Apple Updates Game Porting Toolkit With Support for Bringing Mac Game Ports to iPhone, iPad

Apple unveiled several new features coming to macOS Sequoia later this year, during its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC 2024) last month, including an updated version of the company's Game Porting Toolkit. The tool is designed to help developers bring popular AAA titles designed for Windows and enable them to run on macOS. Later this year, Apple's Game Porting Toolkit 2.0 will arrive with support for iOS and iPadOS as well, which means that games ported to run on Mac computers as well as iPhone and iPad.

Game Porting Toolkit on macOS Sequoia to enable porting games to iOS, iPadOS

At WWDC, Apple announced that macOS Sequoia would be rolled out to users later this year, along with support for Game Porting Toolkit 2.0, which would arrive with new features. 9to5Mac spotted more details revealed in a WWDC 2024 session, that confirms that developers will soon be able to bring games from fpr PC to iPhone and iPad.

The original version of Apple's Game Porting Toolkit allows developers to port games from Windows to macOS, with support for converting DirectX graphics (used on Windows games) to its macOS equivalent — MetalFX.

When Game Porting Toolkit 2.0 arrives later this year, game developers will be able to port their games to macOS, and then port those games to iOS and iPadOS. These titles are also likely to offer similar functionality on mobile as their macOS counterparts, including support for controllers and Spatial Audio while using compatible Apple accessories and speakers.

One notable omission in terms of platforms to be supported is Apple TV. The company's recent models are equipped with powerful processors, such as the A15 Bionic chip, which means they should be capable of running some games that would be compatible with the iPhone 13, which is equipped with the same processor. 

Developers who want to test out the latest version of the toolkit can download the latest beta versions of macOS Sequoia. Apple's Game Porting Toolkit 2.0 will be launched later this year when macOS Sequoia is rolled out to eligible Mac models, alongside iOS 18, iPadOS 18, watchOS 11, and tvOS 18.