I decided to finish “Half-Life 2 Episode One” after about 6 years of not playing. I couldn’t log in. Contacted support and they had me delete almost all of the files in the game folder. I was then able to login.

But a dialog box popped up and said “Steam Guard” doesn’t recognize your computer. Same computer where the game was installed originally.

Now they’ve asked me to take a picture of the CD key and hand-write my ticket number above it. They can’t help me until I “prove” I’m the owner.

Remember the good old days when you bought a game and it was “yours”? You got a CD, plopped it in your computer, and it just ran. It didn’t require an internet connection to access an account. Yeah you might have to run the CD but so what, it was in “your hands”.

Now it seems like you pay for the “privilege” of playing the game. You’re given permission to use their software.

Anyone still gaming?