Steam Machine 'Red Line of Death' Discovered After 20 Minutes Of Use

Anyone who owned an Xbox 360 console will remember the fearsome ‘Red Ring of Death’.

This saw the power button surrounded by red lights, signalling a hardware failure that was nigh impossible to come back from.

It’s something you might expect to see after years of heavy use. After all, consoles get hot and eventually, that thermal stress can prove to be detrimental.

What you don’t expect to see is hardware crashing out after just 20 minutes of use.

As reported by WCCFTech, one Steam Machine user has detailed experiencing what’s been dubbed the ‘Red Line of Death’ after, yes, just 20 minutes of use.

“Well, the Steam Machine was pretty cool for the 20 minutes that it worked,” wrote Reddit user me_hill with an accompanying image showing the dreaded red line.

“The red line of death is here,” replied renothecollector.

“360 flashbacks,” added NightLightHighLight.

“Disappointing to see this so early in launch,” said nymme.

The Steam Machine’s Solid Red Line Appears To Indicate A GPU Issue

Given that the Steam Machine has only just launched, there isn’t yet an in-depth explanation for precisely what type of internal failure the red line reflects but the OP seems to think it's related to the hardware’s GPU based on the error light code.

The OP later detailed that they’re not getting any output on their monitor, adding that they’re going to contact Steam Support rather than tinker with the tech themselves.

The hope here, of course, is that this is a rare dud. That doesn’t make the situation any less fortunate for the OP, but Valve can’t really afford to have this be a widespread issue.

That’s because the Steam Machine isn’t off to the best start.

READ MORE: Steam Machine Doubles In Price As Gamers Settle For Paying Extortionate Resellers

The astronimically high pricing has put many people off, although that hasn’t eased availability issues.

The base version (512GB) retails for $1,049 or you’re looking at $1,128 to bundle this version with a controller.

The other option is the 2TB version which costs $1,349 alone or $1,428 with a controller.

Due to those aforementioned availability issues, some consoles are selling for twice as much on resale websites.

READ MORE: Can't Afford A Steam Machine? Here's How To Build Your Own

Despite the high price point, the Steam Machine struggles to outperform even the base PlayStation 5 which first landed in 2020.

Digital Foundry discovered, for example, that Crimson Desert boasted 17% better frame rates on the base PlayStation 5 than it did on the Steam Machine.

The Steam Machine was always a weird sell. It’s not quite a console, but it’s not quite a PC either, blending the best of both worlds without really providing the best advantages of either.

Clearly, the Steam Machine is doing a roaring trade despite all of the lacklustre discussion surrounding it.

I’m sure that’ll continue as long as the Red Line of Death issue doesn’t become too widespread.