What do I get for buying it at a store?

[Senethro]

I'm sure someone will try to sell you a pre-owned one. If its been installed previously then the license from the game will have been attached to one Steam account already and there'll be nothing you can do about it. You'll have a box and a disc and thats it.

 

[Achilleslastand]

If you buy the game from steam it means you have to d/l it from steam which depending on your connection could take anywhere from 30 mins to whole day. If you buy a boxed copy of the game you just install the disk and link it to your steam account which shouldnt take more then 10-20 minutes.
And btw why are the steam and boxed versions the same price? Shouldnt the steam version be cheaper since your not paying for the manufactured box,manual and disc?
If i buy either it will be the boxed copy.

 

[Grouchey]

it will almost definitely not work pre-owned since Steam licenses are not transferrable - likely one of the main reasons for this kind of DRM scheme is to prevent re-sales.

Thanks for making this point clear for everyone.

 

[awesome]

or, you know, you don't need an internet connection if you buy it in the store.

 

[Dermo]

If you buy the game from steam it means you have to d/l it from steam which depending on your connection could take anywhere from 30 mins to whole day. If you buy a boxed copy of the game you just install the disk and link it to your steam account which shouldnt take more then 10-20 minutes.
And btw why are the steam and boxed versions the same price? Shouldnt the steam version be cheaper since your not paying for the manufactured box,manual and disc?
If i buy either it will be the boxed copy.

My unerstanding is that bricks & mortar retailers push for this as a condition for putting on their shelves

 

[Dermo]

or, you know, you don't need an internet connection if you buy it in the store.

You do, at least once to register it (with Steam)
You will need a connection to download updates (stating the obvious)
Also others have said that Steam (which is part of Civ 5) will randomly try to connect to the internet on occasion (heresay)

 

[awesome]

sounds like yet another reason to not buy the game, i guess.

 

[deanej]

My unerstanding is that bricks & mortar retailers push for this as a condition for putting on their shelves

Doesn't that break anti-trust laws or something?

IMO, if they can't compete, they should just go out of business. That's the way capitalism works. Why should we pay extra to support a business model that no longer works?

 

[Dermo]

Probably,
That might also be BS put out by digital distributors to justify higher prices (pure speculation)
I would imagine that brick & mortar retailers still maintain enough influence to negotiate this sort of thing, especially since the console games (put out by the same publishers and developers) have to be sold by brick and mortar retailers.

I may be wrong, on that last point as i don't own a console system, this just based on observation of friends who do.