Game screenshots
The era of the AI laptop is here. Much of the hype around this is driven by the marketing of the folks making these laptops, but there’s plenty here to like even if you’re an AI hater.
Microsoft’s CoPilot Plus laptops use Qualcomm Snapdragon processors rather than Intel or AMD ones. Just like when Apple switched over to using its own M-series CPUs in MacBooks, laptops like the Microsoft Surface Pro 11 have quite phone-like brains now.
They are still alarmingly powerful, though, and early reports suggested they wouldn’t be too bad at gaming either.
I’ve tested the Microsoft Surface Pro 11th Edition with 25 games from my Steam, GoG and Epic libraries to see how well they work.
These CoPilot Plus laptops sure can play and, unlike more conventional laptops or gaming PCs, you seem to get the same performance whether you are plugged in or not.
An hour of The Witcher 3 takes 51 percent off the battery level, suggesting it can work for two hours maxed-out. That may not sound like a lot, but it beats gaming PCs and those with conventional performance CPUs. The Microsoft Surface Pro 11th Generation I used also has the lowest battery life claim of the first wave of Snapdragon X laptops. Other models will last even longer.
Microsoft uses a compatibility layer to get games and apps working on these laptops, required because the Qualcomm processors don’t have the same architecture as traditional laptop and desktop CPUs. I picked titles from across the decades, because the compatibility layer could potentially struggle with older games more than newer ones.
I played each for at least a few minutes, but you’re not looking at a Digital Foundry style breakdown here. It’s just a rough guide as to what will be possible if you’re considering jumping into the CoPilot Plus laptop arena early.
Here’s a look at how those 25 games play. Or don’t play.
Can CoPilot Plus laptops play games? 25 titles tested
Amid Evil
Will it play? Absolutely
Epic graphics, 60fps, native resolution.
Bioshock Infinite
Will it play? With minor cuts to visuals
Runs respectably at native resolution, up to High graphics. For mostly 60fps use 1920 x 1200 resolution, up to High graphics (required command line tweak for proper fullscreen view).
Control
Will it play? Yes, with careful use of graphics settings
Runs well for 30fps+ with low settings, at a render resolution of 1680 x 1050.
Cyberpunk 2077
Will it play? Barely. A 30fps experience is possible, but it’s not the game at its best
According go the in-built benchmark, you can get an average of 31fps at 1920 x 1280 pixel resolution, with Performance mode FSR resolution scaling. However, it’s tricky to avoid sub-30fps drops when driving, and things start to look pretty rough when you drop the output resolution below 1080p.
Fallout 4
Will it play? Yes, but not at native resolution
Highly erratic frame rate at ultra graphics, only runs at 1440 x 960 in native aspect ratio, 40-55fps in Medium graphics.
Final Fantasy VII
Will it play? Absolutely
Runs fine, needs a controller really.
Grand Theft Auto Vice City (original edition)
Will it play? No, not without some additional effort on this hardware
Throws up a “cannot find 640 x 480 video mode” error message.
Half-Life 2
Will it play? Absolutely
Runs at 60fps.
Leisure Suit Larry 1
Will it play? Absolutely
Runs fine but looks over-sharpened thanks to scaling (a display setting you can turn off).
Minecraft
Will it play? No, but probably will do from other sources
Refuses to download from the Microsoft Store.
Morrowind
Will it play? Yes, although performance is oddly variable given the game’s age
Runs at anything from 40fps to 200fps depending on the scene, won’t fill screen, with a max resolution of 2048 x 1536.
No Man’s Sky
Will it play? It crashes too often, but performance wasn’t a problem
Can run at 60fps with 50% resolution scaling but often throws up a fatal error on loading.
Oblivion
Will it play? Yes, but you apparently can’t max everything out and get 60fps
Runs well but can drop to 40fps at maximum resolution when using maxed-out settings.
Realms of the Haunting
Will it play? 28 years on, this one’s too much for the Qualcomm X Elite
Runs, but suffers from strangely terrible performance.
Resident Evil 7
Will it play? Yes, and it looks great
Can dip below 30fps with everything maxed, 40fps with FidelityFX Super Resolution dropped to Balanced. Can get higher frame rate results with some tweaks. Highly playable.
Return of the Obra Dinn
Will it play? Absolutely
Runs at 60fps.
Skyrim (original edition)
Will it play? Yes, although graphical sacrifices are needed for 60fps
1920 x 1200 resolution, high 30s frames per second and above. High 40s to 60 at Medium, Low stretches at 60.
Skyrim: Special Edition
Will it play? Not well at native resolution, and won’t go full-screen at lower resolutions without tweaks
Native resolution, ultra settings means 11-13fps. Can run at mostly 30+ in 1920 x 1200, medium settings. But won’t go full-screen without hacks. Should run well at lower resolutions, moderate settings, once you’ve figured that out.
Slay The Spire
Will it play? Yes, but not without frame rate drops (pre-tweaking)
Only borderless screen mode supports max resolution, and only seems to run at up to 60fps despite having a 120fps mode, in the mid 40s to mid 50s in battles.
Subnautica
Will it play? Yes
Runs quite nicely at 1920 x 1280 resolution at the Medium preset with a 40fps frame rate cap to stabilize things.
Tales from the Borderlands
Will it play? Absolutely
Runs at native resolution, graphics maxed, mostly at 120fps.
The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow
Will it play? Yes
Runs fine at 40fps.
The Secret of Monkey Island: Special Edition
Will it play? Yes, needs tweaks for best results
Runs great at 60fps, doesn’t support native resolution and the scaling causes oversharpening.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Will it play? Yes, and use the latest Direct X 12 version
Dx11 version: Will only run at 1024 x 768 or 1152 x 768. Hovers around 40fps in towns at medium.
Dx12: 1920 x 1200 with FSR and dynamic resolution scaling works best. High 30s in towns, up to High settings seems do-able. Looks much better than the DX11 version.
Ultima Underworld 1
Will it play? No
Crashes upon loading.
Verdict
The compatibility layer used by these Copilot Plus laptops is brilliant, and it makes them miles more useful than the Snapdragon laptops of a few years ago. A Microsoft Surface Pro can make just as good a gaming PC as a recent conventional laptops. And a better one in terms of battery life, noise and heat generation.