In the years since its inception, Steam has proved itself to be incredibly popular with computer gaming fans. While Steam is compatible with Mac, some games just don't work with Mac's OS. This has become increasingly problematic for Mac users who want to play popular games like Among Us and Phasmophobia. Thankfully, there are still ways to play PC games from Steam on a Mac computer.
The real question for Mac users is whether they want to run PC games natively or virtually. Depending on the answer, some programs will be more ideal than others. As one of the top sites for legally downloading games, Steam is used by millions of people. However, countless PC games are unavailable for Mac users unless they want to use a program to emulate the game or run it natively.
For anyone who wants to run PC games natively, Boot Camp is by far the most popular option. Installing Boot Camp is relatively painless, but it can take a little bit of tech savvy. Running games with Boot Camp can cause a few problems, however, since Windows games aren't meant to run on Mac. Most of these issues are minor, though. While Boot Camp works well overall, some users prefer to run their games virtually through emulation.
How To Run PC Games On Mac Virtually
The most commonly used programs for virtually playing or emulating PC Steam games on Mac are either through Parallels or VMware Fusion. Both Parallels and VMware Fusion allows Intel-based Macs to run guest operating systems - like Windows - virtually. While Parallels has a free option, users will need to pay to get the most out of it. VMware Fusion, on the other hand, is completely free as long as it's for personal use. Both programs are easy to use, which can make them a little quicker to figure out than programs like Boot Camp.
There's also Wine, a compatibility layer that allows Windows applications to run on Mac. Wine, which was originally an acronym for "Wine Is Not an Emulator," translates Windows API calls to POSIX calls, allowing PC games to run on Mac. Wine was created with gamers in mind, which is why it's ideal for any Mac users who want to play PC games like Among Us on Steam.
While any of these programs work great, it will really just come down to preferences. Boot Camp works great natively, while VMware Fusion and Parallels can virtualize the games, and Wine simply translates Windows API calls to run games smoothly. For any Mac users looking to play PC games on Steam, these programs are great.