On my shelf is the boxed copy of Empire: Total War. Every time I want to play it I have to ask Gabe Nevell for a permission. In some ways the non-DRMed downloadable games are more real than that box.

Okay, an edit before I piss everyone off. Steam doesn't seem to care if you log in from IPs close to each other geographically, but it certainly does care if you pass territory lines. I was thinking about flying to another country rather than taking your laptop to work.

Steam is slightly better than the absolute worst of the DRM systems yes, but it still can take all your games away if you so much as look at it funny. Even SecuROM or StarForce can't do that. If you travel with a laptop, I suggest you buy your games somewhere else. Steam has a tendency to lock accounts that log in from multiple IP addresses. 'Cause, you know, that's a crime.

More than that, Slashdot needs agree and disagree buttons. The rest can just be modded.

I only read the last line of your comment and let me tell you, I have *never* looked so hard for an asterisk before.

Last time I checked, it's actually mentioned in the EULA with a rather amusing wording. Basically they say that they might release the no-DRM patch, but no promises. :) As far as I'm concerned, they might as well say all their customers get a Ferrari if Valve feels like it.