Doom: The Dark Ages Struggles on Handheld PC

The much-anticipated Doom: The Dark Ages has arrived, and if you're a fan of handheld gaming PCs, you might be curious about its performance on the Asus ROG Ally X. Setting the bar at 30 frames per second (fps) as the minimum for a playable experience, with a dream goal of 60fps, let's dive into how the Ally X handles this demanding title. While the previous game, Doom Eternal, ran smoothly on the Ally, Doom: The Dark Ages presents a different challenge.

The landscape of PC gaming handhelds is rich and varied, with the Asus ROG Ally X standing out at the pinnacle. It leverages the same AMD Z1 Extreme processor as many of its peers but distinguishes itself with a whopping 24GB of system memory, of which 16GB is dedicated to the GPU. This memory runs at a brisk 7,500MHz, offering superior memory bandwidth crucial for the Z1 Extreme's integrated graphics.

This makes the ROG Ally X the prime candidate for testing Doom: The Dark Ages, as it's best equipped to meet the game's steep system requirements. As games continue to push the envelope in terms of demand, the Ally X serves as a benchmark for what less powerful handhelds might achieve – until the next wave of handhelds hits the market later this year.

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

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

Before jumping into the game, ensure your chipset is up to date. On the ROG Ally X, this is straightforward: Open Armoury Crate from 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, hit Check for Updates. Once the RC72LA update is available, select Update All.

For our tests, the Ally X was plugged in and set to Turbo Operating Mode (30W) to maximize performance. In the game's graphics menu, I allocated the maximum vRAM to Texture Pool Size, setting it to 4,096 megabytes, well within the 24GB RAM capacity even at the highest settings.

All tests were conducted with resolution scaling disabled. While I did test with dynamic resolution, the results mirrored those at 720p, as the target frame rate remained out of reach, forcing the 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, 720p35fpsFor testing, I repeatedly played the opening section of the second mission, Hebeth, in Doom: The Dark Ages. This part immediately immerses the player in intense action, pushing the hardware to its limits with its visual effects and particle systems. The results were eye-opening.

At 1080p, running Doom: The Dark Ages on the Ally X was a struggle. Ultra Nightmare yielded an average of 15fps, rendering it unplayable, with minimal improvement at lower settings. Nightmare, Ultra, and High settings averaged around 16fps, while Medium edged up to 17fps. Only the Low setting at 1080p managed an average of 20fps, but it still lacked the smoothness needed for enjoyable gameplay. In essence, 1080p is unfeasible across all graphics presets.

Switching to 720p improved things slightly, yet it's far from ideal. Ultra Nightmare, Nightmare, and Ultra settings averaged 24fps, while High settings reached 26fps. These frame rates, while playable in a pinch, don't offer the fluid experience gamers crave. It wasn't until dropping to Medium settings at 720p that the game became truly playable, hitting the 30fps mark. Low settings at 720p were even better, averaging 35fps.

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

As a dedicated fan of handheld gaming PCs and owner of the Asus ROG Ally X, it's clear that this device struggles significantly with Doom: The Dark Ages. To achieve the bare minimum of 30fps, players must resort to Medium or Low graphics presets at 720p.

Steam Deck users will likely face similar challenges, given its less powerful specs compared to the Ally X. Expect to play at its 800p resolution on Low settings just to reach 30fps, a reality for all current-generation handhelds.

However, hope is on the horizon. The upcoming next-generation mobile chipsets, including the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme, are expected to hit the market this year. Rumors suggest this chipset might 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 games like Doom: The Dark Ages.