Fanatical’s Spring Sale is now live, slashing prices on thousands of items, including the newly released Elden Ring and our 2021 Game of the Year, Deathloop. The Spin to Win promotion is also back, giving you a chance to earn free games or coupons with every purchase over $10.

Best game deals at Fanatical

The Ascent — $15 ($30)Assassin’s Creed Valhalla — $22 ($60)Biomutant — $30 ($60)Deathloop Deluxe Edition — $46 ($80)Doom Eternal: Deluxe Edition — $38 ($70)Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen — $8 ($30)DuckTales Remastered — $3 ($15)Elden Ring — $50 ($60)God of War — $41 ($50)Just Cause 3 XXL Edition — $4 ($30)Mega Man 11 — $13 ($30)Monster Hunter Rise — $50 ($60)Monster Hunter World — $25 ($30)Morrowind: GOTY Edition — $7 ($15)NBA 2K22 — $19 ($60)Outriders — $18 ($60)Persona 5 Strikers: Deluxe Edition — $55 ($70)PGA Tour 2K21 — $14 ($60)Resident Evil Village — $26 ($60)Resident Evil 2 Deluxe Edition — $18 ($50)Skyrim Anniversary Edition — $14 ($20)Torchlight — $1 ($15)Total War: Warhammer 3 — $47 ($60)Tropico 6 — $20 ($40)XCOM 2 Collection — $7 ($100)The Yakuza Remastered Collection — $32 ($40)

Elden Ring is one of the most exciting deals of the event, as it’s down to just $50 a few weeks after launch. The latest From Software game is a masterpiece, pulling in a rare 10/10 in our Elden Ring review, which said it will “go down in history as one of the all-time greats.” If you’ve yet to explore the Lands Between, now is the perfect time to dive in.

Other notable games on sale include Total War: Warhammer 3, Doom Eternal, Skyrim Anniversary Edition, and Persona 5 Strikers. You’ll also find last year’s indie hit The Ascent discounted to just $15.

Aside from the savings, Fanatical’s Spring Sale includes the Spin to Win promotion. Spending more than $10 on an order will grant you a spin, with a chance to win a variety of freebies–including games such as God of War, Elden Ring, and Torchlight, although you’ll more than likely end up with a discount coupon or monetary coupon worth up to $10. The grand prize is a $250 shopping spree, which will go out to one lucky winner.

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Valve’s Steam Deck is now shipping, bringing some console-level gaming performance to the palm of your hands. Its a malleable and powerful mobile PC, letting you enjoy your entire Steam Library on the go through its effortless SteamOS layer on top of a Linux installation. Although there are some rough edges, we loved our time with the handheld, which you can read more about in our Steam Deck review.

To get the most out of the Steam Deck, however, you’ll need a few accessories to go along with it. That’s especially true if you want to expand the limited on-board storage, with a range of microSD cards offering cheap and easy expansion. If you’re connecting the Steam Deck to an external display, you might want a feature-rich USB-C hub and third-party controller too, of which there are many options. Here’s our list of the best Steam Deck accessories you can grab once your handheld PC arrives.

Best microSD Cards for Steam Deck

The Steam Deck supports storage expansion via its single microSD slot, and in out review we found that it works well compared to the speed of the internal SSD (or much slower eMMC memory in the 64GB version). In our testing we used an older SanDisk UHS-I MicroSD, which means faster cards might yield far better results. So, depending on whether you want super fast loading times or just the best capacity for your buck, your options for the best microSD cards will differ.

The three brands you’ll have the best luck with are the three that have been the most trusted with microSD storage for a while now, specifically SanDisk, Samsung, and Lexar. Below are some choices for a range of microSD options that scale in storage capacity, with each offering good enough read and write speeds to work great in conjunction with the Steam Deck’s internal storage.

Best third-party controllers for Steam Deck

Since SteamOS uses Valve’s same controller API that the company has been using with Steam across Windows and Linux, you can rest assured that pretty much any Bluetooth controller (or one connected with a USB-C hub) you have should work with the Steam Deck. Popular options like the Xbox Controller, PlayStation DualSense, Nintendo Switch Pro Controller, and the many, many options from 8BitDo will give you the most frictionless experience, so there’s a good selection to choose from.

Best gaming headset for Steam Deck

With its 3.5mm audio jack and Bluetooth connectivity, it’s likely that you already have a pair of earbuds or headphones that will work perfectly with the Steam Deck. But if you’re looking for a single headset that can connect wirelessly or wired, and double up as a good set of headphones for commutes, console, and additional mobile gaming, then Steelseries’ Arctis 3 Bluetooth fit that bill. They provide the flexibility of both a wireless Bluetooth connection and a physical one using a standard audio jack, while also producing good audio for games and providing a dedicated microphone for in-game chat. It helps that they look sleek, too.

Best keyboards for Steam Deck

The Steam Deck supports Bluetooth and USB-A connections (via a USB-C dock), so your options for connecting a keyboard to it are pretty much endless. If you’re just wanting to mess around in the Linux desktop that sits behind SteamOS, then any keyboard you have lying around will do the job. But if you want to use the Steam Deck to play games on an external monitor, or just get some light work done, then there are two options that strike the right balance of affordability, feature set, and aesthetics. We’ve focused on compact keyboards here, as you may want a keyboard that’s built for portability.

Best mice for Steam Deck

Much like keyboards, pretty much any mouse can be used with the Steam Deck either wired or wirelessly. We’ve chosen another two options that aren’t super expensive, can be used just as easily with another PC at home or at work, and can easily be packed into a bag with the Steam Deck for a short getaway.

Best USB-C hub for Steam Deck

There are a plethora of USB-C hubs that you can chose from nowadays, most of which will work just fine attached to the Steam Deck’s single USB-C output. Depending on what you might want to use it for, your options can vary drastically in both design and price. Perhaps most importantly is deciding whether you want to be able to charge the Steam Deck while using a USB-C hub. Hubs with power delivery are amongst the most expensive, but also generally the most versatile, with most offering HDMI outputs, microSD slots (not ideal for games, unfortunately), and multiple USB-A ports.

If you aren’t really looking to use the Steam Deck on a larger display, however, you can save some money by removing the HDMI output and retaining power delivery and, in some cases, ethernet connectivity. Anker has options for pretty much any configuration you might need, but if you’re just looking for more USB-A ports, a basic option can be found for less than $12 through Amazon.

Best screen protector for Steam Deck

The Steam Deck has a big and vibrant screen that takes up most of the space on the front of the device, so you’ll want to keep it as pristine as possible. Glass screen protectors for the Steam Deck have already started cropping up, and while we have not had a chance to test any just yet, you should be able to depend on this on from iVoler. This particular brand makes one of our favorite screen protectors for Nintendo Switch.

Best gaming monitors for Steam Deck

While PC gamers likely already have a monitor that will work just fine with the Steam Deck, console gamers picking up the Steam Deck may be in need of a monitor. If you’re planning on using your Steam Deck like a desktop PC at times, you’ll want a dedicated gaming monitor. We’ve rounded up a handful of our favorite budget-friendly monitors, including ultrawide, 1440p, 1080p, and curved options. If you want a monitor that’s good for traveling, we’ve included one of our favorite portable monitors as well.

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The Elden Ring Rya quest is a long, dark quest into the twisted depths of the Volcano Manor and one of the Lands Between’s demigods. Your reward, aside from a hefty helping of lore, is a talisman that acts as a “hard mode” of sorts by increasing the damage you take. As with most quests in Elden Ring, though, completing this one takes a long time and a fair deal of patience.

How to start Rya’s quest in Elden Ring: Rya’s location

Rya’s quest begins east of the Scenic Isle Site of Grace in Liurnia. She’s in the stone gazebo near the telescope marker on the map and asks for your help recovering a stolen necklace. Agree to help her look for it, and she’ll tell you where to look in vague terms.

Elden Ring Rya Necklace Location

The house she said the thief retreated to is also nearby. It’s Boilprawn Shack, northwest of Rya’s starting location and north of the Scenic Isle Grace. The thief is sitting near a campfire and will either give you the necklace for 1,000 Runes or drop it when you kill him. Whatever your choice, take it back to Rya. She’ll thank you and hand over an invitation to Volcano Manor. This is the last you’ll see of her for a while.

How to get to Volcano Manor

The next phase of Rya’s quest takes place in Volcano Manor, though depending on your route to Altus Plateau, she may escort you there personally. If you take the Grand Lift of Dectus up from Liurnia, Rya will be waiting near the steps behind the giant golems. Speak with her, and she’ll instantly transport you to the manor.

If you took the long way up through the tunnels instead, it seems the game skips this part and makes you travel to the manor either using another shortcut or traveling there on foot.

The other shortcut is in the basement of the Academy at Raya Lucaria, accessed by taking the water wheel elevator all the way down instead of up. There, you’ll face the Abductor Virgins boss. Getting pulled into the metal body transports you to the Inquisition Chamber underneath Volcano Manor. You’ll still have to face the Abductor Virgins (and win this time), and the path beyond spits you out at Hermit Village.

If you’re traveling on foot, head north through Seethewater in the Altus Plateau until you reach the Fort Laidd Site of Grace. Turn left, and ride Torrent through the lava, ignoring the Magma Wyrm. Torrent will take damage, but not enough to make them vanish before you reach the other side. Continue following the road past the giant bear, and you’ll reach Hermit Village.

The village is an annoying place with swarms of demihumans, a demihuman chieftain, and Maggie, the Demihuman Queen. It’s easy to get overwhelmed, so unless you’re interested in clearing the area, just gallop through to the other end. There’s a Site of Grace next to a sorcerer’s corpse. Grab the Comet Azur spell off the body, turn around, and follow the stone pillar across the gap.

Maggie attacks with might and magic. She’s best avoided if you just want to reach the manor quickly.

Continue following the path up the cliff, then turn left when you hit a junction and cross the bridge (turning right takes you to a dungeon). Ride the Spiritwind, ignore the boss, and dash into the manor. Speak with Tanith, then find Rya in the drawing room. You’ll need to agree to join Tanith to continue the quest.

How to progress Rya’s quest in Elden Ring

Complete Tanith’s first two requests, and speak with Rya after each of them. The second time, Rya is in her true form and mentions the circumstances of her birth as she understands them. Speak with Tanith, then fast travel to the manor Site of Grace to reload the area. Speak with Rya again to learn about strange sounds behind the wall. Speak with Tanith, then exit the lobby and turn right. Smack the wall that has a crooked portrait of a brazier to open Volcano Manor’s hidden path.

This takes you through a large prison, and you’ll emerge in a town fittingly called Prison Town. It’s full of snake warriors, though you can run past them for the most part if you’re in a hurry. After reaching the Guest Hall Site of Grace, you can speak with Rya back at the manor again to learn about her mental distress, though it’s unclear whether this is required.

Fast travel back to the Guest Hall, then continue moving forward. You’ll reach the Temple of Eiglay church and face a Godskin Noble. Retrieve the Serpent’s Amnion from the altar after defeating the boss, then speak with Rya again.

Rya is gone

Reload the area, and you’ll find Rya is gone. This is supposed to happen, so speak with Tanith next. She’ll give you a Tonic of Forgetfulness and asks you to let Rya drink it if the truth about her origins causes too much pain.

Fast travel back to the Temple of Eiglay, and take the elevator that became operational once the Noble died. The path ahead is lengthy, but linear. Once you finally find Rya again, you have three options.

Should you give Rya the tonic in Elden Ring?

Rya explains the truth of her birth and asks you to kill her. Don’t do it, and refuse to give her the tonic. Defeat Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy, then return to Rya’s hiding place. Speak to her again and refuse to give her the potion. Reload the area, return to the hiding place, and you’ll find a note explaining she’s left to find her path in life and get the Daedicar’s Woe talisman, which increases the amount of damage you take.

If you give Rya the Tonic, Tanith will be pleased, but everyone eventually leaves the Manor, and Rya is alone. After you defeat Rykard, she’ll be gone as well and leaves the talisman behind. Finally, you can kill her as requested. She’ll thank you, turn into her true form, and drop the talisman.

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I’ve really enjoyed my first few hours with Have a Nice Death. The 2D platformer roguelike has launched in Steam Early Access, and its morbidly charming adventure is already proving to be an entertaining challenge.

Have a Nice Death sees you play as the titular Death. He’s burned out and in serious need of a vacation but can’t manage to get away with all the paperwork that needs doing. He eventually snaps, infuriated at his subordinates’ refusal to give a damn about him, and all the extra work their lackadaisical nature is causing. Deciding that he’s long overdue for some respect, Death embarks on a rampage through the different departments of Death, Inc. to remind his lackies who’s really in charge.

Narratively, I don’t think this setup is anything to truly write home about. Have a Nice Death doesn’t seem to achieve any narrative depth beyond the simple messages that “crunch is bad” and “burnout isn’t healthy.” Important stuff, but the game’s early hours are more concerned with inviting you into its charming world. Despite the dark nature of the narrative, Have a Nice Death posits that this situation is more a case of “business as usual,” and that these characters are simply your run-of-the-mill office workers trying their best to just get through the day.

On paper, I shouldn’t be a big fan of Have a Nice Death. I don’t really like roguelikes, despite dropping an ungodly number of hours into Hades. The evolving narrative and incredible characters are what convinced me to stubbornly work through the challenging gameplay loop of Supergiant’s game, and though Have a Nice Death implements similar storytelling devices, they don’t quite reach the same highs. Instead, Have a Nice Death appeals to me by making the loop of a roguelike more approachable.

Like most roguelikes, the overall objective of Have a Nice Death is to complete a perfect run–completing every available level within a single session. Failing to do so sees you having to start over without all of the fancy weapons and items you managed to find in your last run, though there are permanent abilities connected to three skill trees that you can unlock to make subsequent runs a bit easier.

Beyond that skill tree, Have a Nice Death also features ways of permanently improving Death’s arsenal and survivability with new weapons and health items. You buy these upgrades with ingots, which can be found during runs and earned by killing enemies.

Early on, the prices for unlocking these new weapons and health items are pretty steep. Unlocking the Shake Spear costs a whopping 105 ingots to start, for example (you’re typically only earning 10 or so a run if you’re stuck on the first area of the game). But Have a Nice Death incorporates a challenge system into its upgrades. Kill any 15 enemies over the course of the game (a very easy goal) and the price of that weapon drops by 25 percent. Kill 15 more enemies and it drops even further. By the time you’ve killed 50 enemies, the price is discounted to one ingot. So even if you’re not completing Have a Nice Death on your first, second, or third run, the act of simply killing enemies during those early attempts is increasing the likelihood you can afford this permanent upgrade.

All of the upgrades are similarly tied to challenges that allow you to earn discounts and speed up the process of acquiring stronger weapons and healing items. Some task you with getting kills with a specific weapon, while others ask you to find a way to deal a huge amount of damage with a weaker weapon or reach an area or overcome a boss a number of times.

Because of this, I’m actually spending the first dozen or so runs of Have a Nice Death striving to accomplish smaller goals–one far more achievable than “beat every mandatory boss and level in a single run.” I’ll get to that challenge eventually, but for now, I’m content with simply growing stronger and seeing how my efforts are contributing to me doing a little bit better on those early levels.

And granted, plenty of roguelikes divide their seemingly insurmountable goal of beating them into more manageable tasks–Dead Cells features metroidvania elements that allow you to chase after small upgrades that make it easier to surpass chunks of the game, and Hades has episodic stories tied to each of its main characters that you can pursue while trying to escape the underworld. But Have a Nice Death is novel in how it allows you to see what you’re striving for. From the shop menu, you can see what weapons and health items you’re working towards before even trying to go for them, allowing you to determine whether they’re worth the pursuit. It respects my time.

And so now, after only a few hours, I’m getting the hang of enemy and boss attack patterns and am discovering new strategies by following the directions of the challenges as opposed to just experimenting on my own. I can’t quite get through all of the early areas without taking a single hit, but I’ve come close a few times now just by being encouraged to try out a bunch of different playstyles and discovering what works for me.

All that said, my efforts aren’t making Have a Nice Death easy. While they’ve certainly made the daunting task of beating it seem more plausible, this is still quite a difficult game. When talking to GameSpot, lead game designer Simon Dutertre compares the process of playing Have a Nice Death to climbing a mountain. In my experience, that seems like an apt comparison–Have a Nice Death incorporates several punishing systems that take a while to get the hang of. For instance, taking damage not only lowers your health, it can lower your maximum HP as well, preventing you from being able to heal completely if you’re not careful. This seems to be a game that wants you to play near perfectly through the first half in order to have a fighting chance at overcoming the second. Normally that’s too tall an order for me, but the challenge-based upgrade system is making the task seem feasible enough that I’m willing to try.

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