We live in a small apartment and I'm trying to get my wife into gaming, but we don't have room for two traditional tower PCs. I'd like to give her a system that can run newer games smoothly at modest settings while keeping the size as small as reasonably possible.
She already has a newer MacBook Air, and we've also considered buying a MacBook Pro because macOS would be our preferred option. How practical is modern gaming on a Mac, and would a MacBook Pro solve most of the compatibility or performance issues?
I'm also considering a gaming laptop, though I've heard that laptops tend to have shorter lifespans because of limited cooling. Is that generally true? Would a small-form-factor desktop, mini tower, ITX build, or gaming laptop make the most sense for this situation?
5 Answers
The smaller the PC gets, the more carefully you have to choose the parts. Very high-end processors and graphics cards can overwhelm the coolers in tiny cases, so it may be smarter to choose hardware a generation or two old that still meets the games’ recommended requirements. ITX is a reasonable lower limit if you want strong performance without accepting major thermal and component compromises.
Gaming laptops are convenient and easy to move, but you generally pay more for desktop-level performance and get less cooling headroom. They can last for years if they’re well designed and kept clean, but their compact cooling systems run hotter and most parts are difficult or impossible to upgrade. A desktop with decent airflow will usually be the better long-term value.
For the best balance of size, performance, cost, and future upgrades, I’d look at a small-form-factor desktop. A micro-ATX build is usually easier and cheaper to work with, while an ITX system can be smaller but often costs more and gives you fewer component options. You can still fit a capable gaming PC into a fairly compact case without going all the way down to an ultra-tiny design.
Don’t rule out having two compact PCs in a small apartment. A small desktop connected to the TV can take up very little room, and an mATX or ITX system can be placed on a shelf or beside existing furniture. If the goal is gaming at home rather than frequent travel, that setup is usually more capable and less expensive than a laptop.
Mac gaming is possible, but compatibility is the biggest problem rather than raw hardware performance. Many games are designed and optimized for Windows, and getting them running through translation layers or other workarounds can add performance overhead or introduce glitches. Unless the games you care about are known to run well on macOS, I wouldn’t choose a Mac specifically as a gaming machine.
That makes sense. I’m mainly aiming for smooth performance at modest settings, so avoiding the hottest high-end parts should make the build easier and probably cheaper too.