PC gaming has come a long way in the last 30 years or so. From the days of the floppy disk and massive monitors to the modern age of handheld PCs and high-fidelity graphics cards, there are few better examples of technological advances. Still, plenty of gamers yearn for the past, going out of their way to incorporate the retro into the contemporary. That, dear readers, is why someone has figured out how to trigger Steam Deck games by using floppy disks in the year 2026. Yes, you read that right.
This unique method of loading games comes courtesy of Reddit user BlackIceLA, who shared their floppy disk-oriented setup on the r/SteamDeck forum. BlackIceLA has developed a plugin called Decky Links, which detects QR codes, NFC tags, USB drives, and, most importantly, floppy disks. The process is pretty simple: you connect a floppy disk reader to the Steam Deck, insert a disk to pair it with one of the games in your library, and then you can use it whenever you want to load the game.
We should be clear that you're not actually copying game data to the floppy disk, but rather a trigger that prompts the game to run when inserted. The example disks on BlackIceLA's desk include Stardew Valley and Balatro, a couple of top picks from our guide to the best Steam Deck games. The short clip on the Reddit post shows the user copying Half Life 2 to a floppy disk, ejecting it, and popping it back into the disk reader to launch the iconic Valve shooter.
As for the response from fellow Redditors, it's surprisingly mixed, but some are showing their appreciation for the project. One response referred to the floppy disk setup as "the demented sort of genius I can buy into," while another described it as "silly and useful." The detractors suggest that it's more effort than it's worth, or, as OrchidStunning6925 put it in one word, "hassle." Still, the original post has picked up more than 315 upvotes in around six hours, so it seems that there are more appreciators than haters.
As of the time of writing, BlackIceLA hasn't released their Decky Links to the wider public, as they suggest there's still some software refinement work. They also suggest that floppy disks don't load as fast as NFC tags, but as far as I'm concerned, that'd be worth it for that sweet, sweet sound of hardware reading a floppy disk. Just the faint sound in the video clip alone takes me back.