Since getting my hands on gaming handhelds, I've played dozens and dozens of titles from the comfort of my bed or couch. It's so convenient that I rarely find myself playing on my gaming laptop these days.
However, some games don't play so nice with handheld gaming PCs, so I'm here to give you a list of adventures that I personally have enjoyed on my portable gaming devices.
Without further ado, here are the games that I've enjoyed most on my Steam Deck, ROG Ally, Legion Go, or all three.
To get the best experience out of your gaming handhelds, you might need to change some system settings as well as gaming settings. I recommend you increase ROG Ally VRAM or increase Legion Go VRAM, especially when playing more demanding games. Meanwhile, Steam Deck owners should consider enabling Proton Experimental mode for better compatibility.
Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom (Metroidvania)
I managed to grab Monster Boy and the Cursed Kingdom back in 2019 when it was on sale, and I loved it so much that I've played it multiple times since then on my PC gaming handhelds.
This Metroidvania from Game Atelier and FDG Entertainment has you play as a young blue-haired boy named Jin who goes on a quest to undo his uncle's spell, which turned everyone into animals.
Throughout the course of the game, you'll unlock different animal forms, which you can use to reach new areas and solve puzzles. It's an immensely satisfying precision platformer filled with fun animations and challenging fights.
Since it isn't visually demanding, the adventure runs smoothly, and your handheld won't run out of battery as quickly as it would with some other titles.
Blue Prince (3D Puzzle Adventure)
I got so sucked into Raw Fury's Blue Prince when it first came out that I basically ate, slept, and breathed this puzzle adventure until I beat it on my ROG Ally. It isn't all that graphically intensive, so it runs beautifully on my handheld.
The game starts by telling you that you're set to inherit your eccentric and super-rich uncle's estate, but only if you enter his mysterious Room 46. Thing is, you can't just walk through this grandiose villa.
In a very roguelike manner, players draw cards before unlocking a door and must choose a room from one of those cards. So, it's up to you to lay down the cards in a way that allows you to solve puzzles and pick up helpful tools that allow you to venture far into the estate.
If you hit dead ends or run out of steps, your day ends, and you'll have to start all over again. But if you play it right, you'll learn at least one new thing during each run that will help you in the next. It's a very satisfying loop that I recommend to everyone.
I suggest you keep notes about what you learn as you explore. There is a lot of information in various places that you'll need to put together.
Immortals Fenyx Rising (Open World RPG)
![Immortals Fenyx Rising: Launch Trailer | Ubisoft [NA] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/U4zb1yiFlQo/maxresdefault.jpg)
Immortals Fenyx Rising is very much Ubisoft's response to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Gameplay is rather similar to Nintendo's hit RPG, but with menus that are reminiscent of Assassin's Creed Odyssey and an open world wrapped in ancient Greek mythology rather than Hylian lore.
You start the game as the titular Fenyx, a character of your making who finds themselves shipwrecked on the island of the gods and looking for their older brother. The powerful titan Typhon has weakened the gods, so it's up to you to explore the land and set things right again.
Along the way, you'll battle classic monsters, dive into mini dungeons (Vaults of Tartaros), acquire powerful gear, glide with Icarus' wings, ride various creatures, become stronger, and see what drama queens the ancient gods are.
This adventure stands out for its playful nature and sarcastic characters, which will teach you classic hero stories while allowing you to forge your own.
Gameplay runs smoothly on most mainstream PC gaming handhelds, but you might want to play with your charging cable plugged in or with the handheld connected to a docking station, since the battery can drain somewhat quickly.
Stardew Valley (Farming and Life Sim)
Few games obtain the lasting power of ConcernedApe's cozy life and farming sim. Although this wholesome game originally released in 2016, it's received regular updates that have expanded upon it and turned it into many people's go-to.
The story starts with you learning that you've inherited your grandfather's farm in Stardew Valley. It's in disrepair, so it's up to you to improve upon it while getting to know the locals in the nearby town. You'll make friends and can even start a family using the game's dating system.
Much like with Animal Crossing, this is a fun, casual game that you can spend a few moments playing each day while tending to your animals, harvesting produce, and more.
Thanks to its nostalgic pixel graphics and simple gameplay, Stardew Valley doesn't put a lot of strain on handhelds. It should run lag-free on most devices and won't drain the battery too quickly either.
Baldur's Gate 3 (Single-player and multiplayer turn-based RPG)
I've played dozens, if not hundreds, of hours of Baldur's Gate 3 (BG3) across my Steam Deck, ROG Ally X, and MSI Claw 8 AI+, and I've done so with both single-player and multiplayer runs.
I can't recommend this game enough, whether or not you're familiar with the Dungeons & Dragons world it's set in.
Unless you've been living in a hole, you'll know by now that BG3 is widely considered the very best game to have launched in recent years. It won a ton of awards for its impressive graphics, emotional voice acting, challenging turn-based combat, and the freedom it gives players to play the way they want.
You start the game off captured by mind flayers who infect you with an Illithid parasite that will turn you into one of them. However, the ship you're being transported in gets attacked, and so you and other infected individuals make your escape. For some reason, you and your group aren't transforming.
The rest of the story is all about traveling with your companions and trying to determine whether or not you should remove the parasite or try to use the powers it gives you to become stronger. Many of your decisions have lasting consequences and can greatly alter the course of the story.
In general, the game runs pretty well on most mainstream gaming handheld PCs. However, the third act of the game does have far more NPCs walking around, and that can make some parts near the end somewhat choppy.
Additionally, BG3 does tend to drain handheld batteries quickly, so I recommend playing while plugged into a charging cable or docking station. As I said, I've put a lot of time into BG3 on my handhelds, and I highly recommend experiencing the adventure that way.
Fallout 4: Game of the Year Edition (Open-world RPG)
When Amazon Prime Video's Fallout TV series came out, it made me feel nostalgic for Fallout 4, so I downloaded it onto my ROG Ally and started a new game. I even wrote a guide on how to optimize Fallout 4 for PC gaming handhelds, if you're interested.
Fallout 4 originally released way back in 2015, but it's still many people's favorite entry in the series.
You play as a parent in Vault 111 who witnessed their spouse getting killed and their child being taken. Now you're on a mission to explore the post-apocalyptic world to find out what happened to your son. The world is filled with radiation horrors, so you'll have to learn how to survive and become stronger.
Since this is an older open-world RPG, the graphics aren't nearly as straining as some of the latest AAA games, which helps it run smoothly on most handheld gaming PCs.
Age of Empires (Real-Time Strategy City Builder and multiplayer)
I grew up playing the original Age of Empires II and often think fondly back on the early 2000s summers where I'd attack my brothers' civilizations on one side while stealing their sheep from another.
In 2019, this classic real-time strategy (RTS) game got a 4K Definitive Edition with new campaigns, civilizations, and other upgrades. Since then, Xbox Game Studios has even added controller optimization, with command wheels that make it far easier to build your civilization without needing a mouse.
In other words, it's the perfect strategy game to enjoy on a gaming handheld PC.
You can duke it out against other players or the computer in multiplayer. Meanwhile, you can also play the solo campaigns and learn about moments in history while doing so.
More games to play on handheld gaming PCs
- Age of Mythology: Retold (RTS single-player and multiplayer with gods)
- Amber Isle (Animal Crossing but with dinosaurs)
- Back to the Dawn (Fox prison break RPG)
- Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden (Colonial Ghostbusters)
- Balatro (Roguelike Poker that will hook you)
- Celeste (An emotional precision platformer about scaling a mountain)
- Crash Bandicoot N-Sane Trilogy (Classic cartoony platformer)
- Cult of the Lamb (Keep your cute followers happy while building a cult)
- Cyberpunk 2077 (Survive in an open-world sci-fi epic with Keanu Reeves)
- Dead Cells (Action roguelike and Metroidvania)
- Hades (Mythological Roguelite with sexy gods)
- Hades II (Roguelite sequel in Early Access)
- Journey (Cinematic cozy adventure game)
- Little Kitty Big City (Wreak havoc as a black cat)
- Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (Fight cartoon enemies and unlock abilities)
- Shantae and the Seven Sirens (Platform and unlock magic to solve puzzles)
- Slay the Spire (Use cards to fight enemies and battle your way up a tower)
- Spyro Reignited Trilogy (Platform around as a young dragon)
- Stray (Play as a cat trying to get home)
- Streets of Rage 4 (Duke it out with beautifully drawn fighters )
- Vampire Survivors (Shoot blood suckers and get more powerful)
What game genres tend to play well on handheld gaming PCs?
A wide range of genres play well on PC gaming handhelds, including Metroidvanias, platformers, open-world games, card games, puzzle games, and much more.
That said, games with simpler 2D graphics tend to put less strain on handheld gaming PCs and often drain the battery more slowly than more graphically intensive games.
You'll always want to double-check the specs of your handheld and the system requirements for each game to ensure it will run well on your device. For instance, some games might run well on an ROG Ally, but won't run well on a Steam Deck.
Tell me the games you love to play on your handheld gaming PC
I hope you enjoy checking out the seven games I personally love to play on handheld gaming PCs. In general, games with 2D graphics or games that don't put as much strain on the GPU and CPU tend to run more smoothly while allowing a handheld's battery to last longer.
Still, I'm more than happy to play with the charging cable attached if it means playing games from the comfort of my bed or couch.
There are certainly more amazing games to enjoy on handheld gaming PCs, and I'd love to hear your recommendations if you have any.
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