Tears of the Kingdom Mac Port Reaches 90 fps in Tests

An unofficial Tears of the Kingdom Mac port has reached around 90 fps in developer testing.

Tears of the Kingdom Mac port: the test limits

The MacNativeGames developer says earlier tests on a MacBook Air M4 and Mac mini M4 reached those gameplay results after shaders warmed up, with menus reaching 120 fps. Shaders are programs used to draw the game’s graphics. The project’s test summary warns that the figures are earlier observations, not a stable frame-rate promise across every scene or game version.

The October 19 report presents the Mac project as faster than the Switch 2 edition and a separate Windows project. The developer’s own caveats leave those comparisons short of a controlled benchmark.

The version 1.4.3 test notes show why averages need context. A fixed-camera survey on an M4 with 16 GB of memory measured roughly 83.9 to 110.2 fps across 15 valid locations, but a first camera turn in the Depths produced a frame lasting about 902 milliseconds. Some sky-island footage also briefly showed 35 fps. Fixed-camera averages can hide those pauses.

Native code, with graphics options and unfinished work

The native approach runs the game’s ARM64 code directly on Apple chips, with changes for macOS and graphics translated to Metal. Mac gamers can use compatible PlayStation and Xbox controllers.

The graphics tests confirm a 2560 × 1440 composition canvas and interface. The game still controls its separate 3D rendering resolution, so every part of the picture is not necessarily rendered at 1440p.

You must build the app from your own files

The setup requirements include:

• An Apple silicon Mac running macOS 26 or later, with at least 16 GB of memory recommended.
• Your purchased game, plus keys and system files dumped from your own Switch.
• Xcode command-line tools, Homebrew, and Terminal commands to build the app.

The repository contains no game content. The independent project has no Nintendo affiliation, and the official Tears of the Kingdom release remains a Nintendo console game.

Before building, check the current test notes for unresolved compilation stalls, memory growth during longer sessions, and audio issues.

Image credit: Nintendo promotional screenshot, via Zelda Wiki.

Credit: Notebookcheck, GitHub, Nintendo, Zelda Wiki, Unsplash