A gamer reports on Reddit that he doesn’t have long to live. Before his death, he wants to experience some games on Steam.
The title image is not of the player, but a clip from the trailer for the SteamDeck on YouTube.
What is this story about? On May 17, 2025, the user Signal-Tangerine1597 shared a picture of his brand-new SteamDeck in the namesake forum on Reddit. He explained that his mother had gifted him the device after he had rediscovered gaming since his cancer diagnosis in December.
The gamer reported that he is in remission, but the cancer had quite “beaten him up.” He looked forward to enjoying his hobby now even in his hospital bed.
About 3 weeks later, Signal-Tangerine1597 posted a sad update: The treatment hadn’t worked as hoped, and he was too ill to try again. Now it was only about making himself comfortable.
In another post, the gamer added that he is not fit enough to go world-hopping or climb Mount Everest. In this context, he asks for game recommendations that he absolutely should experience before he dies.
The gamer raves about the grim CRPG The Thaumaturge and hopes for more recommendations he can fall in love with.
Gamer asks for recommendations, finds a community
What does the gamer get? The response under Signal-Tangerine1597’s posts is overwhelming: The largest post in the SteamDeck subreddit received more than 26,000 upvotes and over 3,800 comments. However, it contains not only numerous game recommendations but also touching messages.
Users express their sympathy to the gamer, admire him for his positive attitude, or share their own experiences. In edits of his post on Reddit, Signal-Tangerine1597 thanks for the many small interactions that would save his day. He further writes:
“I wanted to thank all of you again for the lovely posts, and for doing exactly what I asked for in the post. You all shared so many games that mean something to you, and that means so much to me.”
The gamer emphasizes that it is not just about the games – he probably won’t be able to play them all in his limited time anyway. Rather, he is looking for a community with which he can share about games.
It’s great to learn about games he was unaware of, or simply to hear someone talk about the games they love.
Among the actual recommendations that Signal-Tangerine1597 received, the space adventure Outer Wilds stands out particularly: The game was recommended to the gamer so often that it shot to the top of his to-do list.
When he finally played it and heard the music, it felt so safe and comforting – almost like a hug from all the people who had suggested the game to him (via Reddit).
No case demonstrates how gaming brings people together as clearly as that of the WoW player Mats Steen, better known by his gamer tag “Ibelin.” Only after his death did his parents learn that he had found a sort of second family in the MMORPG: WoW: An emotional documentary on Netflix touches the community – players pilgrimage to the memorial of the deceased
