Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

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heinzrondorf
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Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by heinzrondorf »

Since Panzer Corps will not run on macOS Catalina I finally got around to set up my system so that I can dual boot between Catalina and High Sierra. Catalina is for work and everyday tasks and High Sierra is dedicated for Panzer Corps :)!

The idea is to keep High Sierra clean, not install anything, not update it, and only use it to play Panzer Corps.

Before I upgraded to Catalina I did the below steps on my Mojave install but it is possible you can do it if you have already upgraded to Catalina as well. I have not tested that though.

BEWARE! DO THIS ON YOUR OWN RISK AND ALWAYS BACKUP YOUR DATA BEFORE YOU DO ANY CHANGES TO YOUR SYSTEM!

1. Created a new APFS volume called High Sierra using Disk Utility which is included in macOS
2. Downloaded macOS High Sierra by using this tool http://dosdude1.com/software.html
3. Created a bootable USB drive using Disk Drill https://www.cleverfiles.com - you need a CLEAN USB drive (since everything on it will be overwritten) which is at least 8GB or so.
4. Booted the High Sierra installer (hold ALT/OPTION when the computer boots up) from the bootable USB drive and installed High Sierra on the new volume (in my case called High Sierra) which was created in step 1
5. Started up High Sierra by holding ALT/OPTION on startup. Since High Sierra is only for Panzer Corps I kept the configuration of it to a minimum so I did NOT set up iCloud, mail etc nor did I install any apps or software. All of that remains in Catalina.
6. Installed and activated Panzer Corps on the new High Sierra installation

By holding the keys ALT/OPTION on system boot you can switch between the two different versions of macOS. In my case the default system will be Catalina.

Catalina:

Image

High Sierra:

Image

Image
VPaulus
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by VPaulus »

Good tutorial.
Thanks.
markawil
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by markawil »

All of that just to run a 32 bit game? Wouldn't it be easier to ask the dev team to recompile the app for 64 bit architecture?
VPaulus
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by VPaulus »

I'm afraid not. It's not a question of recompilation like you can do in certain generic engines, but rather making a "new" game in a 64 bit engine.
heinzrondorf
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by heinzrondorf »

markawil wrote: Fri Nov 08, 2019 3:54 am All of that just to run a 32 bit game? Wouldn't it be easier to ask the dev team to recompile the app for 64 bit architecture?
Yeah I can understand it's not everyones cup of tea to install a second macOS just to play an old game but Panzer Corps is the only game I ever play so for me it's worth it... 8). It is actually not hard to do what I described above, it probably takes 1-2 hours in total if done correctly and most of that time is waiting for macOS to finish installing so the time you actually spend on it is not that much if done correctly. But again, I realise it might put some people off.

Some people might find it easier/prefer to instead play the Windows version on Mac using third party software such as Wineskin or Parallels Desktop. There is a separate thread on that here:
viewtopic.php?t=91104

One advantage with using the Windows version is that it makes it easier to use mods, editors etc.

I tried the Windows version some time ago but since I have a Macbook Pro with a trackpad (instead of an external mouse) and the Windows version more or less requires a real, physical, mouse I prefer the "native" macOS version.
dalfrede
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by dalfrede »

One can also use VertualBox to play PzC on Catalina.
Here I used Linux ubuntu and SteamPlay but Windows can also be used.
Does not require separate booting.
Probably not easier that the dual booting, but is an alternative.
Wine does not work with DirectX which is a PzC2 issue, which is why I have been looking at this.
PzCLinuxCat.jpg
PzCLinuxCat.jpg (179.84 KiB) Viewed 8398 times
There comes a time on every project when it is time to shoot the engineer and ship the damn thing.
MajorCyco
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by MajorCyco »

Another option, and one that I use is Boot Camp. Pretty easy to set up and supports all of your 32-bit games. Much better than trying to run it virtually.
GDiers
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by GDiers »

This definitively does not work. Followed everything perfectly. When I start operation to create a modified copy, I get an error message stating my flash drive needs to be formatted correctly. I tried with two brand new 32 Gig flash drives. Both didn't work using this process...
huevillo92
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by huevillo92 »

It's really disappointing that for such a good and expensive game they don't make an update for Catalina. It's also very disappointing that they don't make Panzer Corps 2 for Mac or iPad. Unless they fix it soon, I don't think I'll ever buy games from this company again.
heinzrondorf
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by heinzrondorf »

GDiers wrote: Wed Apr 01, 2020 7:50 pm This definitively does not work. Followed everything perfectly. When I start operation to create a modified copy, I get an error message stating my flash drive needs to be formatted correctly. I tried with two brand new 32 Gig flash drives. Both didn't work using this process...
What step is it that does not work for you? Formatting the flash drive?
heinzrondorf
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Re: Mac: Run Panzer Corps on macOS Catalina

Post by heinzrondorf »

huevillo92 wrote: Sat Apr 11, 2020 5:19 pm It's really disappointing that for such a good and expensive game they don't make an update for Catalina. It's also very disappointing that they don't make Panzer Corps 2 for Mac or iPad. Unless they fix it soon, I don't think I'll ever buy games from this company again.
It is disappointing and I hope they change their mind for Panzer Corps 2 and release a native Mac version in the future. I have read it is possible though to run Panzer Corps 2 on Mac using Parallels but I have not tried that myself since I don't think my Macbook is powerful enough.

For Panzer Corps 1 the solution in this thread works (I just finished the Grand Campaign 45 today on my High Sierra boot) but I realise it might seem overly complicated for many people just in order to play an old game.
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