As someone who let their parents influence their degree choices, DON'T LET THEM DECIDE FOR YOU!!! (please read that not as yell but the unhinged screaming of a man with 20 years of regret).
The only person in your life that will make a decision in your best interest is you. Other people will always be motivated by their own wants, needs, and views. Your parents views on AI and CS are likley not well informed.
My boss has become the person in blue. Can't get any work done now because follow up questions are to hard for him now.
That's reasonable, my project are all small half formed hobby projects. One day I might make something to publish.
I just went from 4.4 to 4.6, and now you are telling me I am going to have to go to 4.7 soon.
I'm not advocating that we stop buying games. Life is to short, do the things you love and enjoy. It's you last sentence that is the key part, "should be illegal". That is what we need to focus on. DRM and platform lockin should be illegal. Now let's make that happen.
It's important to know who the bad guys are and what are the tools they use. We (gamers) should be focusing on the DMCA and publishers that use DRM. DRM providers are a simptom of laws that allow people to be screwed, not the problem it's self.
That's only true if the publisher chooses to use DRM.
You can publish on Steam without DRM. I don't really know what point you are trying to make.
I also feel a need to point out payment systems are not complicated. You can build your own payment and distribution for your game, or you could pay a 30% commission for someone to do it for you.
Steam is not the problem when it comes to DRM. Steam offers a service, it's the publishers who choose to use the always-on DRM.
I just want to say student lending is one of the most predatory forms of lending we have in this county and you should avoid them. It is better go to a community college or take a gap year to work and build savings. Also College is not the only path to success and before spending a lot of money think about what success looks like to you.