IRC is established. The only reason to not-use it is because we're handcuffed to Gabe's four-post bed, and so is the integrated Steam communication system, so it fits like a condom.
Name a single way to communicate on the internet that offers all of IRC's functionality with less overhead? Remembering, of course, that you can establish your own IRC network on hardware that can hardly run Minesweeper without "fps lag."
Trains are slow to start, slow to stop, inconvenient to schedule, and make annoying clunky sounds, but they're established and perfected to an artform, which is why we still send huge amounts of freight by rail despite having invented rail-less carriages and mechanical birds.
"some irc channels make u register and shit.."
>mfw you realize that you registered for Steam, too.