Remember just yesterday when I explained the benefits of PC gaming being: a) the separation of physical media from the gaming experience; and b) the ability to purchase and download a AAA selection of games and software for instant gratification? Well, to fuel that argument, Steam announced a partnership with THQ to provide digital distribution of their catalog.

Granted Steam provides a similar discount schedule as their brick and mortar retail counterparts, I’m all over this. Right now, THQ is arguably the leading publisher of PC titles, with Company of Heroes, Titan Quest, Supreme Commander, and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. - that’s a killer lineup of titles released in the past year. If I can get CoH for $29.99 or better, the price I’d pay in the store, for the ability to download, install and play near-immediately; well, that’s just awesome. Add to that no CD required and no activation key required, and the deal is made even sweeter. Steam has a nice tendency to price games aggressively through sales and bundles, so I’m confident there will be some nice deals to be had.

So in comparison, I could spend $10 on Bomberman Live through Xbox Live, or spend $20 or so for a great Diablo-clone in Titan Quest. Which would you prefer?