Valve announced that Sony Online Entertainment has chosen the Steam content distribution platform to engage a new generation of gamers with some of their venerable MMO lineup. SoE’s Everquest, EverQuest II, Vanguard: Saga of Heroes, and Pirates of the Burning Sea are now available via Steam.

More and more major game publishers are using Valve’s system to distribute their software. In many ways, Steam is a great platform for re-introducing games that may have fallen out of retail favor. While boxes get old and relegating to the discount bin in traditional brick-and-mortar environments, digital content distribution is a very easy way to encourage people to make impulse purchases. I’m sure some of you have been browsing the Steam catalog before and found something that caught your eye, and perhaps that even led to a purchase of something you may never have tried in a more traditional setting.

The games, as well as expansion packs, are available immediately.