Is it possible to play Microsoft Flight Simulator on Mac?
Microsoft Flight Simulator is a new simulator game that looks fantastic! This is the next part of the civil flight simulators from Microsoft, which has excellent realistic graphics, following Microsoft Flight Simulator 2012. Photo realism was achieved thanks to the Microsoft Azure artificial intelligence technology, which processed real satellite images using the procedural generation of grass, buildings, trees, and other objects. As a result, everything turned into a full-fledged 3D. Therefore, you can fly even over your home, different countries and attractions, including natural ones. On the way, you are allowed to land at one of the 40,000 airports in the world. It was released in August 2020 on Windows. Will Microsoft Flight Simulator be on Mac? Unfortunately, Apple users still can’t download it because the macOS version doesn’t exist. Anyway, Microsoft Flight sim can work on your Mac/MacBook. In the article below, we will try to help you run Microsoft Flight Simulator on Mac, or MacBook.
Play Microsoft Flight Simulator on Mac with Parallels
Microsoft Flight Simulator requires lots of PC resources, but you can run it anyway, by using Parallels. This is software for Windows virtualization on Mac with the full support of DirectX and GPUs. It allows you to install you have a decent Mac configuration, you can install Windows 10 on Mac with a couple of clicks and switch between MacOS and Windows instantly. You can run Windows just like on a regular PC, install Steam and enjoy Microsoft Flight Simulator game on Mac.
Note: Recommended devices to run resource-demanding games: MacBook Pro (models with an Intel processor, discrete graphics cards, and 16 GB of RAM or more), iMac (models with Intel processor, discrete graphics cards, and 16 GB of RAM or more), iMac Pro (all models are suitable), Mac Pro (all models are suitable). Parallels on Mac computers with M1 (M1 Pro, M1 Max) chips may not support recent games. Games that require DirectX 12 and later are currently not supported by Parallels. AppsOnMac recommends using Parallels’ free trial feature to determine whether you can run the game or not if you’re uncertain.
Play Microsoft Flight Simulator on Mac with cloud gaming services
If you have an old Mac, or it cannot fully satisfy Microsoft Flight Simulator game system requirements, there is a potential solution. Cloud gaming provides you sufficient cloud resources for a fixed fee. All you need is a browser or a small client program and a good internet connection starting from 15 MBits/s. There are several great services, that provide such an opportunity, among the best are Xbox Cloud Gaming, Boosteroid and Nvidia GeForce Now. Among all services, ONLY Xbox cloud gaming supports Microsoft Flight Simulator and allows you to play it on high graphic settings on Mac or old Windows PC.
Play Microsoft Flight Simulator on Mac with BootCamp
Note: Mac computers with new Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3 Pro, or M1, M2, M3 Max) currently do not support BootCamp. In this case, please, use the options above to run Microsoft Flight Simulator.
This method is simple but time-consuming. You need to set up a dual boot of Windows and Mac via BootCamp. BootCamp allows users to choose the system to work in on startup, however, you won’t be able to switch between systems like in Parallels. You will need to reboot your machine every time you switch from Mac to Windows and vice versa. Remember that Mac is just a computer, that uses common processors, RAM, disks, and other components. So you can install Windows on Mac by allocating disc space of minimum 50 Gb (to be able to run Windows and a couple of games). To set up Windows via BootCamp, please, do the following:
For OS X El Capitan 10.11 or later
Mention, that for macOS versions prior to OS X El Capitan 10.11 you will need to create bootable Windows USB.
- Download Windows ISO file
- Open Boot Camp Assistant (Go to Applications > Utilities)
- Define the Windows partition size, choose downloaded Windows ISO file
- Format Windows partition and go through all Windows installation steps
- When Windows boots for the first time, follow on-screen instructions to install Boot Camp and Windows support software (drivers)
Welche System-Mindestvoraussetzungen / Empfohlene System-Voraussetzungen gelten für den Mac, damit das Spiel mittels Parallels flüssig ausgeführt werden kann ?