Last year, Apple and CD PROJEKT RED revealed exciting news: Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition was set to debut on Apple Silicon Macs. For those eagerly awaiting its release, the wait is nearly over. It’s arriving next week with features aimed at enhancing image quality and boosting framerate. The great news is that the AAA title will be compatible with older M1 models. However, those looking to dive into this immersive world will need the 16GB unified RAM configuration.
CD PROJEKT RED is introducing a visual preset titled ‘for this Mac’ that fine-tunes image quality and performance specifically for Apple Silicon models. The game will hit platforms like the Mac App Store, Steam, GOG.com, and Epic Games Store on July 17, including both the base game and the Phantom Liberty expansion.
The collaboration between Apple and CD PROJEKT RED shines through in the support for older hardware like the M1. But beware, if your machine only has 8GB of RAM, you might face some limitations. Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition is heavy on VRAM, making ample memory a necessity. Apple Silicon Mac users will have extensive graphics settings to adjust, and the preset optimizes for varying chipsets. Plus, the game incorporates advanced technologies like MetalFX upscaling, MetalFX Frame Interpolation, and MetalFX Denoising, recently added to Apple’s Metal 4 API.
This innovative technology functions much like NVIDIA’s Frame Generation. It generates an immediate frame between two input frames to enhance gameplay smoothness, although it may increase input lag. To enjoy these enhancements, a solid base framerate is required. Additionally, the game supports spatial audio with head-tracking for AirPods users, enriching the gaming experience.
In terms of performance, demonstrations show that the M4 Max can reach smooth rates of 120FPS. However, our analysis indicates that this framerate relies on interpolation and upscaling. For context, an RTX 4090 laptop achieves 75-80FPS with Frame Generation and Quality DLSS at a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600, with all settings maxed out including path tracing. Once the game launches, we’ll provide a detailed performance breakdown for all Apple Silicon Macs. Stay tuned for our comprehensive updates.
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