Guild Wars 2 Fã¼r Mac Download
At the start of 2021, ArenaNet announced that they would no longer be supporting the macOS client for Guild Wars 2. As a longtime role player, I institute this… unfortunate.
In that location are several ways to run the Windows customer on a Mac including dual-booting Windows with Bootcamp, but that'due south non an pick for me. Running in a virtual car like VMWare or Parallels is also boring, so that leaves some class of Vino which is a Windows compatibility layer. The onetime macOS 32-chip Guild Wars 2 client actually used a version of Wine to run. It wasn't every bit practiced every bit when they released a 64-fleck native client, just it worked for a time.
I tried several ways to run Society Wars two using Wine before finding ane that works for me. In this post I'll explain how to ready it up.
Notation: Click on the images for larger versions.
My Machine
I am running a 2019 iMac with:
- macOS 10.14.half-dozen
- 3.6 GHz Intel Cadre i9
- 32 GB 2667 MHz DDR4
- Radeon Pro 580X 8 GB
So it really should be able to handle this really old game…
What I Tried
The start matter I tried was PlayOnMac 4.4.1. Information technology worked alright for general PvE, but information technology was still likewise slow even on basic graphics settings and the lawmaking to install different WINE versions was cleaved. They stock-still the download problem in iv.4.2, but they made that version crave macOS ten.15+ for some reason.
The next thing I tried was a direct Wine build – version 6.5 (wine-devel-6.5-osx64) which I downloaded from here. This worked alright likewise, a bit amend than the PlayOnMac one, but didn't have any overnice config & install capabilities similar some of the wrappers do.
Then I plant Gcenx/WineskinServer. This did the trick.
I'll pace through everything I did to become Gild Wars two upwardly-and-running at a reasonable framerate for me.
This looks similar a lot, but I've just been incredibly verbose for those that need a bit more management.
Download Stuff
We need to download two things:
- the 64-bit version of the Guild Wars ii Windows installer from ArenaNet
- the latest WineskinServer (v1.8.iv.two at the time of writing – there's a link nether "Manually installation" (sic))
Generate The Wineskin Wrapper
Decompress the Wineskin.Winery.txz file nosotros merely downloaded by double-clicking it, right-click the Wineskin Winery.app, and select Open. You'll probably go a dialog complaining about something and you'll accept to click another push button that says Open.
Wineskin Winery – Main
Click the "+" to add together a new engine.
Wineskin Winery – Add Engine
Select WS11WineCX64Bit20.0.2 and click Download and Install.
Wineskin Winery – Engine Added
When that'south complete, it will show up in the listing in the main window. Next we need a wrapper, then click the Update push in the Wrapper Version department.
Wineskin Winery – Update Wrapper
Click OK to download and install the latest one.
Back in the chief window, click the Create New Blank Wrapper button at the lesser of the window.
Wineskin Winery – Create Wrapper
Give it a name similar GW2 and click OK.
As it sets itself upwardly, you will become this window request well-nigh Gecko a couple of times. Just click Cancel to skip it.
Wine – Gecko Installer
Once it has finished, it will evidence y'all this window. Click View Wrapper in Finder to evidence the new application.
Wineskin Winery – Wrapper Created
The application volition be in your habitation directory's Applications folder. Once nosotros've completed all the setup and installation, this is what you volition run when you want to play Guild Wars 2.
Setting Upwardly The Environment
When you run new application, GW2.app, y'all volition be presented with the Wineskin principal window to finish your setup.
Wineskin – Main Window
Click the Screen Options button and turn on all the options.
Wineskin – Screen Options
Note (16 May 2021): Later writing this upwards I experimented a little. You don't need to turn on Retina Mode. With information technology off, the loading window will be a more reasonable size and the resolutions will still work properly when the game is running.
Go back to the main window and click Advanced.
Wineskin – Avant-garde Settings
Go to the Tools tab.
Wineskin – Tools
Click the Winetricks button in the Utilities section in the centre. Winetricks is a tool used to easily prepare some configuration and install other libraries and programs.
Wineskin – Winetricks
We are going to install an application, several libraries, and alter a couple of settings.
Under the apps section, select 7zip. (I don't know if this is strictly necessary for what we're doing, just I have it installed, so I'm including information technology hither.)
Nether the dlls section, select d3dcompiler_47 and d3dx9_43.
Under the settings section, choose fontsmooth=rgb and win10.
Click the Run button and y'all should become a confirmation dialog.
Wineskin – Winetricks Install
Click Yes, wait for it to install and set everything upward, and close the window.
Back in the Advanced Settings, choose the Advanced tab. If it is non on, turn on the last setting to disable Gecko installation. This will forbid that window nosotros saw earlier from popping up all the time.
Note (25 June 2021): This may already be turned on. It is possible a newer version of the wineskin wrapper does this for you.
Wineskin – Advanced Advanced Settings?
Click the Install Software button at the bottom of the window.
Wineskin – Install Executable
Click the Choose Setup Executable button and select the Windows Guild Wars two installer you downloaded before.
Installing Guild Wars ii
The first thing it will do is a bunch of downloading and updating…
Club Wars 2 – Updating Itself
One time it's finished with that, you volition exist at the master Club Wars 2 window with a bright INSTALL button. Click that. This will pop up a salve dialog that's difficult to read (because we accept the Retina thing on), but it should exist installing in the correct location: C:\Plan Files\Order Wars 2.
Social club Wars 2 – Install
Now it will brainstorm the main install process.
Guild Wars two – Login Screen
When the install is completed, or you interrupt it to re-create over the data file, you will be asked to set the executable for this wrapper. Choose the Gw2-64.exe nosotros just installed.
Wineskin – Choose Executable
Copying The Information File From An Old Installation
If you have an old installation of Guild Wars 2 and don't desire to re-download the ~fifty GB of data, you can close the window with the "x" in the pinnacle-right and copy over the data file.
This is where the data file is on the macOS client:
Guild Wars two – macOS Information File
You lot need to correct-click the Guild Wars 2 64-fleck.app file and choose Evidence Parcel Contents.
Observe the Gw2.dat file and copy information technology to the wine installation nosotros but completed. To find that, get to your dwelling Applications/Wineskin/GW2.app, right-click it and choose Evidence Packet Contents. (Notation this is not the system Applications binder – it'southward in your home directory.)
The file we want to replace is hither:
Wineskin – Guild Wars 2 Data Location
Play!
In one case it's all installed, you should be able to play! For reference, these are the graphics settings I've been using lately:
Guild Wars 2 – Graphics Settings
You volition have to play effectually with your graphics settings to get something that works for you.
Useful Extras
Getting Back To The Wineskin Settings
To get dorsum to the Wineskin settings for your GW2.app to install new things or to adjust your settings, go to your home Applications/Wineskin/GW2.app, correct-click it and choose Show Package Contents. So double-click Wineskin.app.
Icon
An icon isn't strictly necessary, but it'south nice to see it in the dock when Guild Wars two is running. If you have your old macOS installation, you tin click the Browse push button next to the icon and navigate to /Applications/Guild Wars 2 64-bit.app/Contents/Frameworks/Gw64.framework/Versions/GuildWars2.111959/Resources/app.icns
Wineskin – Set To Scroll
Double-Click Speed
I found the default double-click speed super abrasive. To change information technology, go to the Advanced -> Tools tab and click the Registry Editor (regedit) push button. This will run the Windows registry editor for your installation. Navigate to the HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Command Panel/Mouse department and double click the DoubleClickSpeed entry to enter a new value. I utilise thousand.
Wineskin – regedit
Caveats/Bugs
So far it's been pretty solid. Things I've noticed:
- Considering I set Retina Mode on, the principal Guild Wars 2 login screen is tiny. Non that big a problem since it handles the resolution properly in-game.
- I get a very occasional crash when switching maps. (Twice in the three weeks I've been playing with this version?)
- Sometimes your character ends up mounting within the ground & information technology takes a while to resolve itself. It then plays all the events that happened while "paused" and launches you lot beyond the map… This used to happen with the old macOS customer, but seemed to have been fixed in the native one. Abrasive, just non a bargain-breaker.
- Participating in large events can be boring – not besides surprising since it used to happen before anyways. It's definitely slower than the native client was, merely and so far it's playable for me. It might not exist good enough for competitive PvP or WvW though.
Conclusion
If yous accept any feedback on ways to improve this process or ways to improve perfromance, please leave a comment beneath.
That's information technology. I hope it works for you and I'll come across y'all around Tyria!
Praise Joko!
Guild Wars 2 Fã¼r Mac Download
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