TS4 Mac performance (compared to windows)

whoisblucraf

Hey Simmers,
I recently got a 21.5 inch iMac (2.9GHz/750m) and have both OS X yosemite and Windows 8.1 on it and have noticed that the mac version is rather lower in FPS (40% or so slower in average) - I had run a test on both versions on the iMac, both set to identical settings (1080p, all high settings with low AA and no Vsync) and on identical lots at the same time of day (through build mode).

Where the Windows version was averaging 22 fps when slowly rotating a lot & 30 when zooming in and out slowly, the mac averaged 15 fps when slowly rotating and 17 when zooming. General gameplay is also slower in my hour or so on both versions. (This was done on the 50v50 lot in Willow Creek with the entire house showing)
I know mac games normally run slower then the windows counterpart but is this normal and what other people are experiencing?

Also, do you think this is unto EA not optimising the game fully or apple not optimising there drivers fully?

Thanks, happy simming...

BluebellFlora

Hmmm. That is low fps, in the Windows install too. How is Windows installed on your Mac? Boot Camp or a VM?

Rud3Bwoyz

def not normal mines have great fps o the newest osx so good i have to limit the fps as the frames are crazy on my mac but then again we both have different macs im running the 27 imac maxed out with ssd.

whoisblucraf

I have Yosemite (10.10.3) and windows 8.1 (bootcamp) on the smallest lot in the game (starter house) its running at around 35 on mac and 50 on PC .. I've tired turning AA from low to off with a 1 FPS gain on windows and none on the mac side .. Everything is updated on both sides and windows side has latest NVidia drivers ..

Tremayne4260

It could be that your game is trying to run off of the Windows specs instead of the Mac ones. Did you copy over your Sims 4 folder or just do a fresh install on the Mac side?

whoisblucraf

I did a fresh install on both the Mac and PC and haven't copied the save files.

Tremayne4260

Strange. I use Parallels to run Windows personally. However, I did move out my Sims 4 folder and let the game regenerate a new one when I installed the Mac version. Have you tried doing that and seeing if it allows a higher frame rate?

whoisblucraf

Yes, I've even made a new test user, all get identical results.

BluebellFlora

whoisblucraf wrote: »

I have Yosemite (10.10.3) and windows 8.1 (bootcamp) on the smallest lot in the game (starter house) its running at around 35 on mac and 50 on PC .. I've tired turning AA from low to off with a 1 FPS gain on windows and none on the mac side .. Everything is updated on both sides and windows side has latest NVidia drivers ..

35 isn't really that low and is significantly better than the results you posted in your OP. EA used an older version of Python to code the game compared to the Windows users so that may be the difference.

whoisblucraf

35 is when playing on the smallest lot in the game, and with a single sim on the lot. If I go to the Bar or Gym for instance, the frame rate drops drastically ..

BluebellFlora

whoisblucraf wrote: »

35 is when playing on the smallest lot in the game, and with a single sim on the lot. If I go to the Bar or Gym for instance, the frame rate drops drastically ..

Tried disabling Origin in game? Closing all other apps including Time Machine/Dropbox etc?

I'm really not sure what the issue is. Your GPU and CPU are more than capable. It could be a driver issue but if it was everyone with the NVIDIA cards would be experiencing the same FPS - and there are a lot of us. Mine hovers between 30-50, no matter what I'm doing.

whoisblucraf

The Mac is less then a week old, I have no time machine of drop box enabled on the Mac. I've disabled origin in game and I have close all other apps and even tried an app the purges your ram before playing (clean memory) same result with or without.

BluebellFlora

Try purging during gameplay. Make sure you pause first. You don't need an app, you can use Terminal. Type in sudo purge, hit enter, type in your password when prompted and hit enter. It won't show your password but it will register the keystrokes.

whoisblucraf

Have tried this, doesn't seem to work either. How much memory does sims 4 use under OS X? Mine doesn't seem to use more then 4GB no matter the lot or number of sims..

BluebellFlora

whoisblucraf wrote: »

Have tried this, doesn't seem to work either. How much memory does sims 4 use under OS X? Mine doesn't seem to use more then 4GB no matter the lot or number of sims..

Well it's 64 bit so in theory, a ton! But mine hasn't gone over 3-4Gb either. It doesn't seem to need it really. It's probably down to the coding. Either OpenGL not being optimised properly or just not utilising the graphics power. Probably doesn't help that Apple don't seem to update graphics drivers very often. Your iMac is the late 2013 model, Apple haven't updated the iMacs for a while. Do you have a Fusion drive?