StingingVelvet: Yeah. Kane & Lynch 2, Civ5, Mafia 2 and Fallout: New Vegas all announced Steam being forced as a DRM like they were doing everyone a favor. It's getting to be that every game is Steamworks now.
Someday every PC game will be a Steam game, like it is its own platform, and then where will we be? A single company controls the platform, just like the consoles. And people eat it up... it's no surprise, they eat up the consoles too for the same reasons. Convenience, ease of use, simplicity, cheap... that is what people want. It's why DVD audio failed and MP3 is taking over, it's why consoles won and PC lost, it's why eventually movie download services and streaming will win and blu-ray will taper off.
It sucks, but I guess we just have to get used to it. Not sure what else there is to do... I'm not skipping Mafia 2 and New Vegas, those are the two games I am most looking forward to for the next year or more. Steam works, it is functional... what can I do?
Keep speaking up, I guess.
Well, I hate Steam, but not because of the concept of anti-piracy. I'm pretty sure that one of the reasons the PC game market went soft is because of rampant piracy. Who is to blame? The thieves, or an industry finally being defensive?
It's the vibe I hate. Steam is both arrogant and paranoid. Unfriendly is putting it mildly when it comes to that company.
I got Mafia One from Gamers Gate in August of 2010, DRM free.
But, yeah. Soon, very soon, the Wild West days will be gone forever. Everything will be monitored and controlled, and the products are going to really suck. Eat your Soylent Green and be happy you're not starving
I have to disagree about the person who said consoles and console games
succeeded because of cheapness.....at my local Best Buy, Xbox discs sell for something like FIFTY bucks. All the consoles are wildly overpriced, too. At least Wii gives you those interactive wands, something innovative.