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There are two kinds of Steam Deck players. Those who plug in and panic every two hours, and those who carry a power bank and keep playing like gods. I’ve tested a lot of power banks over the past year, and. Some were great, others burnt out far too quickly. The four below are the ones I keep reaching for, are some of the best Steam Deck accessories going, and they’re also currently discounted during the Amazon Spring Sale.
LiDAR or “light detection and ranging” is a way of working out and picturing the distance to an object by shooting laser beams at it, and timing how long it takes the laser to bounce back to the scanner. It’s been used for a bunch of Hard Science-y purposes, from mapping cave systems to measuring changes in the Amazon forest canopy. It’s also become popular among artists, who use it to create high-fidelity yet abstractly coloured and ethereal visualisations of, for example, rivers. Now here’s LiDAR Exploration Program, a “relaxing atmospheric horror” game from KenForest, in which you roam maps with a handheld LiDAR gun scanning the geography into being.
Fancy a bit of Left 4 Dead in your Warhammer 40,000: Darktide? Oh, well that’s convenient, as the game’s Nightmare and Visions update just dropped today, adding in Mortis Trials, a new wave-based game mode. The wave-based nature really is what it says on the tin: scores of enemies come after you round after round, but in this mode you’ll get Indulgences, which is just lorespeak for upgrades you can unlock on different runs.
Back in 2020, co-founder and former CEO of Blizzard Mike Morhaime formed Dreamhaven, essentially Blizzard 2, albeit a bit more explicit in the fact that it has different studios working under it. One of said studios, Secret Door, is currently working on co-op strategy game Sunderfolk, and today as part of a showcase presented by The Game Awards, the other studio Moonshot Games revealed its first title: Wildgate, a sci-fi shooter that sees you piloting ships around space looking for loot as you face off against other players.
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor is, for the most part, a pretty unexceptional game that does most things pretty competently, though it does manage to slip into that coveted 7/10, imperfect but has something special about it to keep you thinking about it. I’m talking about its Nemesis system, a mechanic that means certain enemies you face off against remember you and your actions as they get stronger, maybe even calling out certain occasions where they killed you. It’s a lovely bit of design that, as it turns out, kind of just exists to stop the second hand game market.
I’m absolutely naff when it comes to geography, whether it be the version in school which is actually more about rocks and rivers than places, or said places themselves and where they are. I just don’t know where things are! And that’s fine. Even still, like many others I partook in a good few games of GeoGuessr during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and found it to be good fun, particularly with some friends. And now, five years on since that whole thing happened, the geography guessing game is coming to Steam.
“Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 has been delayed again, this time until the first half of 2025,” Graham wrote in August last year. Today I write: Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 has been delayed again, this time until the second half of 2025.
Going by Bloodlines 2’s career to date, I strongly suspect that in the second half of 2025, I or some other lost soul will be writing: “Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines 2 has been delayed again, this time until the first half of 2026.” Let this news piece stand as a Meeting of the Ways, the profane axle running through past, present and future as the Nine-Eyed Wheel of History bears us down into the mulch.
Alright, Steam Deck owners. Time to treat your favorite handheld like the MVP it is. The Amazon Spring Sale is live from March 25 to March 31, and some of the best gear I’ve tested is getting hit with serious discounts.
I’ve dug through the clutter and picked out the actually good accessories that are worth your time and cash. These are the docks, cases, power banks, and SD cards I’d recommend to my friends.
If your Deck still lives naked in your backpack or you’re swapping out SD cards like you’re playing cartridge roulette, this roundup’s for you.
JSAUX Docking Station |
| Product | US Price / Link | UK Price / Link | Key Features | Compatible Devices |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JSAUX Docking Station (HB0609) | $31.19 (32% off) | £37.99 (17% off) | 4K@120Hz HDMI, USB-C PD, Gigabit Ethernet | Steam Deck, ROG Ally X, Legion Go |
| Anker 6-in-1 Dock | $27.99 (30% off) | £29.99 (35% off) | 4K@60Hz HDMI, 100W Charging, 1Gbps Ethernet | Steam Deck, ROG Ally, Legion Go |
| JSAUX Dock (HB0603) | $28.39 (29% off) | £26.59 (34% off) | 4K@60Hz HDMI, 100W PD, 3 USB-A, Gigabit Ethernet | Steam Deck OLED, ROG Ally |
| UGREEN 9-in-1 Dock | $39.99 (33% off) | £39.99 (33% off) | 4K@60Hz HDMI, 10Gbps USB 3.2, Foldable Stand | Steam Deck, ROG Ally, Legion Go |
A good dock turns your Deck into a command center. A bad one turns it into an overheating USB spaghetti pile. I’ve tried all of these, and these four? Certified solid. My favorite overall is the UGREEN 9-in-1—it’s like a Swiss Army knife that also makes your desk look cooler. The JSAUX HB0609 is the only one here that supports 4K at 120Hz, which makes it perfect if you want smooth frame rates on a big screen. And for under $30, Anker’s 6-in-1 is such a good deal I had to double-check the price wasn’t a typo.
JSAUX Carrying Case |
| Product | US Price / Link | UK Price / Link | Key Features | Devices Supported |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JSAUX Sling Bag | $33.99 (15% off) | £33.99 (15% off) | Hard shell, anti-slosh strap, big capacity | Steam Deck, ROG Ally, PS Portal |
| JSAUX Hard Shell Case | $22.09 (15% off) | £21.24 (15% off) | Fits charger + dock, SD card holder | Steam Deck OLED, ROG Ally |
| JSAUX Screen Protectors (2-Pack) | $8.49 (15% off) | £7.64 (15% off) | Tempered glass, 9H hardness, guide frame | Steam Deck LCD & OLED |
| Tomtoc Armor Case | $23.99 (20% off) | £19.99 (20% off) | Slim, military-grade, shock-proof, charging port access | Steam Deck OLED/LCD |
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen someone throw their Steam Deck into a bag unprotected like it’s a stress ball. Look, I love chaos too—but not when it leads to cracked screens. I bounce between the JSAUX Sling Bag for travel and the tomtoc Armor Case for daily use. That tomtoc case? Shockproof, slim, and built like it’s ready for war. Also, props to JSAUX for including screen protectors that even I couldn’t mess up during install.
SHARGEEK 170 Power Bank |
| Product | US Price / Links | UK Price / Links | Capacity | Max Output | Notable Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anker Prime 27,650mAh (250W) | $187.99 (20% off) | £169.99 (26% off) | 27,650mAh | 250W | Smart App, Charging Base, 100W Recharge |
| Shargeek 170 (24,000mAh) | $139.90 (17% off) | £116.99 (30% off) | 24,000mAh | 170W | Transparent design, IP66, Smart Display |
| UGREEN Nexode 25,000mAh (200W) | $79.99 (38% off) | £74.99 (24% off) | 25,000mAh | 200W | TFT Display, 3-Port, Smart Charging |
| CUKTECH No.20 (25,000mAh) | $92.99 (15% off) | £79.99 (20% off) | 25,000mAh | 140W | Fast self-charging, compact design |
These are the best power banks I’ve tested—period. The Anker Prime is like carrying an electrical outlet in your backpack. It’s pricey, but it’ll fast charge your Deck, your phone, and your laptop without breaking a sweat. The UGREEN Nexode is the sweet spot for performance and price, and if you want something that looks cool too, the Shargeek 170 has a transparent design that screams “I mod Game Boys for fun.” I don’t, but I like the energy.
Samsung Pro Plus 1TB MicroSDXC + Adaptor |
| Product | US Price / Link | UK Price / Link | Capacity | Read Speed | Notable Features |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lexar Blue 1TB | $67.99 (15% off) | £65.99 (18% off) | 1TB | 160MB/s | V30, A2, 4K ready |
| Lexar PLAY 1TB | $63.88 (51% off) | £60.77 (12% off) | 1TB | 160MB/s | A2-rated, great for gaming |
| Samsung PRO Plus 512GB | $37.99 (50% off) | £43.49 (41% off) | 512GB | 180MB/s | A2, 10-year warranty, 130MB/s write |
| Samsung PRO Plus 1TB | $79.99 (33% off) | £92.25 (7% off) | 1TB | 180MB/s | Ultra-durable, U3/V30, A2 |
I don’t care how big your Steam library is. At some point you’ll need a bigger microSD card. The Lexar PLAY 1TB is the one I keep in my Deck. It’s fast, reliable, and actually built for handheld gaming. The Samsung PRO Plus series is also rock solid, especially the 512GB if you want speed without going full terabyte. These are the cards I’d buy again if I ever somehow filled mine. Which I will. Probably next week.
Game development can be stressful, I’m sure you’ve heard. The director of fighting game series Tekken yesterday shared an anecdote about how wild that stress can get. Speaking about the release of Tekken 4 in 2001, director Katsuhiro Harada remembered it didn’t perform as well as previous games. And the game’s relatively weak reception (alongside a lack of support at Bandai Namco) sent his body into a spiral of ill-health from anxiety.
“I was under so much stress at the time that I developed a mysterious condition where all the hair on the right side of my body fell out – just the right side,” said the director in a post on Xitter. “Even the hair on my arms, eyebrows, and eyelashes disappeared.”
Amazon’s Spring Sale is back, and upon first inspection, it’s not looking like a vintage year. There are some discounts on quality PC gear, but a deals collapse has left them buried under forty thousand tonnes of overcomplicated toothbrushes and collagen peptide powders. So, so many collage peptide powders. I didn’t know there was this much collagen on Earth.
It’s still my job – it is still my job, right? Okay just checking – to dig through the Paltrow-adjacent junk and yank out the good stuff, so let’s start small with a few quid/bucks off one of my favourite Steam Deck docks. The JSAUX 6-in-1 Multifunctional Docking Station may have a clumsy name but it’s a keen bit of accessory design, with the port-adorned central block (which acts as a stand in docked mode) able to detach and pull double duties as a portable USB-C hub. It’s perfect for Steam Deck/Asus ROG Ally/Lenovo Legion Go/Zotac Zone etc. owners who want to keep employing that extra connectivity when taking their handheld away from home, and the Spring Sale has chipped the already-aggressive price down to £38 / $31.
