Okay, if somebody is asking for help, this is what you should do:
1) Wait for a minute and gather your thoughts to see if you actually know anything of use.
2) Post something helpful, or ask for clarification if it is unclear what the problem is.
3) If the response is something along the lines of "That didn't help" then repeat 1-2.
Asking them to verify the game files is most of the time a good first step.
You generally shouldn't post if you have no clue what is happening, other than to clarify or to give a simple fix such as verifying/reinstalling. Such posts should be given after a reasonable amount of time for others who might know more to help.
If you feel you know a good amount about the game's problems and still have no clue what the problem is, you may ignore the above point.
If things are looking suspicious, and none of the suggestions above yours have mentioned Steam as of yet, try and suggest a fix referring to Steam, rather than being blunt about it.
The very first step should NEVER be to ask them if they bought the game. Sometimes a picture of the problem may be important; if it is not, don't ask unless something they say points in that direction.
Finally, there should be only one(ONLY ONE) person who asks if they bought the game. Subsequent posts related to them pirating it will be deleted unless they have redeemable other content. The reasons for this is A: It's very annoying to read a whole page of responses that say absolutely nothing and B: It's quite rude in case they actually have bought the game.
If anyone has anything to add, feel free to post it here.
