Doom: The Dark Ages Struggles on Handheld PC

The much-anticipated Doom: The Dark Ages has finally arrived, and if you're a fan of handheld gaming PCs like the Asus ROG Ally X, you might be eager to see how it performs. Aiming for a minimum of 30 frames per second (fps) for playability, with a dream of reaching 60fps, let's dive into the performance details.

The world of PC gaming handhelds is thriving, and the Asus ROG Ally X stands out at the forefront. While it shares the AMD Z1 Extreme processor with many of its competitors, its secret weapon is its ample 24GB of system memory, with 16GB dedicated to the GPU. Moreover, the memory operates at a blazing 7,500MHz, offering superior memory bandwidth crucial for the integrated graphics of the Z1 Extreme.

This makes the ROG Ally X the ideal candidate for testing Doom: The Dark Ages. It's the benchmark for whether less powerful handhelds can keep up, especially as games become more demanding. We'll see how it holds up until the next generation of handhelds hits the market later this year.

The Best Handheld Gaming PC### Asus Asus ROG Ally X

7With twice the battery life and significantly faster memory, the Asus ROG Ally X has positioned itself as the top handheld gaming PC available. See it at Best BuyCan the Asus ROG Ally Handle Doom: The Dark Ages?

Before you dive into Doom: The Dark Ages, ensure your chipset is updated. On the ROG Ally X, this is straightforward: Open Armoury Crate (located in the bottom right menu), click the cogwheel at the top, and navigate to the Update Center. Look for the AMD Radeon Graphics Driver update. If it's not listed, select Check for Updates. Once the RC72LA update appears, choose Update All.

For these tests, the Ally X was plugged in and set to Turbo Operating Mode (30W) to maximize performance. I also set the Texture Pool Size to the maximum vRAM of 4,096 megabytes in the in-game graphics menu, far exceeding the default 2,048, yet still well within the 24GB RAM capacity, even at Ultra Nightmare settings.

Tests were conducted with resolution scaling disabled. Although I tried dynamic resolution, the results mirrored the 720p metrics because the target frame rates were unachievable, causing dynamic resolution to default to 720p.

Doom: The Dark Ages ROG Ally X PerformanceUltra Nightmare, 1080p15fpsUltra Nightmare, 720p24fpsNightmare, 1080p16fpsNightmare, 720p24fpsUltra, 1080p16fpsUltra, 720p24fpsHigh, 1080p16fpsHigh, 720p26fpsMedium, 1080p17fpsMedium, 720p30fpsLow, 1080p20fpsLow, 720p35fpsThe test involved repeatedly playing the opening section of the second mission, Hebeth, due to its intense action and effects that push the hardware to its limits. The results were sobering.

At 1080p, Doom: The Dark Ages on the Ally X is unplayable, averaging just 15fps on Ultra Nightmare. Lower presets barely improved this, with Nightmare, Ultra, and High averaging 16fps, and Medium slightly better at 17fps. Only the Low setting at 1080p managed 20fps, but it's still not smooth enough for enjoyable gameplay. 1080p is simply not viable at any graphics preset.

Performance improved at 720p, yet still fell short of ideal. Ultra Nightmare, Nightmare, and Ultra averaged 24fps, while High managed 26fps. These frame rates are not truly playable but might be tolerable for those desperate to experience Doom: The Dark Ages on a handheld. It wasn't until Medium at 720p that the game reached a playable 30fps, with Low settings achieving a more comfortable 35fps.

Asus ROG Ally X Isn’t Ready for Doom: The Dark Ages

Despite my love for handheld gaming PCs and my Asus ROG Ally X, it's clear they lack the power needed for Doom: The Dark Ages. The Ally X struggles significantly with the game, only reaching the minimum 30fps threshold on Medium and Low settings at 720p.

Steam Deck users will face similar challenges, as its hardware is less capable than the Ally X. Expect to play at 800p on Low settings just to hit 30fps, a scenario that applies to all current-generation handhelds.

However, there's hope on the horizon. The next generation of mobile chipsets, like the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme, is expected to hit the market soon. It's rumored to power the Asus ROG Ally 2, and there are even whispers of an Xbox-branded model. We'll have to wait and see how these advancements impact the performance of demanding titles like Doom: The Dark Ages.