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UPDATE: This question lives on at gaming.stackexchange.com.

So – I just bought the new game Supreme Commander 2. This question is not about the game, but about the online software installation platform that it seems to require. I haven't bought a game in a long time, and I'm puzzled: Apparently, SC2 is a "Steam"-powered game.

When I went to install the game, it asked me to either create a new Steam account, or log in with an existing account. I clicked "Cancel" because I don't plan to play online and I don't want anything unnecessary installed on my computer, since I only plan to play single player!

However, after clicking "Cancel", the installer asked for my confirmation that I indeed wanted to cancel installation of the game! I thought I was just canceling the "online" portions!

So I really want to know:

  • How do "Steam" powered games work?
  • Is this essentially a form of DRM (Digital Rights Management)?
  • Can I trust this software platform?
  • Has anybody done any independent verification on how this platform works? (I'm very leery of any DRM after the Sony BMG CD copy protection scandal. Thank goodness for Mark Russinovich.)
  • Does the "Steam" platform install anything particularly nasty or unwanted on my computer?
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Chris W. Rea
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    Why was this closed as off-topic? It seems obvious that this question is related to computer software. – rob Mar 19 '10 at 22:40
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    I also voted to re-open, as this is about the software itself and how it acts - not how to defeat the AI in the first campaign mission. – Phoshi Mar 19 '10 at 22:43
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    I can give you several reasons: if I reopen it, your question still asks 5 questions in 1; it combines questions about Steam and DRM, they are related but are seperate topics. Not every game in Steam uses the same DRM, so there isn't "one best answer". Then you ask a subjective question about if it can be trusted and you switch from DRM to nasty crapware/spyware like additions. Yes, it might not be game related, but it does need some slimming down to be a topic at all – Ivo Flipse Mar 19 '10 at 23:15
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    Ivo, are you inviting me to ask the 5 separate questions? ;-) I see these questions as closely enough related to belong to the same post. What is this, Twitter? – Chris W. Rea Mar 19 '10 at 23:37
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    there's a gaming Stack Exchange site -- http://gaming.stackexchange.com/ -- that would probably love to host this question. – quack quixote Mar 19 '10 at 23:38
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    @~quack: But this question isn't about a game. It's about a software platform used by a game, and I'm asking technical questions about that platform and its impact on my PC. Do you want that I take my **Direct X** questions to a gaming site, too? How about questions about my high-precision mouse? Where does it stop? – Chris W. Rea Mar 19 '10 at 23:43
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    @Ivo: I think in that case, the "one best answer" would be the most comprehensive one. ;) – rob Mar 19 '10 at 23:45
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    @~quack: Thanks for the link, but smartergamer.com doesn't look like a very good place to get technical questions answered (search for Steam and you'll see what I mean). And considering smartergamer doesn't even have a tag for Steam, I think it makes more sense for Chris to post his question here. – rob Mar 19 '10 at 23:48
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    Meanwhile, here's the #1 hit on Google for "can I trust steam": http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090209185430AAPJFtK I think we ought to offer the world a better answer to that question, considered by technical experts at super user, and not an answer like *"Yes. I have bought many games from them."* Egads! – Chris W. Rea Mar 19 '10 at 23:52
  • I removed the games tag; maybe that will help. – rob Mar 20 '10 at 16:27
  • My opinion: your question **is** gaming related. It is centered around a particular game, even if you extend it to the whole Steam platform. If like you say, you want to know only about Steam, cut the SC2 part. But more important than that, your question is still not clear, as **it contains simply plenty of questions**, as pointed by Ivo. If you really want to have an answer, for example, to "how "Steam" games work", ask it, in an individual question. I recommend you to center it on their "Steamworks" framework, since this is what you are interested in. – Gnoupi Mar 20 '10 at 16:46
  • @Gnoupi: He's asking a multi-part question in order clarify a more basic question: what security concerns are involved with installing Steam? The Supreme Commander 2 story heads off any suggestions to just install the software without installing Steam (because, apparently, that's not possible). If he posts 5 separate questions, he risks having them closed as duplicates or as subjective, and his underlying question still won't be answered with the level of detail he was hoping for. – rob Mar 20 '10 at 18:03
  • Repeated editing to keep this bumped will just result in a lock. If you want you could make a plea on meta.stackoverflow.com, it's always better to go through the proper channels :) – Phoshi Mar 20 '10 at 18:12
  • @rob please don't bump. I've tried proper channels: http://meta.stackexchange.com/questions/34108/gaming-related-questions-should-be-allowed-on-su-when-they-dont-involve-a-specif/42952#42952 ... we just need 2 more votes to re-open. Just make sure you come back here when you get to 3000 rep ;-) – Chris W. Rea Mar 21 '10 at 18:05
  • @Phoshi and Chris: Sorry, bumping wasn't the intention; I was just trying to retag it since it seemed like people were voting to close it because of the "gaming" tag. – rob Mar 22 '10 at 15:41
  • Wow. I disagree with ~quack, fretje, Ivo, and Gnoupi, then they all vote to close one of my open questions. Coincidence? I think not. – rob Mar 22 '10 at 15:56
  • @rob - your question was off-topic, as per FAQ. We have other things to do than caring about you only. We care about the questions, not the people asking them. – Gnoupi Mar 22 '10 at 16:07
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    Asking about protecting your system from spyware shouldn't be seen as "off-topic". – Andrew Grimm Apr 20 '10 at 07:57
  • @quack: Could we migrate this question to the new *Gaming* StackExchange 2.0 site when it's launched? The gaming proposal has gathered quite a lot of, ahem, **steam** ;-) http://area51.stackexchange.com/proposals/1338/gaming – Chris W. Rea Jun 21 '10 at 14:25
  • @chris: you mean we can migrate questions to SE 2.0 sites? awesome! sure, why not? (read: i've no idea. if possible maybe.) – quack quixote Jun 21 '10 at 17:27
  • @quack quixote @fretje @Ivo Flipse: I came to this question via google, searching information whether this software is something that will wreck havoc on my system because of some lousy DRM schemes. I was glad to end up here, since I consider this is a very good resource for quality information on exactly issues like these. While *one* context is gaming, the subject is *also* about OS environments, and that's relevant here. It would be relevant in SE/Gaming too, sure, but in a different context. – Ilari Kajaste Nov 29 '10 at 19:30
  • Anyway, since SE/Gaming is now up and this question has come up there as a duplicate (and remains happily open) here's the link, it should at least be edited to the question: http://gaming.stackexchange.com/questions/2459/can-i-trust-steam-powered-games-any-unwanted-behavior-installed-with-steam – Ilari Kajaste Nov 29 '10 at 19:32

2 Answers2

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  • http://store.steampowered.com/about/
  • it is DRM
  • You do not "own" supreme commander. you license it. you are trusting steam to manage and verify this license with the publisher. hopefully they never go out of business
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bugtussle
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    Valve generally has a very good reputation; and they have stated that should they ever go out of business they will provide the tools necessary to run your games outside of Steam. – eidylon Mar 20 '10 at 01:03
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    LOL. Did they 'pinky swear'? I don't rely on promises from companies that are no longer in business. You are at their mercy. – bugtussle Mar 23 '10 at 18:28
  • @bugtussle completely agree. Like how you phrased it. :-) – One-One Oct 23 '12 at 14:12
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Yes, Steam is a form of DRM. However, Steam is a great gaming platform that has matured well over the years. I typically do not like registering or anything to do with DRM, but Steam is user friendly and in my cases (and what I've heard from friends) Valve is very helpful if you have issues with your purchase(s). They won't leave you out in the cold.

Steam is not only a license authenticator but also manages friend networks (like Xbox Live), and delivers game patches/updates to you automatically.

In the years I have been using it, it's never done anything sinister.

Kevin
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