Not only can DRM get in the way of my gaming enjoyment(say i have a problem and need to reinstall the game, but cant, like in spore) but steam makes it difficult for me to play my games because 1: i spend a lot of time not connected to the internet and offline mode is downright awkward. and 2: My computer is in no way 'high end', and i believe that having steam run in the background is causing me additional lag in large games

Thank you for this OP-this is a big humpin' problem for me.

I have played video games for years- offline. I enjoy the odd MP game, but generallly I use LAN to accomplish this. However, when I first bought Rebellion, I was shocked and appaled that another of my favourite franchises had sold out to those insidious bastards at steam. Despite the fact I had no intention of playing it online, I had to go the trouble of installing aa new decent internet connection to star the process of installing my game.

Well, inconvenient, but no real problem, right? WRONG. I start my attempt to install, only to be told my product key is invald by steam. this is a copy of a game that never got out of storage, was never displayed to the public. I sigh at the irritances that PC gaming throws us the hard-cored strategy lovers, and get a new copy the next day.

Well, after redoing the innstall, I am now told by the incompetent pricks that my product code is already in use. This should be impossible! Frustrated now, I call a friend who works in the game store local to me. I have her list off EVERY rebelloion product key by opening up the sealed cases only to find that the entire stock of rebellion copies has the same problem- I went through a lot of product keys. every one of them told me it was already in use.

I submitted a support ticket to Stardock, and I'm guessing they listened. After informing them that a large-scale recall of their game was now underway by the single largset game retailer in Australia, all because of Steam and it's stupid product activation requirement, I- hoping against hope that one might actually work- go outcity to buy another copy. This time on activation, lo and behold, there is no need for a product key. THANKYOU STARDOCK. Finally, I can play the game I spent a week and a small fortune acquiring and activating.

P.S. I hope there aren't too many annoyed Aussies out there wanting to play Sins Rebellion, the recall currently sending hundreds of copies back to America was kinda my fault. My bad. But this just proves the unworthiness of the damnable Steam system for running games that honestly worked fine without it. Steam lovers: I don't particularly care if you disagree. Steam sucks the proverbial big one.

I would not have bought Sins at all if it was not on Steam. And by the way you can run Steam games in offline mode. So this concern you have is a moot point. You have to log into steam once and change setting to offline mode. Then from that point on until you want to change it you can run offline.