TS_eXpeed

I just wanted to check and make sure before I bought anything just to find out it doesn't give me the performance upgrade I'm looking for.

I currently have the newest gen MacBook Pro. I currently have a 2.4Ghz dual processor and 2GB of RAM.

I am wanting to buy Asphyr's version of SimCity 4 for Mac because there is no way in eck that I am running bootcamp. It a personal paranoia if you will.

I'm am decent in computer knowledge but not solid.

If I upgrade my RAM to 4GB, will that inherently make the game run faster, or is that strictly something a processor handles??

I was reading about when the Mac version first came out and the G4's with 512MB of RAM and a 1Ghz 1 core processor were running it...it sucked. I know that five years later, the technology is quite better and I know my performance is definitely better than the MacBook Pro equivalent of 5 years ago.

But I was just curious if RAM affects a games performance or if that is more a processor thing.....or both.

TS_eXpeed

Anyone??? I'm patient

jupitersolo

Yes adding ram will help game performance, but it still the CPU and video card that gives you the best results. Adding RAM to your MBP will cost $100 to go to 4gb, so do it if you can. I got mine from crucial.com.

Getting ready to order more for the desktop to get it to 4gb.

TS_eXpeed

Had I known (just like most laptops) that video cards were soldered in, I probably would've bitten the bullet and gotten a better one.



I guess I will have to live with 256MB's.

Stapler

Is the version of simcity specifically for the older ppc processors? If so I would think it takes a huge performance hit just running in the intel environment in emulation. I don't know much about macs but the game shouldn't take too much power to run. Perhaps there is a version of the game that is for the intel macs

I play simcity 4 just fine with a 2ghz pentium M, a 128mb x700 mobility radeon, and 2 gigs of ram.

TS_eXpeed

Aspyr (sp??) basically didn't a mirror format/redux of the game to be playable on Mac. It is designed specifically for Mac. Exact same game and everything. From what I understand though, there are some format glitches on the fault of Aspyr that cause the game to lag really bad or freeze. From the reviews I've read, its one of those hit or miss things. Some people have had excellent experiences with them while others have had horrible experiences and won't ever play the thing again. I guess I will never find out unless I try.

truaznballa25

i am pretty sure im right...

since this game only needs 256gbs of ram to run it, im sure just 1gb would do the trick...
upgrading the ram to 4gbs shouldnt realli show any difference in the performance of the game since its not a huge game (filesize)

normally for games, i believe that the processor would be the part tat would make the game run a lot smoother and eliminate lag.

the set up you have right now should be way more then enough to run this game... upgrading wouldnt realli show any noticeable difference in game play, for tat game.

correct me if im wrong but im pretty positive

Ikko

In the BIOS, you should be able to allocate whatever RAM you want for video; although most might limit it to 256. Not a 100% sure.

TeknoKing

^^ You are talking about AGP/VIDEO aperture size... this will not improve anything.

When you have a fast CPU with a fast GPU video card, this is the ultimate combo for gaming, as CPU handles the engine, and Video card does the rendering independently.

To the OP, you should be able to run the game without a problem.

BraveDemon

RAM will only improve game performance up to a certain point; even then I think 2gb for Sim City should be enough.

I'd say in terms of performance boosts, the from top to bottom the upgrades that will net you the most Frame rate/load time improvement list is:

1. Processor
2. Vid Card
3. Hard Drive Speed
4. RAM (size and speed)

If I had to guess, your Mac book pro should run Sim City 4 just fine. I dont know much about Macs since I've always been a PC guy, but from what little you've told me about the specs on your Mac, it seems like it should run.

IMO: IF you dont need the RAM for other purposes, just get the game first and then get the RAM. Last thing you wanna do is spend money on RAM and then get the game to realize that you could've run it just fine without the upgrade.

doopstr

That's true but that game is so old that I don't think its universal binary (intel native).

Upgrading the RAM won't help that game at all, it ran fine on my G4 mac mini so I imagine your macbook will be fine even if it needs to use rosetta to do the powerpc emulation.