Not sure if this will still work, but might be worth a shot:
https://imgur.com/a/gBLJO
Although if the problem is the download gets to a certain point then stops, it may mean that some new file verification or check might not be playing well with such an old OS. Are you also certain it's a Steam issue? As just a brief google has brought up a reddit thread from a year ago where someone had the same problem, and was able to fix it by error-checking the drive, so maybe give that a shot?
Otherwise, although I note you have mentioned you are not a fan of Linux, switching may be your best bet, at minimum to future-proof yourself from this happening again.
There are a number of distros which feel somewhat like Windows, and switching to Linux has gotten a lot easier in recent years.
What is your main gripe with Linux? As it might be something that can be solved, giving you a way to play the games you can no longer access due to this issue?
Edit: Just wanted to add that Tower Unite apparently does run on Steam Deck, and has a custom graphics option for it. So you can still play it through the SD. If you want you could also use a hub and plug in peripherals + monitor.
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not in EU but most of the world follows eu law so they can sell things in the eu. they are protecting the internet more than any other place
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True, EU made some giants bend, sometimes. But law that applies to EU citizens often doest apply to others (different ToS). But today I learned that steam follows EU laws for everyone
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well they dont have to. most places choose to follow EU laws so they can sell games or online goods everywhere.
they are currently almost single handily protecting consumers on the entire internet with laws, they are the reason we can refund. in america we tossed them all out the window so like 7 people could make a fuck ton of money.....
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It's basically, many companies either they use EU laws for Europe with more consumer protections, and "lax" laws for the rest of the world, or EU laws for everybody.
It's simply easier to use EU laws also for outside Europe. So the whole world, both outside and inside Europe benefits for those laws.
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As others have already said: use Linux. Doesn't cost a dime, supports a very wide range of hardware and will be supported for the long foreseeable future. Don't listen to any horror stories from people assuring you it's unusable or scary. Even if they're right (it can be unusable and scary to some, especially varying with your distro and whether you have very specific Windows software packages you use) there are easy ways to try it out without committing to anything. Mint is often advertised as a user-friendly distro, but I'd recommend trying Manjaro first because it's both user-friendly and game-friendly (its base, Arch, is also what the Steamdeck OS is based on), and the Arch wiki is a large and useful repository of how-tos.
In theory it should even be possible to use your existing Windows Steam library with the Linux version, but that would require some technical know-how. I expect it's actually no more than installing Steam on Linux and then creating a symlink in the right location while keeping the main Steam files on the stick, but couldn't find a guide.
I switched to Linux from W10 permanently after the new Windows 11 requirements for hardware and activation came out, and I've had no regrets yet. I'm admittedly biased because I'm a developer so I'm not scared of the command line, but I'd be lying if I said I need that a lot, and I'm a lazy developer, who wants the system to Just Work -- which it does. I've had to tweak maybe two or three extremely old games to get them to run, but those need patches on modern Windows too; everything else just runs out of the box with Proton. Ironically or otherwise, Linux is becoming more compatible with Windows games than Windows itself; it's almost certainly already more compatible than Windows 7.
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get linux, no crappy updates, no bloatware, crappy drivers, great deal
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Today I discovered, to my horror and frustration, that this new issue with downloads extends to the steamworks common redistributables. That means that it not only breaks games that have been updated but effectively bricks pretty much anything apparently by getting stuck on a failed update loop and refusing to start a game, essentially rendering Steam useless for playing games on Windows 7.
I eventually managed to work around it by identifying the likely culprit (VC_redist, version 2022), updating it on my W10 laptop, and then copying those files to my W7 desktop manually and re-opening Steam while hoping than this improvised solution won't brick Steam itself. Luckily it did work, but given that I caught a glimpse of Steam on my laptop supposedly updating those files on my desktop (don't even ask me how, I have no clue, it's just what I saw flash on the client for a sec) I don't even know if what I did was what fixed the issue or not.
Needless to say I think this is it, I've been saying that I'd update my OS for like 2 years at this point, but now I guess I have no choice but to do so. W7 is now far too broken functionality-wise to continue using it, a sad day indeed. I figure it's time to go back to Linux after years of not using it, I'm really out of the loop so I'll gladly take suggestions on what distro is better for gaming and stuff.
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Sorry, I've never used it myself. I just know about it.
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I don't know if it's the same thing as you had but I just had an almost identical issue on my Win 8.1 laptop this past hour, Steam redistributables wouldn't download fully, nothing would start. Cleared the steam download cache and restarted and it seems to be fixed (crossed fingers) but it's spooked me, I know it's coming eventually but just not now 😬.
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most new games but not all for the last few weeks have been giving me Corrupt Download or Content Severs Unreachable. since steam no longer supports windows 7 going forward that's fine. im unhappy about it, but its legal. ive refunded 2 games so far that i was unable to play cause of it.
the problem is steam is now taking games from me ive paid for and played for years or just a few months.
games will download 98% of the way and Corrupt Download or Content Severs Unreachable
starting today im no longer able to play some games because of forced updates are now using the new steam download system. its about 50% of the games.
Cornucopia®
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1681600/Cornucopia/
Len's Island
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1335830/Lens_Island/
Tunguska: The Visitation - Enhanced Edition
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1601970/Tunguska_The_Visitation__Enhanced_Edition/
theses 3 all advertise working on windows 7 and ive played them. i believe changing a thing and stopping the customer from playing games they purchased on the same system they purchased them on and they were advertised as working on is illegal under EU law.
also
Ship of Fools
and
Let's Patiti!
these two don't advertise, but they work. not any more
edit
the dev of Cornucopia offered me a steam key to give to a friend with windows 11 that could download the game for me and send me the files. this would 100% work and i would have to do this with EVERY GAME that changes over to new download system and thats insane
you can download them on my steam deck, but if i try to move them they need other files cause its linux to windows so it doesnt work
every single thing they do to window 7 today, they can do to windows 10 tomorrow or any other operating system they choose
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