Scalpers have officially begun selling their Steam Machine preorders for as much as twice its suggested retail price that was set by Valve.
Many of these listings have appeared over at the e-commerce platform, eBay.
Scalpers Sell Steam Machine For 2x More on eBay
Valve's Steam Machine had barely been open for reservations before it sold out, and now scalpers have moved in to take advantage, according to GameRant.
Users who managed to secure pre-order slots have begun listing their reservations on eBay at prices that far exceed what Valve is charging at retail.
The device is scheduled to begin shipping on June 30, and the secondary market is already showing just how frenzied demand has gotten for Valve's long-awaited entry into home gaming hardware.
The highest-priced Steam Machine on eBay is currently listed at $3,699.99 for a 2 TB model with a controller, representing a 159% increase over the retail price, according to GameRant.
That said, when searching for the Steam Machine now, that listing is no longer available, and the current highest is the one that asks for a $3,200 starting bid for a 512GB variant with a controller.
The lowest one offered the Steam Machine with 512GB storage and a Steam Controller at $1,050, or lower than its sale price, but there are already 9 bidders here that inflated its price.
The jump in prices is steep, but it has been the practice by scalpers for newly released gaming platforms. The Nintendo Switch 2 saw similar markups when it launched last year, and more recently, resellers began listing pre-orders for "GTA 6" on eBay, despite the game being a digital release that cannot physically sell out.
The Steam Machine resale frenzy fits into that same pattern, though the hardware at least has a justifiable reason for scarcity, given that Valve appears to have had limited initial inventory.
Valve's Steam Machine Is Still on Preorders
Valve did put some measures in place to limit scalpers from hoarding reservations. Despite Valve implementing measures such as an account age check to prevent scalpers from hogging Steam Machine reservations, it seems that multiple resellers have secured pre-orders and are now trying to sell their spots on eBay for more than double the price.
Those safeguards were not enough to stop the resale listings that have appeared in the days since reservations opened and quickly closed.
The Steam Machine runs Linux and is positioned as a living room gaming PC, giving players access to their full Steam libraries on a console-style device. Valve's pitch is that it offers a versatile PC gaming experience without the need for a Windows setup, though some reviews have noted meaningful limitations on the platform.
Steam Machine Sold Out on Valve
Due to rising manufacturing costs and the state of the global economy, Valve's Steam Machine is currently priced at $1,050 for the base 512 GB model without a controller.
The highest-priced Steam Machine, with a 2 TB SSD and a controller, costs $1,428, which is almost $500 more than a PS5 Pro with less performance. Despite that already substantial retail price, the entry-level model sold out in minutes after reservations opened last week.
Valve also recently reworded some of its Steam Machine marketing materials to more accurately reflect the device's real-world 4K gaming capabilities, after initial promotional language drew criticism for overstating performance.
