Audio with lower pitch and crackling

ChaiTRex

I've installed Elder Scrolls Online through Steam on macOS with an M1 processor. When I click Play in the launcher, the audio immediately begins to crackle and audio from other applications has a lower pitch than usual, even after I quit out of ESO. I've found a way to fix it if you're using a macOS administrator account.

Turn off Game Mode

First, turn off Game Mode. Press Play in the launcher. When the game is running, go into ESO settings and turn off fullscreen video so that you can see the macOS menu bar. Then, click the game controller icon and turn Game Mode off. Then, go back into ESO settings and change it back to fullscreen if you had it that way.

This setting will be remembered, so you shouldn't have to do it more than once.

Restart the macOS audio system once the game is running

Exit the game so that only the launcher is running. Open the Terminal application, then press Play in the launcher. After the logo videos start to play, press Command+Tab to get to the Terminal application. Run sudo pkill coreaudiod to restart the macOS audio system. It'll ask for your account password because it's a macOS administrator action.

Switch back to the ESO application and wait several seconds for the audio to start back up. If it doesn't come back after several seconds, try it again from where you press Command+Tab. Once the audio is running on ESO, unpause any background audio in other applications because restarting the audio system can pause playing audio, then go back into ESO.

You'll have to do this every time you press Play in the launcher.