Another point: CD keys in 2010 were 25-character alphanumeric codes. When installing the game, the user would input the code, which the installation would validate online. This process ties the game to the user's account and helps in tracking legitimate sales.
The manual—usually home to that precious, 25-digit alphanumeric string known as the —was blank. A printing error. A ghost in the machine. In an era before seamless Steam activations, that string of characters was the only bridge between the physical disc and the virtual grid. Without it, the game was just a reflective circle of useless plastic. f1 2010 cd key