Is it possible to play Starship Troopers: Terran Command on Mac?
Starship Troopers: Terran Command is a real-time strategy game released in 2022. With the RTS genre experiencing a bit of a resurgence, we finally got some new titles, and the fans of the genre are no longer forced to play decades-old games (though many continue to do so willingly). Not all of these newly-released RTS games are good, but Terran Command certainly is. Set in the Starship Troopers universe of Robert Heinlein, it delivers an immersive, gritty, and fairly unforgiving experience. The whole sci-fi universe of Starship Troopers is defined by humanity’s war with insectoid alien species known as Arachnids. Countless planets find themselves embroiled in this conflict, and just recently, another one got added to this list. Kwalasha is a barely-habitable rock with extremely hot climate, colonized only because of its attractiveness to the mining industry. With a weak, extraction-based economy, impoverished citizenry, and a nonexistent military, Kwalasha cannot hope to fend off the alien invasion on its own. The Mobile Infantry will be handling the threat, and you will be leading them. Officially, this game is available only on Windows PC. But what if you wanted to play Starship Troopers: Terran Command on Mac? There are several unofficial ways to accomplish this; learn about them in the guide below.
Play Starship Troopers: Terran Command on Mac with Parallels
Starship Troopers: Terran Command requires lots of PC resources, but if you have a powerful Mac computer (iMac, iMac Pro, or Mac Pro) Parallels Desktop can be a solution. This is an application that allows for Windows virtualization on Mac with the full support of DirectX and GPUs. In simpler terms, what this means is that it allows you to install Windows 10 on Mac with just a couple of clicks and switch between MacOS and Windows instantly. So you will be able to run Windows, install Steam (or Epic Games Store), and enjoy the Starship Troopers: Terran Command game on Mac just like on a regular PC.
Please note that not all games are supported by Parallels. Several conditions must be met for the game to be playable. Your Mac must exceed minimum system requirements for the game; meeting them is not enough. Generally speaking, you will need an iMac Pro or a Mac Pro to run demanding games. Some MacBook Pro and iMac models are also suitable; they must have an Intel processor, a discrete graphics card and at least 16 GB of RAM. If your Mac has an Apple Silicon chip (such as M1, M2, M3), you may experience issues playing modern games. Games that require DirectX 12 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 Starship Troopers: Terran Command on Mac with cloud gaming services
If you have an old Mac or it cannot satisfy the Starship Troopers: Terran Command game system requirements, there is an easy solution. Cloud gaming services will be happy to provide you with sufficient computing power – though not for free, of course. All you need is a browser or a small client program and a good internet connection starting from 15 MBit/s. There are several great platforms that provide these services, among the best are Boosteroid, Xbox Cloud Gaming, and NVidia GeForce NOW. As Boosteroid has Starship Troopers: Terran Command in its game library, it is an excellent choice for those seeking to try the game out.
Play Starship Troopers: Terran Command on Mac with BootCamp
Note: Mac computers with new Apple Silicon (M1, M1 Pro, M1 Max, M2 Pro, M2 Max, M2 Ultra) currently do not support BootCamp. In this case, please, use the options above to run Starship Troopers: Terran Command on Mac
This method is simple but time-consuming. If your Mac meets all the system requirements above, you can play Starship Troopers: Terran Command on Mac by installing Windows. You need to set up a dual boot of Windows and Mac via BootCamp. This is an application that 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 want to switch from Mac to Windows and vice versa. Remember that Mac is just a computer, in the end. And while newer Macs have their own special Apple Silicon chips that cannot run Windows, older Macs are very much similar to computers that run Windows, they have Intel processors, compatible RAM, disks, and other components. So you can install Windows on an older Mac by allocating no less than 64 GB of disk space (to be able to run Windows and a couple of games) and following these steps:
For OS X El Capitan 10.11 and older
For MacOS versions prior to OS X El Capitan 10.11 you will need to create a bootable Windows USB.
- Download this Windows ISO file.
- Open Boot Camp Assistant (Go to Applications > Utilities).
- Define the Windows partition size and choose the Windows ISO file you’ve downloaded.
- Format the 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)