./run_mac_gaming_2026

five amazing mac games that prove apple silicon might be the next gaming platform

apple silicon is quickly transforming the mac into a capable gaming platform. the following five titles run natively or optimally on apple silicon macs, delivering amazing experiences tailored for apple hardware, whether you have the m1 macbook air or the latest m3 or m4.

1. disco elysium: a masterpiece rpg

the experience: disco elysium is a masterpiece rpg that runs perfectly on apple silicon. it features a painterly, isometric world and dialogue-heavy gameplay. the plot is an incredibly rich combination of a murder investigation and an existential journey. the writing is compared to a great novel—sharp, witty, and adult in its themes. your goal is to solve a brutal murder mystery while confronting moral, political, and personal demons.

gameplay and pacing: this game is unconventional for an rpg as it has no combat. gameplay is dialogue and decision-driven, similar to a classic point-and-click adventure or visual novel blended with rpg elements. a unique mechanic is that the skills you allocate actually talk to you internally, acting as voices in your head that offer advice or commentary. the pacing is deliberately slow and immersive, encouraging players to explore every dialogue tree. it can take around 20 to 30 hours to complete.

mac performance notes: the game uses the unity engine and is well-optimized for apple silicon. system requirements are moderate: about 20 gb of storage and at least 8 gigs of ram. it is not demanding on the gpu and runs beautifully on any m1, m2, m3, or m4 chip.

availability & price: available on steam, gog, and the mac app store, typically priced around $39.99.

2. stray: the cyberpunk cat adventure

the experience: stray is a story-rich adventure where you play as a stray cat lost in a neon-trenched post-apocalyptic city inhabited by robots. accompanied by a small drone named b12, you unravel ancient mysteries and seek a way back to the surface. visually, it shines with a gorgeous cyberpunk aesthetic, featuring rainy streets illuminated by neon signs. the game delivers an emotional narrative despite the cat only communicating via meows.

gameplay and pacing: as a cat, gameplay focuses on platforming and puzzle-solving, utilizing abilities like hopping between rooftops and clawing open paths. it is not combat-heavy, focusing mostly on exploration, light puzzles, and stealth sequences to evade hostile creatures. the plot is short and tightly paced, managing to be finished in around 7 hours, making it a satisfying weekend adventure rather than a massive open-world grind.

mac performance notes: stray runs natively on apple silicon and is optimized for metal, even supporting metal fx upscaling technology. it requires macos 12 or later and an m1 chip or above. it is lightweight (8 to 10 gb storage) and runs smoothly, staying around 60 fps pretty consistently on mac.

availability & price: available on steam and the mac app store, launched on mac at a price of $29.99.

3. assassin’s creed shadow: feudal japan blockbuster

the experience: assassin’s creed shadow brings the blockbuster open-world series to mac, launching simultaneously with console and pc—the first ac title to do so. set in 16th century feudal japan, the plot centers on justice and revenge during the covert war between the assassin brotherhood and the templar order. the scope is epic, blending samurai drama with political intrigue and sci-fi elements.

gameplay and pacing: the game features hallmark ac gameplay: a vast open world, parkour movement, stealth assassinations, and visceral combat. it features two protagonists whose destinies converge: naoi (emphasizes stealth and agility) and yasuke (leans into face-to-face samurai combat and strength). the world is dynamic, featuring a day/night cycle and changing seasons that affect gameplay (e.g., winter can strip foliage, making stealth harder). completionists can expect a lengthy experience of 50+ hours.

mac performance notes: shadows is extremely demanding. it offers console-quality visuals, including volumetric fog, detailed textures, and ray-traced lighting. the minimum specs suggest you need at least an m1 max and 16 gb of ram. anything less powerful than an m1 max may require very reduced settings. performance can dip significantly at higher resolutions or in busy areas, sometimes below 10 fps, even on a base m4. it supports dynamic resolution scaling and apple's metal fx upscaling.

availability & price: available in the mac app store for $69.99.

4. balatro: the addictive poker roguelike

the experience: balatro is a strategic, deep deck-building roguelike wrapped in a retro-style interface. it is poker-themed and described as slay the spire meets texas holdem. the goal is to amass high scores and survive successive blinds in an illicit underground poker competition. it lacks a narrative but has a fun vibe.

gameplay and pacing: you play poker hands to exceed target scores. the unique twist is the assortment of special cards, like jokers, which bend the rules in your favor (e.g., boosting scores for flushes or allowing aces to count as any suit). success relies on building synergistic combos that turn your deck into an engine for massive hands. runs are relatively short, often lasting around an hour at most, making it very addictive.

mac performance notes: due to its stylized retro graphics, balatro is incredibly lightweight. it runs flawlessly on even base m1 macs. system requirements are trivial: macos 11 (big sur) or later, 1 gb of ram, and only 150 megabytes of disc space.

availability & price: available on steam, the mac app store, and the ios store, usually priced around $15.

5. death stranding: a profound journey of connection

the experience: death stranding, the brainchild of hideo kojima, delivers stunning landscapes and unique gameplay. the story is equal parts science fiction and supernatural, exploring themes of connection, loneliness, life, and death. expect long cinematic cutscenes and plot twists.

gameplay and pacing: the core challenge involves plotting routes and literally balancing sam’s load of packages across vast, desolate landscapes. you use tools like ladders, ropes, bridges, and zip lines to overcome environmental obstacles such as rocky mountains and timefall. while there are combat elements against human raiders (mules) and supernatural bt creatures, avoiding a fight is often the best course. a standout feature is the online asynchronous multiplayer, where players' structures and equipment appear in each other’s worlds, creating a seamless sense of community. the pacing is very slow at the start, but patient players are rewarded with an increasingly gripping and profound narrative in the latter half.

mac performance notes: death stranding runs on the decima engine and is available as a native apple silicon port. it requires an apple m series chip and will not run on intel macs. performance is impressive; it achieves around 60 frames per second consistently on a base m4 with 16 gb of ram. even an m1 macbook air can run the game on low/medium settings around 30 fps.

availability & price: available on the mac app store for $39.99.