HighballWhich 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 | 1 report |
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
The Epic copy, reported perfect on D3DMetal on the default engine. Some menus show item icons missing, which the reporter is not sure is the Mac's doing.
Known issues
Some menus have item icons missing
What helps none needed so far
Why not diagnosed
Provenance
Reported by kandzsem (highball-db#511, 2026-10-16), the Epic copy, Apple M4, macOS 26.1, Highball 0.10.15, engine x64-sikarugir10.0_6-r26, D3DMetal, sync none, scale 192 dpi, 60 fps cap, recipes steam, epic-games, controller-sdl and dotnet48, rated 5 of 5 after 34 minutes. Not verified by the maintainer.
Before installing anything, it is worth checking whether the game already ships a native Mac build.
Common questions
Does Nova Lands work on Mac?
Nova Lands 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 Nova Lands?
D3DMetal. Highball can translate Direct3D through DXVK, DXMT or Apple's D3DMetal, and the right choice varies by game. The database records D3DMetal for Nova Lands. Highball uses it automatically when the game has a row; to set it by hand, open Settings, then Environments.
Contribute a result
This page is generated from an open database. If you have run Nova Lands 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.