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 curious whether this powerhouse can run the game smoothly. I’m setting 30 frames per second as the minimum threshold for playability—anything above that is a bonus, especially aiming for 60fps, which feels ideal but seems unlikely given the game’s high-end demands.

The previous installment, *Doom Eternal*, performed impressively well on the Asus ROG Ally, so expectations were naturally high. Unfortunately, *Doom: The Dark Ages* brings a significant performance drop, and fans hoping for similar results will likely be disappointed.

A Closer Look at the Hardware

The current landscape of PC gaming handhelds is quite diverse, yet the Asus ROG Ally X stands out from the crowd. While it shares the AMD Z1 Extreme processor with several other handhelds, it has a key advantage: generous RAM allocation. With 24GB of system memory onboard—16GB of which is dedicated to the GPU—and a blazing-fast speed of 7,500MHz, the Ally X offers significantly higher memory bandwidth than its competitors. This plays a crucial role in maximizing the potential of the Z1 Extreme’s integrated graphics.

Because of these specs, the ROG Ally X is the best candidate for testing how *Doom: The Dark Ages* performs on handheld hardware. If even this device struggles, it sets a benchmark that shows just how far behind other handhelds truly are—at least until next-gen models arrive later this year.

The Ultimate Handheld Gaming Experience

### Asus ROG Ally X

With double the battery life and ultra-fast memory speeds, the Asus ROG Ally X has solidified its position as the top handheld gaming PC available today. You can find it on Best Buy for an unbeatable experience.

Can the Asus ROG Ally Run Doom: The Dark Ages?

Before diving into performance results, make sure your system is up to date. Updating your chipset drivers is straightforward on the ROG Ally X: Launch Armoury Crate via the bottom right menu, tap the gear icon at the top, and navigate to Update Center. The AMD Radeon Graphics Driver should appear as an available update. If not, click “Check for Updates.” Once RC72LA appears, select “Update All” to proceed.

For this test, the Ally X was plugged into power and set to Turbo Operating Mode (30W) to maximize performance. Additionally, I increased the Texture Pool Size in-game to the maximum value of 4,096MB instead of the default 2,048MB. Given the Ally X’s ample RAM headroom, this adjustment had no negative impact on overall performance.

All benchmarks were conducted with resolution scaling disabled. Dynamic resolution tests were also performed, but since frame rates failed to reach target thresholds across all settings, dynamic resolution defaulted back to 720p regardless. Therefore, only static resolution results are included below:

• Ultra Nightmare, 1080p – 15fps
• Ultra Nightmare, 720p – 24fps
• Nightmare, 1080p – 16fps
• Nightmare, 720p – 24fps
• Ultra, 1080p – 16fps
• Ultra, 720p – 24fps
• High, 1080p – 16fps
• High, 720p – 26fps
• Medium, 1080p – 17fps
• Medium, 720p – 30fps
• Low, 1080p – 20fps
• Low, 720p – 35fps

To ensure consistent benchmarking, I replayed the opening section of the game’s second mission, Hebeth, multiple times. This area immediately throws players into intense combat filled with visual effects and particles, pushing the hardware to its absolute limit. The results were surprising—even disappointing.

At native 1080p resolution, the Ally X simply cannot handle *Doom: The Dark Ages*. Ultra Nightmare yielded a mere 15fps average, rendering the game unplayable. Even when lowering settings to Nightmare, Ultra, and High, the average barely improved to 16fps. Medium offered a slight bump to 17fps, while Low reached 20fps—still far from smooth. In short, 1080p is simply not viable under any graphical preset.

Performance improves at 720p, though it's still not ideal. Ultra Nightmare, Nightmare, and Ultra averaged 24fps, with High hitting 26fps. These results may feel bearable in a pinch, especially if you're determined to play the game on a handheld. However, playable performance only starts kicking in at Medium settings, where the Ally X managed a steady 30fps. Dropping further to Low resulted in a more fluid 35fps average.

The Asus ROG Ally X Isn’t Up to the Challenge… Yet

While I'm a huge advocate for handheld gaming PCs and particularly fond of my Asus ROG Ally X, this test reveals that even this flagship device isn't powerful enough to run *Doom: The Dark Ages* smoothly. Saying the Ally X struggles with the game would be an understatement. If 30fps is your baseline for enjoyment, then Medium or Low settings at 720p are your only realistic options.

Steam Deck owners won’t fare any better, as its specs fall short compared to the Ally X. If the game barely runs on Asus' premium handheld, there's little chance it will perform better on Valve’s device. At best, Steam Deck users might squeak out 30fps at 800p resolution using Low settings—but even that would be pushing it.

Still, all is not lost. As next-generation mobile chipsets begin rolling out, such as the anticipated AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme, we’ll see major improvements in handheld gaming capabilities. Rumors suggest the Z2 Extreme will power upcoming devices, including the rumored Asus ROG Ally 2 and possibly even an Xbox-branded model. Until then, patience is key—especially for those eager to experience graphically demanding titles like *Doom: The Dark Ages* on the go.