The third iteration of the series will not be released on Steam either.
It seems PC players will have fewer options than normal when it comes to purchasing the upcoming Mass Effect 3. Like other Electronic Arts games released in the past six months or so, Mass Effect 3 will not be sold through Steam. Furthermore, regardless of whether you buy the game in stores or online, the Origin platform will be required to play it.
Players will be required to have the Origin platform downloaded and installed, as well as have an Origin account. Steam originally did this tactic with Half-Life 2 in order to build Steam's install base. BioWare has stated that only a one-time authorization for the single-player game is required and only the multiplayer requires a constant Internet connection, so that the Origin platform will basically be as non-intrusive as it can be.
BioWare's Chris Priestly answered some frequently asked questions on the BioWare forums concerning the PC version of the game, one of them being whether the title would be available on Steam. His answer stated that "during initial release," the digital version would be available through Origin and "a number of other 3rd party digital retailers," but Steam would not be one of them. The reason for this is the same as the reason titles like Battlefield 3 weren't sold on Steam:
Steam has adopted a set of restrictive terms of service which limit how developers interact with customers to deliver patches and other downloadable content. We are intent on providing Mass Effect to players with the best possible experience no matter where they purchase or play their game, and are happy to partner with any download service that does not restrict our ability to connect directly with our consumers.
Valve, the company in charge of Steam, has expressed a desire to carry EA's latest games and the two companies have continued to do business together. Many older titles from EA are available on Steam, such as Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Dead Space.
Priestly's "initial release" characterization of the release schedule means that a Steam version could still happen in the future. Mass Effect 3 will be released for the PC and consoles on March 6, 2012.
I'm personally not of a fan of companies pushing their PC platforms on consumers. The option is nice and I like services like Steam but I remember when that service was first starting, I hated the fact that it was tied to my Half-Life game.
There should be incentives to use the service, such as Steam achievements or cloud storage but it shouldn't be required. I mean what's the point of buying retail if you have to use the digital platform anyway?
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