A player wanted to game with his girlfriend and therefore got a Steam Deck on eBay. However, when the device arrived, it didn’t work – the beginning of a frustrating journey that fortunately has a happy ending.
What is the problem with the purchase? The buyer with the Reddit name Dunsug explains that the Steam Deck purchased on eBay had problems from the very beginning. It constantly crashed, and after each crash, a strange artifact appeared on the screen that only disappeared after restarting the Steam Deck.
Since Dunsug works in the IT industry, he first tried to find and fix the problem himself. On Reddit, he writes: “I tried everything: new operating system, new BIOS, different Protons… nothing worked.”
A search online for people with similar problems yielded no solutions either. However, he found a victim on Reddit who struggled with the same errors. When asked by someone if he could repair the Steam Deck, he apparently explained that this was not the case and that he had sold the device.
Apparently not the cleverest scammer
Why is this likely a scam? At that point, Dunsug became suspicious because the comment and his purchase matched in timing. So he checked the username and found that it must be the same guy who sold him the Steam Deck – but without mentioning the defect.
So Dunsug contacted the seller, but apparently only received a response saying that he had “not used” the Steam Deck and therefore was not responsible for any defects. Shortly thereafter, the seller’s previously mentioned problem post was reportedly deleted.
He then apparently also wrote Dunsug again, explaining that these were two different people who coincidentally had similar problems with the Steam Deck, only to resell it during the same timeframe. He did not explain why he had the same username on eBay as the affected Reddit account.
How was the situation resolved? Dunsug contacted both eBay and Steam support to alert them about the scammer. eBay’s reaction: Send the device back. However, the player was worried that the Steam Deck would be returned to its previous owner who could then resell it again.
On the other hand, Valve support suggested, despite the expired warranty, to check the device and treat it like a warranty case. A short while later, a repaired, functioning Steam Deck arrived at Dunsug. He naturally celebrates this response: “Steam saved the day.”
At one point, Dunsug had published the link to the original post. However, a small “witch hunt” apparently broke out, so he removed the link again. He does not want to name the Reddit user’s name in this discussion as it would violate the platform’s terms of use.
How does the community react to the report? The original post has gathered over 10,000 upvotes and more than 225 comments in just a few hours.
- rongminshan writes on Reddit: “If the person had returned the Deck, they would probably have received a functioning one. Glad you got a functioning Steam Deck. And yes, especially with electronics, I would be a bit cautious on eBay (Craigslist, etc.) due to the many scammers.”
- AFK115 celebrates on Reddit the holy Valve boss: “The scammer takes it, the giver gives it.”
- salad_tongs_1 also had positive experiences with Valve, he explains on Reddit: “Steam support has always been excellent. I’ve had some parts (like Valve Index controllers) replaced by them out of warranty. Glad to hear they helped you too.”
What are your experiences with the support from Valve or Steam? Share in the comments! Did you know that the head of the popular platform has a very special living and working place? More on this here: Gabe Newell tells a YouTuber with 19 subscribers how the head of Valve lives and works on a boat 7 days a week
