Highball
A free, open-source macOS app and CLI that automates running Windows games on Apple Silicon Macs via Wine.
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Description
Switching from a Windows PC to an Apple Silicon Mac usually means saying goodbye to your Steam library, since Windows games don't run natively on macOS. Highball is a native macOS app and command-line tool that automates the notoriously fiddly process of getting Windows games running on Apple Silicon anyway — it configures Wine and the graphics translation layers (DXMT, D3DMetal, DXVK) for you, offers one-click Steam installation, and can pull in your Epic Games library through the Legendary client.
It maintains an open compatibility database recording which games have been verified to work and how, supports per-game renderer switching and DLL overrides for troubleshooting tricky titles, and can auto-install Windows runtime dependencies like Visual C++ and .NET Framework. It's free and open source under the GPL-3.0 license.
💬 Our review
The short version: a genuinely useful tool if you've moved to Apple Silicon and miss your Windows game library — it handles the fiddly Wine/DXVK configuration that used to require following forum guides line by line.
Highball itself points to Whisky as a related project, and the two occupy similar territory — Wine-based Windows gaming on Mac — though Highball's Steam one-click install, Epic/Legendary integration, and open compatibility database are meaningful conveniences on top of raw Wine. Compared to Parallels or CrossOver (paid, commercial), Highball is free and open source, but as with any compatibility layer, results vary game by game — check the compatibility database for your specific titles before assuming everything will run smoothly.
💰 Pricing
📊 Global score
🤖 AI-enriched data
Open source sous licence GPL-3.0.
Pros
Automatise la configuration Wine/DXMT/D3DMetal/DXVK
Installation Steam en un clic, intégration bibliothèque Epic via Legendary
Base de données de compatibilité ouverte et vérifiée par la communauté
Gratuit et open source (GPL-3.0)
Cons
Compatibilité variable selon les jeux, comme toute couche Wine
Réservé aux Mac Apple Silicon
Projet plus récent que des alternatives établies comme Whisky