Some passionate Steam supporters have misrepresented some of our concerns.
Strawmen wearing tin foil hats screaming the sky is falling are confusing the issue.
My concerns, in order of importance, are...
Internet Connection:
I do not want my usage of Civ5 to be tied to internet validation. For reasons of finance and possible relocation, I may soon have no internet access. Furthermore, my internet connection has been consistently unreliable of late. And my provider (comcast~ this regions only broadband option) has installed usage caps and limitations. I can't trust that at some future date they won't lower the usage caps and increase the limitations. I understand that Steam users insist that upon initial validation, we can use offline mode and do not have to connect with Steam ever again. Despite a few hours of research (not all related to this question, but all Steam related), I cannot find anything which confirms this. Seems that much depends on the game in question. I find nothing assuring us that Civ5 will indeed work in this way.
If it proves true that Civ5's offline mode will Never require periodic validations, then I still have the concern that I must have a net connection any time I reformat the harddrive, have to repair my OS installation, use a different computer, or encounter some unkown event that triggers Steam to revalidate my Civ5 installation. I'm not spending over $50 on something that I can't be certain will be usable at will.
Ownership
I understand that we don't technically own the games we buy. But my usage of every PC game in my library is totally independent of some 3rd party. I can pick up the discs (when ever and where ever I want), install them in any machine that can run them, and play regardless of the existence, or the decisions of some outside force. If Firaxis/2k should go belly up I can still play those games. If hackers pwn the internet I can still play my games. etc. But if for whatever reason Valve/Steam should stop supporting Civ5, then I can't play it anymore. Unacceptable!
I'm once bitten twice shy on this subject. All the msn and yahoo music on this PC is lost if this machine becomes unusable, is reformatted, or is replaced. There are plenty enough precedents to validate my concern over ownership. Valves Steam might be doing better than great right now. It may appear that they will be around long past CivX. They may look like titans on the verge of pwning how games are distributed and played. Their unexpected fall from grace wouldn't be the first. When I buy something I want it to stay bought!
Accumulated Junk and Assorted Hassles
If I don't use it, I don't want it on my PC. I am tired of the constant updating of every piece of blasted software I own. I'm sick of running into program incompatibilities. I'm impatient with the ever increasing time it takes to defrag and scan my harddrive. I seek a sleek, uncluttered computing environment. I want power over my programs and I want to completely remove unwanted stuff. I don't want pieces of deleted programs sticking around. And I don't want yet another program growing a bit bigger with every blasted update its makers release. I see the value of Steam for some users. More power to you. I am sincerely happy that it provides services you enjoy. I don't want them though. Nothing personal. I just wanted to play Civ5.
I had problems with Civ3's gamespy. Clearly I wasn't the only one. Through my computing history I have had my fill of program crashes, system hangs, reinstalling, updating, compatibility conflicts and other assorted hassles. I'm sick and tired of it already! If I'm not using it I don't want it on my machine! I'm trying to simplify things to reduce complexity and minimize software conflicts. Every additional program adds to the system complexity which increases the hassles. Bringing in a piece of unwanted software that is tied to my game and interacts with my AV and firewall is not something I want.
Security
Steam opens a door into our PCs. Our firewalls and AVs must be configured to allow it access. So we give them a key to our machines. I don't trust that some thief in the night can't steal that key and use it for their own nefarious reasons. There is plenty of precedence for black hats gaining access to peoples machines by finding vulnerabilities in the software they use. My Firefox browser was compromised and became unusable. At the same time ie8 was compromised which allowed for my browser security settings to be changed without my notice. Which in turn opened the door for the real nasties. Various AV found nothing and changes to ie8's settings continued. Why should I assume that Steam is somehow invulnerable? It would provide another access point to my machine. Any risk must offer a reward. Steam provides no reward for me. No reason for me to create more vulnerability.
Another aspect to Steams security is the hijacking of user accounts. From what I've read on their support forums, it is a hassle to restore a hijacked account. And there is no guarantee that a stolen account can be restored to its rightful owner. I'm sure this is a relatively rare occurrence. But I have no desire to play roulette regardless of the odds, unless its for something I really want. And I really don't want Steam. I had very much wanted Civ5!!! But with all things considered, I don't want it that bad. But I do. That's the problem. But I won't and that just sucks. I'm addicted to Civ. I love the gameplay. No other game does it for me like Civ does. I've still got Civ3 and 4.
All that said, if my concerns over Internet Connection and Ownership
can be assuaged, then I may reconsider my decision to not buy Civ5.