Highball
Which renderer to use
Highball can run each game through three different Direct3D translation layers. This is what the database knows for this title — empty rows are open questions, not failures.
| Renderer | Verdict | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| DXVKDirect3D 9-11 over Vulkan | Untested | no report yet — send one |
| DXMTDirect3D 11 over Metal | Untested | no report yet — send one |
| D3DMetalApple's Game Porting Toolkit | Reported | community reports |
No dated Highball run yet. When one lands it records the renderer, the engine build and the macOS version it was seen on — which is what stops a verdict quietly rotting. Send one.
Notes
DirectX 12, so D3DMetal. Like the original, the game refuses to start without AVX, which Rosetta hides unless asked, so the recipe advertises it to the game. Works once that is on, by the reporter's account on an M4 Max. Nothing was measured here.
Known issues
"Death Stranding requires a CPU with AVX support" at launch
What helps the recipe advertises AVX (from the next Highball version). By hand now, turn on Advertise AVX in the environment's settings
Why Rosetta hides AVX unless asked
One-click setup
Highball ships a recipe for Death Stranding Director's Cut: open the game in your Library and apply it. The recipe carries the tested renderer and any per-game fixes, so you don't have to reproduce them by hand. Read the recipe.
Provenance
Reported by zezzzz11 (highball#514, 2026-10-26), Apple M4 Max, macOS 27.0.1, Highball 0.10.22, engine x64-sikarugir10.0_6-r29, D3DMetal: stopped with 'requires a CPU with AVX support' until AVX was advertised in the environment's settings, then worked fine. The original Death Stranding's page and recipe carried the fix, but the Director's Cut is its own Steam app, so it never reached this copy. Not verified by the maintainer.
Before installing anything, it is worth checking whether the game already ships a native Mac build.
Common questions
Does Death Stranding Director's Cut work on Mac?
Death Stranding Director's Cut has no native Mac build, but it is reported to run on Apple Silicon through Highball, a free open-source compatibility layer. This comes from community reports rather than a Highball test run, so treat it as a reasonable expectation rather than a guarantee.
Which renderer should I use for Death Stranding Director's Cut?
D3DMetal. Highball can translate Direct3D through DXVK, DXMT or Apple's D3DMetal, and the right choice varies by game. The database records D3DMetal for Death Stranding Director's Cut, and applying the Death Stranding Director's Cut recipe sets it for you.
Is there a one-click setup for Death Stranding Director's Cut?
Yes. Highball ships a recipe for Death Stranding Director's Cut that sets the tested renderer and any per-game fixes. Open the game in your Library and apply it.
Contribute a result
This page is generated from an open database. If you have run Death Stranding Director's Cut on Apple Silicon, working or not, a report takes a minute and fills in the empty rows above. Send a report, or read how the data is put together.