Just as I suspected, the regional discrimination thing rears its head once more on a game I wanted, this time Fallout New Vegas. us$90 to buy today but when I prepurchased it 2 months ago, it was us$50.

I guess supplies are getting limited...

Think I've decided to pre-purchase the second games I want hit steam before they can jack the prices up in a staggering display of arrogant greed

Why use Steam at all though? I'd just buy a physical copy.

Bastards.

Well, that and Civ 5 can just sit and wait. I'll buy them if and when they come to their senses.

Try this shop, they're good and cheap. Only reason I didn't get FNV from them is that I didn't know abut them at the time

It's a Steamworks game. It would require it regardless. And since Alias is Australian, he'd likely be financially crushed with the same kind of mark up he's talking about here on a physical copy.

Unless it's $90 in the first place. Of course you could always try and escape your walled oppressive regime of a nation...

So you're telling me that some games - even with a physical copy - require you to infect your PC with Steam?

If that's true, my love for my Xbox360 just doubled.

Many, not some.

A few off the top of my head:

Empire:Total War
Civilization V
Fallout:New Vegas

So far, Fear 2, Just Cause 2, Saints Row 2, Mafia 2, Fallout New Vegas, Civilization V, Metro 2033, AvP, all valve games of course

For me it is a positive, I like steam and how superconvenient it is.
So much better than being locked on xbox without mods and customizability. (sorry, had to:))

It's walled in by stone, man! It's walled in by deadly animals on all sides!

http://www.cracked.com/funny-5997-the-animals-that-make-australia-deathtrap-it-is/

Why must so many people insist on likening Steam to a virus, using words like "infect" or "contaminate" or "poison"? Don't use it if you don't like it, but really, it's not that bad. Seriously, I'd rather install Steam than contract genital warts. Or even worse, GFWL (like I have a say in that one).

Even though I don't adore $t€am, it is true that it is miles better than the GFWL shit.

Because many people are fools who think they have read something smart on the interweb about how Steam is like, DRAM YO, and must now gather together in a manly protest against such atrocities. In this case the atrocity of a download and game management client. I guess they don't have anything more important to be pissed about.

Also, every goddamn fucking thread on these boards turns into a Steam, DRAM or NO DRAM? discussion because of them these days.

On topic, jesus, US $90? Not AUD $90? Does games still sell digitally at US $90 in Australia? Is it the kangaroo tax?

Australians (and New Zealanders) pay high prices for retail copies, far more than the actual currency conversion value of their currencies; as in the US Steam's prices typically reflect retail, but in many cases they neglect to add the Filthy Foreigner Tax when a game is first added for pre-ordering (sometimes even longer), which means if you get in quick enough you can get it for the US list price and save a lot of money.