I just purchased GTI Racer for the PC... the US publisher is TopWare and the developer is Techland... neither of which suggests any connection to Valve Software... but this game forces you to install STEAM before you can install the game itself, and this fact isn't mentioned anywhere on the box... nor is it mentioned anywhere on the box that an internet connection is required just to install the game, because of the requirement to install STEAM first... the minimum system requirements state that a modem is required for multiplayer mode, and the recommended system requirements state that an internet connection is required for multiplayer mode, but that's all that's on the box...
this is extremely deceptive, and should constitute some sort of deceptive business practice, as far as I'm concerned... there should at least be a logo for STEAM on the box that says "powered by STEAM" or something to that effect, so potential buyers will know that it's a requirement for installing the game, or at least those who are already familiar with STEAM will know this...
I had heard about STEAM and many of the complaints with it before, but since I don't play any of Valve Software's games or any other FPS, I figured that I would never have to worry about having an encounter with this very sinister program... then I heard that STEAM would soon take over PC gaming, and I figured that I still had nothing to worry about, since I don't play FPS...
but it's happening now, my friends... PC gamers all over the world are being forced to install STEAM just so they can install new games that they bought, and worse yet they're being duped into buying games that force them to do this without being warned on the box that they will be forced to do this, if they want to play these particular games... this makes me question what the real purpose of STEAM is... if they're being this deceptive about it being a requirement for installing a game, then surely there's alot more that they're hiding about it... copy protection schemes are one thing, but STEAM doesn't appear to be a copy protection scheme... it just appears to be a scheme...
I've heard many good things about STEAM too, but the very deceptive way that it's being forced upon unsuspecting PC gamers like this still leads me to believe that whatever is good about it is merely a facade to cover up its very sinister true purpose... corporations never deceive consumers without a dark purpose for doing so, and this is most certainly a very blatant deception... it's very clearly an attempt to force all PC gamers to install STEAM sooner or later, and there must be a reason for this beyond providing multiplayer fun...
so what is up with this shit? I own alot of games that include GameSpy on the disc for multiplayer mode, but this fact is always stated on the box, and installing GameSpy is never a requirement for installing those games... the GameSpy installer doesn't launch until after the games are installed... this should be the case with STEAM as well, but it's not... very sinister indeed...