macOS and Linux system requirements: Civilization VII wants a Mac with M2 Pro and more on Ubuntu 9 comments
Image: 2K Games
With the release of Civilization VII (Civ VII) approaching, it is no surprise that Firaxis has now created a system requirements profile for Mac and Linux systems. It turns out that the M1 is gradually running out of steam and Ubuntu needs more performance than Windows.
After the announcement of the system requirements for the Windows PC in October, it is now the turn of the smaller platforms of the macOS and Linux distributions.
Small details
Developer Firaxis only divides the requirements for both systems into “Minimum” and “Recommended” – the requirements for “Ultra” with 4K 60 FPS do not seem to have been set yet, at least for the time being. In general, the developer does not mention the resolutions and refresh rates that can be achieved with the two recommendations.
On the Windows PC, “Minimum” meant Full HD at 30 FPS and “Recommended” for 60 FPS at 1080p as well.
MacOS: M2 Pro is recommended
A classification with resolution would have been useful, especially on Mac, since no MacBook has a classic resolution such as Full HD or WQHD. Whether the recommendation refers to a 13″, 14″, 15″, 16″ MacBook or a studio monitor remains completely open. It is also unclear whether the MetalFX upscaler was used.
Nevertheless, the requirements already allow a first assessment: the M1 can also play Civilization VII, which means that the entry-level chip from 2020 should still be sufficient for a few games. For “Recommended”, the requirements communicated by Firaxis are much more drastic: this must be an M2 Pro with significantly more fire under the hood. The RAM should also be doubled.
This means the jump is similar to what Firaxis promises for Windows PCs: a significantly more powerful GPU than the minimum required is still recommended, and the CPU can remain just as fast. The Geekbench Metal test also shows an overview of synthetic raw performance. The M2 Pro’s GPU is twice as fast as an M1 and still noticeably faster than an M4. However, testing should show how this translates to in-game FPS and resolution.
MAC Minimum recommended operating system macOS 15 Sequoia CPU M1 (8 cores) M2 Pro (10 cores) RAM 8 GB RAM 16 GB RAM GPU M1 (7 cores) M2 Pro (16 cores) Hard disk space 25 GB
It should also be noted that macOS 15 Sequoia requires the latest macOS to be installed. With 25 GB of hard drive space, Civilization VII is 5 GB more viewable on Mac than on Windows PC.
Linux: Ubuntu will offer more GPU power than Windows
There are fewer surprises with Linux: Ubuntu, one of the most popular distributions, is recommended and the requirements are very similar to those of the Windows PC from early October. Here too, the developer foregoes resolution or FPS in order to be able to qualitatively classify the system requirements.
As a result, it is particularly noticeable here that a slightly more powerful graphics card is required for both “Minimum” and “Recommended”. Instead of an Nvidia GTX 1050, it should be a GTX 1060 for Ubuntu. However, an RTX 2070 is recommended, while only an RTX 2060 is recommended for Windows PCs.
LINUX Minimal Recommended operating system Ubuntu 22.04 Ubuntu 24.04 CPU Intel i5-4690 / AMD Ryzen 3 1200 Intel Core i5-10400 / AMD Ryzen 5 3600X RAM 8 GB RAM 16 GB RAM GPU NVIDIA GTX 1060 / AMD RX 580 NVIDIA RTX 2070 / AMD RX 6700 25 GB storage space available
A lifelong video game enthusiast, Julien reviews the latest releases and explores the technologies transforming the gaming world.
