So far it has behaved rather well, surprisingly.
I am about 1 year into a small (2x2) embark on a pocket world. 12 dwarves, with a fairly reliable 40fps.
Considering that this is a PHONE, and that it is running in emulation, that's not that bad really. (Also, I do have graphics mode turned on, I just dont have a pack installed. Want me to fix that?)
Mostly though, I was going for the most ironic use of clickbait title I could come up with. "One Weird Trick" seemed the most appropriate.
Every so often, I like to revisit old arguments, such as the "mobile devices not powerful enough!" angle. Really, DF wants the biggest CPU and the most RAM you can throw at it, no question. But that does not mean that resource constrained fortresses are not possible; they just require more consideration.
This is an older phone. (What, are we up to Galaxy 11 yet?) It's literally 5 generations of that model behind. (I just dont break my stuff, and use it until it no longer is fit for function.)
For comparison, this S5 has these specs
Dual core SnapDragon 810 CPU @1.9ghz
2GB RAM
16Gb internal storage
And the current flagship product has:
8nm octa-core Exynos 9820 / 7nm octa-core Snapdragon 855
8GB RAM
128GB internal storage
The more recent phone is significantly more powerful--
https://www.anandtech.com/show/14031/samsung-galaxy-s10-first-exynos-9820-vs-snapdragon-855-scoresBasically, it is "Essentially playable, if constrained" on a rather potato-like phone. (I have an EVEN MORE potato-like phone I can test it on, if you really want.
An LG Optimus Zone 3)
https://www.pdevice.com/product/lg-optimus-zone-3-specsThe topic of running DF on mobile devices has come up again and again over the years, which is why I decided to try this, just for shits and giggles. That it was playable was worth sharing.