i932 GB 2667 MHz DDR4Radeon Pro 580X 8 GB

• Ran with 2560x1440 resolution. Tried lower, but no real difference in FPS. Higher than that looks better but then the UI gets too small (even when adjusted with the setting).
• Mount kept getting stuck in the ground when mounting up (mentioned above). This used to be a bug in the official client which they sorted out at some point. It would queue up events and then zap me halfway across the map. This is super-annoying since I mount every 5 seconds. Then it takes 5-10 seconds to pop me out of the ground...
• The standard problem - "30-40 FPS until I look around, then it drops to 2"
• Opening bags was kind of slow - as if input was dropped and not being queued properly.

All-in-all it's borderline whether I will continue with GW2 if this is the best I can get out of it. I will continue to explore.

[Aragorn.8157]

@Gumbolia.5381 said:@Aragorn.8157:

[PlayOnMac ] starts to DL everything again

Oh no! I have not experienced that and I have run it several times.

Let me look at my setup to see if there's anything else I changed that I missed in the instructions. I did it once to get everything working, then a second time to write up the details, so it's possible I missed something.

I found the issue:-) your instructions were good, in fact I had an extra folder in Documents named Guildwars 2 where PlayOnMac installed the game, I remember it asked me where I wanted to install the game and I put it there. but indeed in the PlayOnMac folder there was a Gw.2.exe and gw2.dat but this one was empty so I just moved the first in place of the empty one and everything works like a charm now:-)

Thanks again for the instruction guide!!

I will now fine tune the settings in the game to get the best between fps/pretty/playable:-)I will post some feedback in a couple of days between GFN and PlayOnMac if it is helpful.

Cheers

[Kineseren.7215]

Playing on GeForce Now has got both me and my gf banned from GW2, similar case to this one: https://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/hyttw6/banned_after_using_geforce_now_support_claims/

Seeing that the case here is 5-6 months old, the same random security sweep apparently is still active. The only way to reverse the ban is to contact the support via an anynomous ticket (cause it's not possible to log in with the account)... and this was fixed the day after. The email they sent to me reads:

It appears this account was caught in our regular account security review. After thoroughly reviewing this account I have decided to remove the block that was placed on it. You may now access our services again.

If you are accessing our services using a VPN/proxy, please understand that we do not condone, nor do we support their usage. While we do not prohibit the use of these services we have found them to be directly associated to malicious and fraudulent activity. As such, continued use may result in additional blocks placed on the account.

As a service that they provide on their official recommendations for mac users after discontinuing the mac client, this is such a horrible experience. If they do not clarify a guideline for what may or may not get you banned and lock you out of the game until a support ticket is resolved, then they shouldn't advice people to use it. Also the support response has no mention of GeForce now but instead warns me of not using VPN, that seems quite unsatisfying too. Especially when this is identical to someone who had the same experience almost half a year ago.

-- Just a heads-up for whoever looking into using geforce now for the future

[ASP.8093]

@"Kineseren.7215" said:Playing on GeForce Now has got both me and my gf banned from GW2, similar case to this one: https://www.reddit.com/r/Guildwars2/comments/hyttw6/banned_after_using_geforce_now_support_claims/

This happened to me when I used it last summer while my laptop was in the shop. Turnaround is quick but it is, indeed, a frustrating experience.

[Bao Lin Nda.1042]

Sorry, but playing a game like GW2 with 15 FPS with reduced graphic effects is just.. not fun. So PlayOnMac and other emulators are not a thing one should even consider. Either Windows 8/10 or, if possible, Linux Mint with Lutris. GW2 on M1 - forget it, not even for the dailies, not mentioning an evening on EBG in WvW...

[ASP.8093]

@Bao Lin Nda.1042 said:or, if possible, Linux Mint with Lutris

Isn't that just another compatibility layer similar to PlayOnMac/Wineskins/&c.

[Bao Lin Nda.1042]

Lutris is IMHO so far the best Wine-Wrapper, with games often run at 90-95% of the speed compared to running natively under Windows. And it has many games preconfigured, a nice GUI and all the hacks and drivers you will need on Linux. Second best is Proton by Valve, trying both is also a god idea if a games doesn't really run well. Proton will also give you the newest D3D12-drivers aka VKD3D. Proton is made more or less by Valve, VKD3D by codeweavers.

[raaahbin.7405]

@Bao Lin Nda.1042 said:Sorry, but playing a game like GW2 with 15 FPS with reduced graphic effects is just.. not fun.

Everyone has different tastes/preferences/considerations. I’ve only ever played the game on really old Mac hardware (because that’s what I’ve got), but I still enjoy the game very much, and am worried that ANet’s move to actively kill the Mac client might bring that enjoyment to an end. What others have the luxury of calling “unplayable” is certainly playable... I just have to accept there are things I can’t do (things that require a rapid response loop between the interface and player input). I can still join in big metas and world bosses, explore the world, do story content, play some WvW, fractals. There’s plenty to enjoy. Would I like it to be faster, smoother and prettier? Of course! But playing can still be fun even with bad performance on low graphics. For me, it only becomes unplayable below about 3 FPS... which, unfortunately, is what I get out of the wine wrappers on the 64-bit client.

Of the available options:

• GFN - not available in Australia, and requires higher spec hardware than I have
• Boot Camp to win8/10 - not supported (hardware too old)
• Wine wrappers - 32-bit Windows client barely playable, but noticeably worse than either native client
• Virtualisation - overhead too much for hardware
• 64-bit Mac client - ANet about to go all “hasta la vista” on it
• 32-bit Mac client - best remaining playable after ANet kill the 64-bit

I’ll be upgrading my computer this year. It will be an M1 Mac because GW2 is the only game I play, and most of what I use my computer for is not GW2 - ANet’s move doesn’t change that. That should let me play well through GFN (if and when Nvidia make it available in Aus), and in the meantime it looks like Parallels+Windows ARM is the best solution. It looks like that yields about 40fps on best performance settings, and that will feel like luxury indeed by comparison to what I’ve always had.

[raaahbin.7405]

Report on some of the above options from a 10-year-old 13" Macbook Pro (2.7GHz Intel core i7, integrated graphics). All graphics settings are manually set to the lowest available (i.e. best possible performance)

Baseline (native 64-bit client):Load into Lion's Arch from character select screen: 42 secLion's Arch - standing still: 7 fpsLion's Arch - running/turning: 2-5 fps

The above is playable - just! (honestly, it is - it's what I've been playing on for months)

Unsupported (and no longer available) Mac 32-bit client:Load to Lion's Arch: 2m33sLion's Arch - standing still: 8-9 fpsLion's Arch - running/turning: 3-8 fps

"supported" options after ANet kill the 64-bit client:

PortingKit - 64-bit Windows client:Load to Lion's Arch: 45 secLion's Arch - standing still: 7 fpsLion's Arch - running/turning: 1-4 fps, bottoming out at less than 1 fps

PlayOnMac - 32-bit Windows client:Load to Lion's Arch: 2m33sLion's Arch - standing still: 2-7 fpsLion's Arch - running/turning: 1-2 fps, bottoming out at less than 1 fps

Even by my obviously very low standards, the wine-based options are completely unplayable on hardware this old. So the only hope for anyone else in the same boat is that they don't kill the 32-bit Mac client (and that you can get your hands on a copy of it if you don't still have it).