Steam has been around for a long while now. I remember its origins as it peeked its head out from Valve Software. It caused problems and sometimes would allegedly lock people out of their content. I never bought into it, though since my PS3 hit the YLOD I’ve made some motions towards gaming on a PC once again.
In 2010, it seems to me that Steam actually gets DRM right on the money. This has probably been true for years, since they worked out the initial bugs in the system. It’s also coming after years of DRM done terribly, terribly poorly. Indeed, the idea behind Steam is that when you buy the game, you actually have rights to the game regardless of where you access it. The caveat: you have to log into the computer to have the Steam system say that you are a legitimate owner of the content; and logging into one machine means another must be offline.
Currently, Steam is offering some incredible discounts to a number of games; I don’t imagine there’s a better time to enter in the system. I’ve thus far bought Defense Grid: The Awakening ($5), GRID ($5), and Audiosurf ($2.50). They all run (albeit, with all the graphical options at the bottom levels) on my Core i3-530 system with the integrated GPU; and it’s a hell of a lot of content for less than $10. id Software is also on my radar, with a “Super Pack” currently for $35; and, well, many many more options. Most of these deals stop by July 4th, which is coming up quickly.. so check it out while the pickings are still good.
Tags: steam