Portal Maze 2

Steam Machine Launch Chaos: Scalpers, eBay Flippers & an Unlicensed Companion Cube

The Steam Machine's launch window is already proving turbulent, and the hardware hasn't even reached most buyers' hands yet. Despite Valve's efforts to curb scalping through a randomised reservation queue capped at one unit per customer, resellers have found a workaround: flipping the reservations themselves on eBay. Listings have appeared charging as much as $2,900 for a queue slot, and at least one reservation has already changed hands with a $235 markup, according to reports from Eurogamer and PCGamesN. Adding fuel to the fire, Valve has quietly scrubbed its bold "4K at 60FPS" marketing claim from the official Steam Machine page amid growing scrutiny over the console's real-world performance capabilities.