I dislike steam immensely. Even Aion's launcher irritates the snot out of me.

If a game comes with a whole bunch of live-connect or launcher stories, I get over it very quickly. Just let me play the damn game.

Oh - and so far the only softcopy I've bought of a game so far is Guild Wars' Nightfall / EoTN expansions. I treasure my gaming chest (for lack of a better phrase).