Vulkan: Random permanent 0 FPS freeze on macOS (Apple Silicon)

[Casatiello72]

Description of the issue

Description

On macOS with Apple Silicon (M4 Pro), Ryujinx randomly drops to 0 FPS while using the Vulkan backend.
The game appears to keep running (audio may continue), but rendering freezes permanently and never recovers.
There are no performance problems before the freeze.

Environment

• OS: macOS (latest)

• Hardware: MacBook Pro M4 Pro

• Ryujinx version: latest build

• Graphics backend: Vulkan (MoltenVK)

• Games affected:

  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
  • Super Mario Galaxy

Expected Behaviour

The game should continue rendering normally without entering a permanent 0 FPS state.

Actual Behaviour

• FPS drops to 00,00 FPS (∞ms)
• Rendering freezes and never recovers
• Emulator must be closed and restarted
• No gradual slowdown or stutter beforehand

Settings Used

Graphics:

• Vulkan backend
• Shader Cache: ON
• Texture Recompression: ON
• Macro HLE: ON
• Color Space Passthrough: ON
• Graphics Backend Multithreading: ON
• VSync: Switch

System / CPU:

• Hypervisor: ON
• Memory Manager: Host (Fast)
• DRAM Size: 8 GiB
• FS Integrity Checks: OFF

Notes:

• macOS build does not expose GPU Accuracy / Async Shader Compile options
• Vulkan is the only available backend on macOS
• Games are stored on an external SSD
• Ryujinx cache is stored on the internal SSD

Reproduction steps

Steps to Reproduce

1. Launch Ryujinx on macOS
2. Start a game (BOTW or Mario Galaxy)
3. Play normally (performance is excellent)
4. After some time, the emulator randomly drops to 0 FPS
5. Rendering remains frozen indefinitely

Log file

Ryujinx_1.3.3_2026-01-05_13-57-01.log

OS

macOS

Ryujinx version

1.3.3

Game version

BOTW 1.8.2
Super Mario Galaxy 1.3.0

CPU

M4 Pro

GPU

M4 Pro

RAM

24 GB

List of applied mods

None

Additional context?

This appears to be a Vulkan + MoltenVK rendering deadlock specific to macOS / Apple Silicon.
Issue is random and not tied to performance drops, overheating, or shader compilation.

[LotP1]

SM Galaxy is a known issue, but BotW should work.
Could you try on latest Canary?
Also please make sure that the log you upload actually includes a game launch.

[Casatiello72]

Hi, thanks for your help!
Switching to the Canary build fixed the 0 FPS freeze, but I’m now experiencing frequent graphical flickering, especially during camera movement and in shader-heavy scenes in BOTW.
This happens even with VSync ON.

I’ve attached the relevant logs (Debug, GraphicsBackend, and optional FSAccess) so you can see what’s happening.
Do you know if this flickering can be fixed, or is it a current limitation on macOS?

Ryujinx_Canary_1.3.243_2026-01-05_21-07-48.log

Thanks!

[LotP1]

please attach a log that actually has any contents.
when you open the emulator it creates a new log, so you might need to look at the second newest log.

[Casatiello72]

Ryujinx_Canary_1.3.243_2026-01-05_21-52-42.log

Here, it should have contents now