no way to get it, other than paying hundreds. And anyone coming to you saying they have it for cheap, is scamming you.

There's no way to get it on Steam, without spending hundreds or an extremely high risk of getting scammed.
The cheapest way to get it, is on PS3/XB360. Console versions are like 10€ or less used and used 7th gen consoles are dirt-cheap atm for 30-60€, especially PS3's (the game also runs a little better on PS3). Just make sure, it says "Prepare to Die Edition" or that there's Artorias on the boxart, otherwise it may just be the base game, without the Artorias/Oolacile DLC. I'd argue, that a physical copy also has more collector's value.

Except for the odd mods and legacy support for late 2000's/early 2010 gaming-desktops, you're not missing anything, compared to console versions, since the PtdE port is locked at 30FPS and 720p anyways with awful KB&M support, in case you prefer playing with that. PtdE on PC is a legendarily bad port. No online either, without a workaround with practically dead mp.

Buy on PS3