It's not a punishment....it's the way Steam works. It's a form of DRM...to verify the game, you have to log into Steam and it'll do so, then you can play/get the patches. Somewhat sadly, this is current the 'wave' of the future, and yes, if you don't have internet access you're fubar'd. If you have any friends w/the internet you can haul your pc over to their house and verify it from there, then take it back home.
I believe it says somewhere on the box that Steam & an internet connection is required...probably in tiny print tho.
It totally is a form of punishment, whether they call it that or not.
Requiring internet access to install a game from a disc is going backwards in development.
It says so in fairly small print on the back, but never did I ever think, "I need internet to install from a disc."
Because thinking that would be stupid.