Maxon has announced that future versions of its Cinema 4D running on Mac computers will require newer versions of OS X to support the AVX instruction set and Metal, Apple’s proprietary 3D graphic and compute shader API.
This move has caused controversy amongst several Cinema 4D users who have resisted upgrading to macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 and higher, citing stability issues and lack of support for 32-bit applications.
“We recognize maintaining backward compatibility is essential to not disrupting our customers’ production pipelines. However, there are often significant advancements in hardware performance make [sic] maintaining backward compatibility an unattainable goal,” the company stated in a blog post announcing the future system requirements.
“We understand this may be a challenge, but we believe finding a balance between supporting older technology and embracing modern technology is an important step in keeping our software ready for the future,” the blog concluded.
If you’re trying to decide whether to update to OS X 10.13.6 or higher, or have questions about what this announcement means for your own installation of Cinema 4d, contact Nodal!