There is obviously no objective fact that Steam should either be liked or disliked. From a developer's point of view (Steamworks : alpha/beta capabilities + networking interface + cheaper distribution) it's a fantastic beast. If only those developers, in their enthousiasm, had not forgotten not everyone is a developer, hence, might very well prefer a completely isolated game binary. Though some of them, too, fail to understand that 'DRM-free' does not necessarily mean 'Steam-free'. I can understand the dissapointment.
I myself will be most happy with a key on gog : no client required to either install or play the game. And yes, I do have to download it using an online-connection once, I did purchase it once online too did'nt I ?!
