How to Play Age of Empires 2 Definitive Edition on Mac M1 & M2

Find out how to play Age of Empires 2 DE(Definitive Edition) on Mac M1 and M2.

There are several ways to play the classic remastered, Age of Empires 2 Definitive Edition, on M1 Mac. This includes using applications like Parallels Desktop, CrossOver, and cloud gaming platforms. I have explained each method, their advantages and disadvantages, and the game test to help you determine the best option to run Age of Empires on your Mac.

Is Age of Empires 2 Definitive Edition Compatible with Mac?

Yes, Age of Empires 2 DE (Definitive Edition) is compatible with Mac M1 or M2, but there is no official release of the game for Mac. Microsoft has always released Age of Empires for Windows only. This is the case with Age of Empires 2 DE which is officially available for Windows 10 and 11 users.

Minimum Requirement for Mac to Run Age of Empires 2 DE

I tested Age of Empires DE on my M1 Macbook Air with 8 GB of RAM. That’s the base model. The game ran fine without any lag at 1080p resolution with medium to low settings. I have shared the video of the game test in this article below.

How to Play Age of Empires 2 DE on Mac?

Age of Empires 2 DE can be played on Mac using Parallels Desktop, CrossOver, Boosteriod, GeForce Now, and Xbox Cloud Gaming.

Play Age of Empires using Parallels Desktop on Mac M1

Parallels Desktop is a third-party application that allows you to run Windows on your Mac. This means you can play any Windows game or use any Windows application on your Mac.

Steps:

1. Download and Install Parallels Desktop on your Macbook Air.
2. Open the Parallel Desktop App and complete the Windows setup.
3. Download and Install Steam right there on the Parallels Desktop Virtual Windows.
4. Open Steam.
5. Start the Game.

That’s it.

The great thing about Parallels Desktop is that it’s straightforward to set up and use. Windows will run virtually on your M1 Mac just like any other Mac application.

The latest version available for download is the Parallels Desktop 19, which is better optimized for macOS Sonoma. It can run virtual versions of Windows 10, and 11 without any problem. In addition to that, the performance is also improved in the new update with very few bugs.

Disadvantage

The one disadvantage of using Parallels desktop is that it only uses half of your system’s memory. For example, if you have an 8GB RAM Macbook Air and want to use the program at its fullest potential then only 4 GB will be allocated for Parallel Desktop–which isn’t enough when doing gaming or other heavy tasks. That’s why I recommend Parallel Desktop for Mac with 16 gigs so it can handle everything without slowing down.

Game Test

I tested the Age of Empires 2 Definitive edition on a Parallel desktop running on the Macbook Air M1(8 GB RAM) and it was not playable. So make sure you get at least a 16Gb ram model of Macbook.

How to Play Age of Empires 2 DE using CrossOver

CrossOver is similar to Parallels Desktop as it allows you to run Windows games & programs on your Mac but it does not run full Windows virtually or emulate it. The program translates Windows commands into Mac commands. This means the games and applications will function seamlessly, without any simulation running in the background or tweaking.

Steps:

1. Download and Install Cross Over on your Macbook Air.
2. Open CrossOver and install Steam from there(Note: This will be a Windows version of Steam that will run only with CrossOver)
3. Now Start the Steam.
4. Run Age of Empires 2 DE.

Fortunately, the latest CrossoOver is one hundred percent compatible with the Age of Empires 2 Definitive Edition.

On a Macbook Air M1(8GB) of RAM, the Age of Empires 2 Definitive edition runs perfectly fine. I played a full two-hour match on high settings and there was about zero lag.

Game Test

Below is the video that I made, to show you how well the Age of Empires 2 Definitive edition runs on M1 Mac via Cross over:

Crosses Over’s disadvantage is that it doesn’t support every other Windows title. But the good part is that it does support most of the popular games and the compatibility list is also increasing with time.

Check the M1 CrossOver Windows-compatible games list.

Boosteriod

You can start enjoying playing Age of Empires on any of the Macs by using the cloud gaming platform, Boosteriod. The monthly subscription has a quite reasonable price tag. For a game like Age of Empires 2 DE that is not so graphics intensive can smoothly played at full HD / 60 FPS on a 15 Mbps internet connection.

The Boosteriod can play games available on Steam. So, you will need to purchase the Age of Empires on Steam to play it on Boosteriod.

Xbox Cloud Gaming

So, Xbox Cloud is another cloud-based gaming platform from Microsoft. It’s still in beta version but there are a lot of games available on the scene to play. Users will need to have the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription to play Age of Empires DE or any other game on Xbox Cloud.

The good part is that with the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate subscription, you will also get access to a library of free games other than Age of Empires that you can enjoy playing,

GeForce Now

GeForce Now is a premium cloud gaming service by Nvidia. They offer streaming games from Steam, Epic, etc for users to play on Mac.

The platform offers different types of subscription models, with the ultimate membership offering GeForce RTX 4080-class performance which guarantees 4K 120 FPS or 240 FPS.

So, if you want to play Age of Empires 2 Definitive Edition on a 4K external monitor attached to your M1/M2 Macbook with Max settings, Geforce Now is the way to go.

Users will need to download the Geforce Now app for the M1/M2 Mac.

What do I recommend?

I recommend going for CrossOver by the Crossweaver team to enjoy playing Age of Empires 2 definitive edition comfortably on any Mac M1 model. However, if you have the high-end 16GB or the newer M2 Macs, then you can try Parallels Desktop. Apart from this cloud gaming platforms like Boosteriod, Xbox Cloud Gaming, and GeForce Now are excellent alternative options for playing the Age of Empires on Mac if you have a fast and stable internet connection.

Sikander

He is the founder, lead writer, and editor for TechWoody.com. Here, you can read his articles on general tech guides, gaming, telecom, blogging and SEO. The SEO and blogging segment is also part of his professional life. He currently runs a web-publishing agency, where he along with his team manages different niche websites. His interest in strategy games and tech along with experience in telecom blogs and online expertise led to the start of this website.