Problem with that sean.. is that Stardock and/or Ironclad knew there was going to be some people who wouldn't purchase it in response. They didn't care about those people.. yet you expect those people to toss out their Principles to support a group that has pretty much stated.. we don't need you.. to hades with your principles.

As far as I'm concerned any dev or publisher that requires steamworks.. can fail and I hope they do. Its nothing personal but thats the only way we're going to see companies move another direction is if they do take a hit to the pocket book for decisions that consumers don't like.

Of course not everyone shares my opinion or principles.. but if you don't speak to companies in the language they understand.. that is bottom line.. they are just gonna do whatever they want. People who don't like steamworks but continue to purchase steamworks games are just enablers who are providing positive feedback to companies even when/if overall consumer sentiment is negative.

That sounds very personal.

Companies aren't making a statement about principals or anything else; companies are making business decisions. They're executives may agree with your values and yet still use Steamworks because it makes the most financial sense.

As a consumer, you vote with your checkbook. If you don't like Steam, don't buy a single game on it. But I think you should understand that most developers can't afford to take a stand against something that can easily make the difference between having a hit game and having a dud.

It is impossible to change people's minds about these things. I can tell you that in a decade I have gotten more access to games from Steam sales and gotten better games with better MP from Steamworks. Why should I care about who technically owns the software? It's not like there is ever going to be a point where I will lose access to my games. In more than a decade I have not lost a single one. It should be illegal to sell a game on a disc that requires that disc to play. Discs will inevitably get ruined. In that respect steam is much better. 

I'm agreeing with you. You have every right to not only refrain from buying games for any reason you choose but to attempt to convince others to refrain. Steamworks doesn't bother me nearly enough to outweigh the pleasure I get from buying games that incorporate it. I believe many people agree with me. We're not enablers; we're making a rational decision based on values that differ from yours.

SO I cant MP without this crap? I'm sorry if getting in bed with Steam gets some devs excited, but I'm sick and tired of the Googles of the world watching everything I do, what time I wake up, when I go to bed, what I eat, what I drink, and what color my feces happen to be on this particular day.  If it doesn't bother you then I'm glad for you.  I, on the other hand, am very bothered.  So someone please point me in the direction of how to get my refund, and we can part ways.  And thus ends my marriage with PC gaming.

If Stardock was a purely capitalistic company (in the narrow sense of making as much money as possible), they wouldn't have sold Impulse and maybe we'd have Impulse reactor available to avoid this whole problem. Of course they're free to make whatever choice they wish, no one is saying they don't have the right to do that. But that doesn't mean their customers have to like it. Their former customers are simply voicing their displeasure with the decision as is their right.

Yet at the same time the fact that they made this choice should be more transparent than it is. Many people who preordered this game probably do not check the forums nor the gaming interview where the news was released. Even worse they may have done so at a time when Stardock making a steamworks game was unthinkable. When they preordered there was absolutely no indication that a third party DRM scheme would be required. In fact with news about a new Stardock store starting up, it sounded like it was back to the good old days when Stardock controlled all the services to its own products. It seems we could not have been farther from the truth.

To those worried about having "some additional software" just for one game:

Years ago I had to get STEAM in order to get the MOD (which later became a full game) called "Red Orchestra".  I thought it sucked that I needed STEAM and never thought I'd use it for anything else.  Then I started paying attention to those unbelievable sales seemingly always going at STEAM (nothing out there beats them.......I mean NOTHING) and I now have 200+ games on STEAM.

To those worried about "losing access to THEIR purchases":

Even in situations where people have been caught cheating in games (ban-worthy offenses) I have never heard of people losing access to their entire library, just that one product.  What's the problem there?  Simple.......don't cheat.  If you do, you deserve to lose access to the software being used regardless of the fact that you "paid for it".  Oh and I do know about that MW2 fiasco where VALVE banned a hell of a lot of people erroneously..........again.......erroneously......and everything was set straight.

I have in my many years of being a STEAM customer not had one single issue.  I run STEAM on 7 different machines, sometimes in OFFLINE sometimes in ONLINE, sometimes in PRIVATE and sometimes in PUBLIC modes.  I have at various times in those years downloaded and re-downloaded many of the 200+ titles in my library all without one single hitch.  Steamworks makes finding/joining/inviting to games the easiest thing on the planet.  If you don't want your stats visible for everyone make your profile private.  There is simply nothing else quite as simple as STEAMWORKS in existence.

For many years STEAM was the ONLY non-windows/OS piece of software besides TeamSpeak on any of my gaming computers.  Then with the advent of Impulse and EA's new Origin I had to add a few pieces of software to the stables.  I can tell you that everything I just said about STEAM I cannot say about the others.

EDIT:

Since the following comment seems to have stuck a nerve and I agree that my use of the term "assumptions" below of course in itself implies an assumption on my part.  So if you're not one who silently "assumes" STEAM doesn't work for anyone disregard the below.  Thanks! 

 So while I'm sure there are those who's experience with STEAM does not reflect mine, please cease with the assumptions that experiences such as mine do not or cannot exist.

Oh I agree, Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and I agree that its actually a minority who feels this way about Steam, nowhere near the idea that experiences like yours don't exist. I don't think anyone in this thread (no matter how zealous) has stated that non-one gets a good time from Steam, just that they don't like the risks/breaking their principles/supporting Steam/etc.

Where did anyone make that assumption? I'm not saying some, perhaps most people have bad experiences with it. Its that I have had bad experiences with it or dislike it for philosophical reasons. I think that is more than fair enough grounds to make a respectful complaint as this is a series and company first.

Feel free to think that as much as you want, but to others its a very real fear and real or imagined they should both be fully informed about it and have the right to complain and take any other actions they feel are reasonable.

And its not necessarily a black/white I will/won't use steam either. I may refuse to buy a new steam game because I feel its system inhibits my enjoyment of the game to make it not worth while, but may purchase Rebellion later when its on sale for $15, at which point its enough value to be worth the hindrance. But of course neither Steam or Stardock gets as much money off of that, and is a way to reward companies who don't use steam by being willing to buy their games at full price.

I did and edited mine.

Ultimately, on your end it's about making money (which is what a business needs to do).  The question is: given how few people play MP Sins, is this worth the cost?  Then again, I don't think many people will boycott this game over Steam install.  Which group is larger?  That said, you can at least play without Steam.

I just don't like how Steam has become outright necessary these days.  It's a good service, but it's setting up the potential for a very nasty monopoly once Gabe is replaced- it scares me.  You are right in that there isn't a good replacement, but that's largely due to Steam's market power and the expense required to get into the game.

I always make sure I have one non-Steamworks game installed, just in case their servers get hacked to shreds as a buffer- which is my other concern about Steam's dominance.  What happened to Sony last year could happen to valve.

I'm not buying this game anyways, as I don't think I'd like it or have the time for it.  I do hope FE ends up on Steam and Origin- so more folks will be able to buy it, but I'd want to keep the option to purchase directly and not have to go through any 3rd-party sites in order to install/patch future Stardock developed games.   That is something that would influence my purchasing decision if I was on the fence.

I second this, I already don't have a computer to play Sins on, and now Steamworks is involved, so I have absolutely no reason to get Rebellion.