[Les]

Originally Posted by nearmiss

Ordering from steam..

Ubi said if you have a boxed version, including CE you need internet to initialize the software with steam. If you have boxed version after you initialize your software you can play offline anytime without logon to steam.

So.. they specifically indicate if you have boxed version. I conclude, if you don't have boxed version you cannot play offline without being Online with steam.

In other words, if you have steam version regardless you must be online to play, even if you are playing on your own computer and not online server.

Correct me, if I'm wrong. I was just reading carefully the message given about boxed versions.

If the above is correct, then I definitely will buy only a boxed version of COD.

Internet connections can be fickle, and fail. Not that it would cost me anything financially, if the connection failed.

I just feel, if I have to be online all the time to play whether I'm online server or only on my local PC that is a recipe for trouble.

Yeah, as others have said, a bit off the mark there.

"Ubi said if you have a boxed version, including CE you need internet to initialize the software with steam." They didn't say you had to initialize with Steam, just that you had to initialize online. Seeing as we know SolidShield is involved, it's safer to assume they meant that, not Steam. And as they said later on that the DRM aspect of Steam wasn't being implemented on the boxed versions, it's pretty much certain that no, you won't have to initialize with Steam, but with SolidShield.

"If you have boxed version after you initialize your software you can play offline anytime without logon to steam." Given the above, yes, as Steam never enters the equation. But even if Steam were involved you could still play offline (even though the Steam program itself would have to be running, see second paragraph below).

"So.. they specifically indicate if you have boxed version." Yes, they make it clear there are differences between the boxed and downloadable versions. Whether there's a difference between downloadable versions from Steam and other vendors still isn't known.

"I conclude, if you don't have boxed version you cannot play offline without being Online with steam." No, you can always play offline with Steam if you want to. But the Steam client that you installed on your computer will always be running in the background if you want to play a Steam game. All your Steam games are effectively programs installed within the Steam program. You just choose whether or not you want the Steam program to be connected to the internet once you start the Steam program up to play your game through it.

"In other words, if you have steam version regardless you must be online to play, even if you are playing on your own computer and not online server." Again, no, you don't have to be online, but you do have to have the Steam client running on your computer in the background when you're playing a Steam game, online or offline.

All that said, there are still some missing pieces of information in regards to the boxed versions and whether or not they still require the Steam client/program to be installed at all, even if it's never used to connect to the internet.