Steam Deck

An argument about which Pokémon would play quarterback became a browser game with a draft, formations and a simulated 17 game season. Here is what it is, and the awkward truth about which retro handhelds can actually load it.

A project called bbport converts Bloodborne's PS4 executable into a native Linux program and runs it with a purpose-built runtime. It is real, it is downloadable, and the headline going around about it is slightly wrong in a way worth understanding.

Yesterday we published that the Minecraft in Skyrim clips had no source anywhere. Two hours and forty four minutes later a working one appeared on GitHub. It is two games running at once, talking to each other through shared memory, and it is the clearest answer yet to how any of this works.

An unknown AMD semi-custom APU called Gainsborough turned up in driver data. 4 to 8 Zen 6C cores, 12 to 24 RDNA 5 compute units, 3nm, and 2027 at the earliest. Here is the spec math nobody is running, and why the bottom of that range would not clear Valve's own bar.

Two real Switch 2 emulator projects exist. Neither can run a commercial game, one has not shipped a release in a year, and the other has stopped work on the emulator entirely. Here is the honest state of it.

A clip of skateboarding in Modern Warfare 2 did 6.7 million views and got called AI fakery. It is real, it is on GitHub, and it is not a mod. It is a from scratch Rust rewrite of MW2 with Skate 3 and a working Minecraft world bolted on.

A decompilation of the original Xbox Halo has been ported to Linux, Windows and Android arm64. It is the first native port in this whole scene that targets Android handhelds on purpose, and the builds ship daily.

Four ways to get blocky building onto a retro handheld, from a ready to run port that works on a $50 device to real Minecraft Java. One hardware requirement decides which of them you can use.

Version 0.0.6.0 made the native renderer default and cut a captured Steam Deck frame from 14.6ms to 8.1ms of GPU time. The Deck is not an afterthought on this project. It is the main test platform.

AnyPS5 is not a PS5 emulator. It rewrites PlayStation 5 executables into native Linux and Windows binaries. A week ago it had no releases and one anonymous game drawing a logo. It now has two releases and a named game running at 60 fps.

Two Fable games are on Steam, one was delisted, and one never came to PC at all. Here is the real route for each game on a handheld in 2026, including the new Fable 2 recompilation that finally makes the series playable end to end.

Spider-Man: Edge of Time now has a finished 1.0 PC port with Windows, Linux and macOS builds, which changes the answer we gave two weeks ago. Here is what shipped, how it compares to the other Edge of Time project, and what it means for a Steam Deck.

Dusklight 2.0 adds mod support and a built-in randomizer. It also quietly added Wii disc support and fixed Vulkan on Adreno 610 phones, which are the two changes that actually decide who can play it.

A 90 line patch worked around an NVIDIA driver bug that had been throttling RPCS3 for years. Gran Turismo 5 gained 40 fps and dropped 2.3GB of VRAM. Every handheld gets exactly zero of it, and the reason is worth understanding.

DK64 Rekongpiled shipped in late August and the coverage focused on ultrawide and uncapped frame rates. The release page tells a more interesting story: there is an official Linux ARM64 binary, which almost no recomp project bothers to build.

All three Jak games have native PC ports now, and they run beautifully on a Steam Deck with no emulation at all. The Android videos showing it on ARM handhelds are doing something else entirely, and it is worth knowing what.

Mario Kart Wiicompiled is the first static recompilation of a Wii game, and it started shipping aarch64 builds on 3 September. Then you read the requirements and find a GTX 1650 floor, which no ARM handheld clears.

Ocarina of Time running natively on a forty dollar handheld, with widescreen and a stable frame rate, no emulator anywhere. Here is the setup, including the o2r conversion step that trips up most people.

Valve enabled NVIDIA drivers in the SteamOS development tree, and the coverage is calling it an upgrade. It has shipped in no SteamOS release. The most useful thing Valve said is the part nobody quoted.

Suyu v0.04 added a Recompiler mode that translates Switch ARM64 code into native x86-64 ahead of time. Three things the coverage is skipping: it is the project's final release, the target is x86-64 so ARM handhelds gain nothing, and the emulator is still doing most of the work.

WideMelon is a melonDS fork that widens the DS 3D view without stretching menus or the touchscreen. We originally reported that it had no ARM build. It shipped official aarch64 Linux builds the day after, so ARM Linux handhelds are in. Android still is not.

RPCS3 can boot PS3 games straight from a disc now, but most optical drives cannot read those discs at all. Here is which Blu-ray drives the community has confirmed working, what to avoid, and the power problem nobody warns you about on a Steam Deck.

RPCS3 can now boot PS3 games directly from a Blu-ray disc, no dumping step required. The Linux support that makes this work on a Steam Deck landed on 31 August. Here is what you actually need, including the part the announcement skipped.

A claim going round says NVIDIA's 6x frame generation now works on RTX 20, 30 and 40 cards. It does not. Here is what is actually true, where the story came from, and the part that genuinely matters if you game on a handheld.

No handheld you can buy today has an NVIDIA GPU. But from 3 September a Steam Deck can put DLSS 5 on its screen, because the rendering happens on an RTX 5080 in a data centre.

Every PC handheld on sale runs AMD or Intel graphics, which means DLSS is off the table. Here is what FSR and XeSS actually do for you, and which settings are worth changing.

The DLSS 5 mod started as RTX 50 only. It now runs on RTX 20, 30 and 40 cards too. Check your GPU against the current requirements, see the real frame rate cost, and get the honest answer for handhelds.

PokeMMO is running a public test server for its Black 2 and White 2 expansion on 19 September. Here is what the announcement actually says, what carries over, and which handhelds run PokeMMO today.

After five years in development, Pokémon Myth 2 has hit version 1.0 with two original regions and over 100 Fakemon. Here is what is in it, and the awkward question of which handheld can run a 1GB RPG Maker game.

A free Pokémon fangame that plays like Vampire Survivors, with 25 playable Pokémon and an online leaderboard. It is not a ROM hack, which changes which handhelds can actually run it. Here is what you need.

A new unofficial Decky plugin brings Nexus Mods browsing and installing into Gaming Mode. Here is what it does, the two catches, and how to set it up.

Epic has no Linux client yet, so Steam Deck owners use Heroic. Here is the full setup, from Discover to Game Mode, plus the failures worth knowing about.

Epic confirmed a native Linux client is coming soon. No date, and not in the next preview build. Here is what it actually changes for Steam Deck owners.

Asobi brings PlayStation Plus Premium cloud streaming to the Steam Deck, which used to be a PS Portal exclusive. Here is what it does that chiaki-ng cannot, and what it costs.

A fan project turned Pokémon Emerald into a browser MMO with guilds, trading, and PvP. Here is what it actually is, and the awkward truth about which retro handhelds can open it.

There are four ways to play your PS5 on a handheld, and only one of them needs a PlayStation Portal. Here is what each route costs, what it can do, and which one fits you.

Gen1Recomp runs natively on retro handhelds, not through an emulator. Here is what works on Anbernic, Android and Steam Deck, and what quietly does not.

Flycast on the Steam Deck runs the Dreamcast library at full speed, and it brings Naomi arcade games along for free. Here is the setup, plus the VMU trap nobody warns you about.

The Deck runs PS1 at full speed without trying. The real work is making it look right, so this guide is about PGXP, upscaling, and shaders rather than performance.

Saturn is the console budget handhelds cannot brute force. The Steam Deck can, and that changes which emulator you should pick. Here is the setup.

Wii on the Deck is not a performance problem, it is a controller problem. Here is how to handle motion, pointing, and the games that need a real Wii Remote.

PCSX2 is the best PS2 emulator there is, and it is x86 only. Here is the full setup, the settings that actually matter, and the upscaling trade nobody explains.

shadPS4 has gone from a curiosity to something you can genuinely play. Here is how to set it up on an x86 handheld, and an honest read on what will actually run.

A step by step RPCS3 setup guide for handhelds. Install the firmware, pick the right SPU and PPU decoders, build shader caches, and get PS3 games running on a Steam Deck or Windows handheld.

A step by step Xenia setup guide for handhelds. Why you want Canary, how to pick a graphics backend, how the patch system works, and an honest look at Linux and Steam Deck support.

ES-DE, Daijishō, iiSU, Beacon, or the frontend built into your firmware? How to pick the right emulation frontend for your handheld in 2026.

How to set up Cemu and play Wii U games on your handheld in 2026. Steam Deck steps, the experimental Android port, GamePad controls, and the settings that matter.

How to set up ES-DE on Android handhelds and Steam Deck in 2026. Folder structure, scraping box art, themes, and connecting your emulators.

Play on your handheld, continue on your PC. How to sync emulator saves across devices with Syncthing, RetroArch cloud sync, and EmuDeck, without corrupting anything.

The honest state of Wii U emulation on handhelds in 2026. Which devices run Cemu well, where Android stands, and what to expect from the library.

Turn a retro handheld into a living-room emulation station. The best devices for HDMI out to your TV in 2026, plus the dock and controller you need.

The best retro handhelds for long car rides in 2026, picked for battery life, comfortable screens, and keeping kids and adults happy in the backseat.

The most comfortable retro handhelds for large adult hands in 2026, with full grips, larger bodies, and buttons spaced so your fingers are not cramped.

The most durable retro handhelds for 2026, picked for solid build quality and screen protection that survives backpacks, travel, and rough daily use.

The Steam Deck OLED is the most accessory-friendly handheld. Here is the full kit worth buying in 2026, from cases and docks to grips and AR glasses.

Docks, stands, and fans keep Android and PC handhelds cool, charged, and ready for TV play. Here is what is worth buying in 2026 and which device each suits.

A portable monitor turns a handheld into a big-screen setup you can pack. Here is what to look for in 2026 and the USB-C displays worth buying.

Dual-screen Nintendo systems run great on the Steam Deck. Here is how to set up DS and 3DS emulation with EmuDeck and pick the best screen layouts.

The Steam Deck runs GameCube beautifully through Dolphin. Here is how to set it up with EmuDeck, add games to Steam, and tune it for sharp performance.

Game Boy Advance runs flawlessly on the Steam Deck. Here is how to set it up with EmuDeck, add games to your library, and get crisp mGBA visuals.

N64 runs well on the Steam Deck with the right core. Here is how to set it up with EmuDeck, add games to Steam, pick the best core per game, and tune the visuals.

PS2 runs great on the Steam Deck through PCSX2. Here is how to set it up with EmuDeck, add your BIOS and games, and tune it for smooth performance.

PSP games look stunning on the Steam Deck thanks to PPSSPP upscaling. Here is how to set it up with EmuDeck and tune it for sharp, smooth play.

How to set up RetroDECK on the Steam Deck in 2026, how it differs from EmuDeck, and why the recent rewrite made it one of the easiest options.

The AYN Odin 3 is the Android emulation king. The Steam Deck OLED is a full PC in your hands. They look similar and do very different jobs. Updated with October 2026 prices.

Steam Deck, PS5, Xbox, and Switch 2 all got pricier in 2026. Here is every confirmed price hike, the memory shortage behind it, and which handhelds stay cheap.

Some handhelds have a real HDMI port, others output over USB-C. Here are the best handhelds with TV output in 2026 and what you need to connect each one.

RPCS3 had a major 2026 breakthrough, but can a handheld run PS3 games yet? Here is the honest state of PS3 emulation on portable hardware.

Valve raised Steam Deck OLED prices by up to $300 on May 27, 2026. Here are the new prices, why it happened, and cheaper handhelds to buy instead.

Valve's Steam Machine is now shipping: $1,049 for 512GB, $1,349 for 2TB, about 6x the Steam Deck's power. Every confirmed spec, plus how the invitation queue works.

The GPD Win Mini and Steam Deck OLED are two very different PC handhelds. One runs Windows with a keyboard. The other runs SteamOS with a stunning OLED screen.

Valve's Steam Machine is now shipping at $1,049 with about 6x the Steam Deck's power, but it's a living-room console rather than a handheld. Here's how they compare on emulation, price, and use case in 2026.

AMOLED is the new $200 default in retro handhelds. Here are the seven premium AMOLED handhelds worth buying in 2026, ranked by use case and budget.

Dusklight, formerly called Dusk, is a native PC and mobile port of Zelda: Twilight Princess built on the GameCube decompilation. It is now on PortMaster too. Here is how it runs on every handheld class.

Which portable devices can actually handle Wii games through Dolphin? We test the top contenders and rank them for performance, controls, and value.

The Steam Deck is arguably the best retro gaming device ever built. Here's what it can emulate, how to set it up, and why it belongs in every retro gamer's hands.

Not sure whether to spend $65 or $789? This guide breaks down three tiers of retro handheld so you can find the right device without the regret.

The RP5 costs $219 and fits in a jacket pocket. The Steam Deck OLED costs $789 and runs your entire Steam library. Which one is actually right for you?

Three premium PC handhelds, three very different philosophies. Steam Deck OLED at $789, Legion Go S SteamOS at $649–$829, ROG Ally X at $999. Here's how to pick the right one for retro gaming — and beyond.

The complete guide to setting up EmuDeck on the Steam Deck — from storage decisions and installer setup to Steam ROM Manager and launching games from Game Mode.

The best PC gaming handhelds of 2026 ranked: Legion Go S, ROG Xbox Ally X, Steam Deck OLED, and more, with emulation ceilings and honest price-tier picks after this year's price hikes.

ROG Ally X, Legion Go, GPD Win, MSI Claw — which premium Windows handheld is right for you, and how they compare to SteamOS.