Less money equals less pay for their developers, which equals lower quality games. Think about it, Valve spent about $40million dollars developing this game. At $50 dollars a pop, they would have to sell at least 800,000 copies just to break even. If, as you suggest, the software price is reduced, then they have to sell more copies. If piracy continues, then the price goes up, and the piracy goes up. It's a never ending cycle. Whichever way you look at it, there will ALWAYS be cheapskates that think they shouldn't have to pay for games, and believe they have a right to steal them, just as there will always be people who believe they have a right to steal music, or movies, or a candy bar. Regards, Murdoc