Only EA’s Origin for digital downloads.

JAN. 13, 2012 • BioWare has announced to its large player community that an account with EA’s Origin digital distribution service will be required to play any PC version of Mass Effect 3 – retail and digital copies. In addition, Mass Effect 3 will not be available via Steam. After registration via Origin, a constant online connection will not be required to play the single player portion of Mass Effect 3.

Impact: Mass Effect 3 is significant test for both Origin and Steam. To date, there has been widespread reluctance by many gamers to maintain multiple digital distribution clients on their PCs. Steam has a well-deserved reputation for doing no harm, and the fear is multiple distribution clients will not play nicely with each other. If Origin can co-exist without problems, then that will give EA a leg up on future exclusive releases. If Origin causes problems, then the unintended result will be to redirect sales to console versions of the game.