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 | Reported | community reports |
| D3DMetalApple's Game Porting Toolkit | Untested | no report yet — send one |
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
Reported playable on DXMT, the default mode, over a 2-minute session, with a few stutters. Ubisoft Connect's overlay stayed on screen claiming the graphics drivers are outdated, and online play didn't work, which the reporter put down to the anti-cheat. No measurement here yet.
Provenance
Reported by Picksley (highball-db#409, 2026-10-08), Apple M4, macOS 27.0.1, Highball 0.10.10, engine x64-sikarugir10.0_6-r21, the environment in DXMT mode, rated 4 of 5 after 2 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 Watch_Dogs® 2 work on Mac?
Watch_Dogs® 2 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 Watch_Dogs® 2?
DXMT. Highball can translate Direct3D through DXVK, DXMT or Apple's D3DMetal, and the right choice varies by game. The database records DXMT for Watch_Dogs® 2. 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 Watch_Dogs® 2 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.