Bethesda wants to save single-player gaming!

[Curious_Tongue]

Video won't load for me

 

[SausageInYourFace]

inb4 TES:VI has brand new coop mode

(but no worries, devs payed full attention to single player experience #saveplayer1)

 

[Morkar Left]

Video won't load for me

Didn't for me either. Search on your favourite search engine for saveplayer1

 

[DJOGamer PT]

multiplayer was always a psychological scam. Can't become a renter or sell lootboxes without that superiority sense while belonging in a 'community'.

What are you talking about? Online Multiplayer games have existed since the mid 90's while Lootbox systems only first appeared in 2014 on CS:GO (and only spread to other games by late 2015/early 2016).

 

[DJOGamer PT]

inb4 TES:VI has brand new coop mode

That's already available for Skyrim.





This mod was created in late 2012 and back then it was called "Tamriel Online".

EDIT:

Wow! Looks like Betheseda are really taking this #SavePlayer1 shit seriously. They even rejected this mod to be published in the Skyrim's Steam Workshop.

 

[SCO]

Isn't it obvious? The conditions for those things to be taken seriously only happen if you're going to be playing online. No one gives a shit about losing to a AI, within obvious limits (they even weaken the AI in order not to alienate gamers feelings), but change it to a group of gamers and suddenly unbalanced games for money becomes viable. That it hasn't occurred before is more a lack of opportunity than anything else. It's the DLC model retarded cousin, for complete morons that sign on to their milking.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Remember LAN parties? That's where multiplayer was cool.

 

[DJOGamer PT]

Most multiplayer games still support LAN. I think that's even how they do it in the e-sports championships.

What I do miss from multiplayer games is bots.

 

[DeepOcean]

Bethesda doesn't go all in on multiplayer because you can't go from making single player games and having zero strong multiplayer franchises to be a multiplayer powerhouse without a MASSIVE and very risky investment. EA spew their bullshit about multiplayer games being the future and games as a service thing because they fucking suck at making single player games that sell well and their best hits are actually multiplayer games, so, guess what the guys that suck at making single player games and only successes are multiplayer titles will say? That he sucks at making single player games? Never! It is better to look cool and smart with buzzwords like "games as a service" where the "service" just translate into nickle and diming whales with lootboxes.

EA have big problems with this strategy, Battlefront 2 was a flop because of their aggressive nickle and diming to the point they risk tarnishing their brand and this happened on a strong IP with huge sales potential, guess how a new unknown IP would fare? There are other problems too, this scheme, to make money, depends that players keep playing that game on a regular fashion and, so far, only big multiplayer IPs like Call of Duty and Battlefield managed that.

Destiny 2 was a flop.
Titanfall was a flop.
Battlefront 2 was a flop.
The Division was a flop.
For Honor was a flop.
Lawbreakers was a flop.
Gear Box Overwatch clone was a flop.

Of all new IPs, only Overwatch managed to be a hit, the scenario that EA paints where all publishers can shit out dozens of multiplayer games expanding forever and not cannibalizing each other audience is just bullshit and EA pretending that having a few strong multiplayer IPs out of sucking the marrow of countless developers over decades consist on a rational strategy.

The day only has 24hs and even unemployed fucks on disability checks can't play all those games. All those games to make money on lootboxes need high player retention and Destiny 2 lost fucking 80% of its audience after a very short time and sold 40% less than Destiny 1.

 

[Infinitron]

What's odd about the whole "multiplayer will replace single player" thing is that at the same time, publishers would very much like you to be able to play multiplayer games the same way you play single player games. That's what the whole "sandbox vs theme park" debate in MMOs is all about. Things like matchmaking exist so that you can join a multiplayer match with the same ease you might launch a single-player skirmish against bots.

You might say that the ideal multiplayer game for publishers is essentially a single player persistent arena where the AI is powered by other humans.

 

[Beastro]

You might say that the ideal multiplayer game for publishers is essentially a single player persistent arena where the AI is powered by other humans.

That is what WoW PvP has been since Battlegrounds.

In my case, I see no reason to play PvP if I can't have the smacktalk, especially the whining from those with less self-control.

Nothing compares too to the reactions you get exploiting in an FPS. Some of my fondest memories in gaming are from BF1942 and the hilarity of warping inside buildings and gunning people down as they tried to sneak up and figure out how I did it or when a buddy and I figured out a way of getting amphibious vehicles to go underneath the surface of the water, then used it to massacre the beach landing spawn points as people desperately tossed grenades into the water or when we'd use it to take the flag in capture the flag maps, then ride around as ships circled over head and planes randomly crashed in through the water as people desperately tried to kill us kamikazing.

Thinking about it I wished voice chat was as ubiquitous as later became, but by the time it did I'd grown out of that.

 

[mondblut]

I bet this elderly lady haven't played any "single-player" game other than solitaire.

 

[Beastro]

What is this garbage

You know things are bad when a

says it.

 

[DosBuster]

Destiny 2 was a flop.

Destiny 2 was one of the best selling games of 2017

 

[Ash]

 

[TheRedSnifit]

The problem isn't that games are selling less. Prey outsold both the System Shock games combined (by a large margin, I may add). Dishonored has outsold Thief by quite a lot. Doom hasn't really sold any better or worse than the typical 2000s AAA shooter like Bioshock or FEAR, let alone the typical '90s shooter. Wolf2 is the sequel to a game that was loved by a handful of Internet types and nobody else. Single player games thrived on pre-Xbox consoles because of limited networking abilities, but in the PC space they've always played second fiddle to multiplayer outside of a couple juggernauts like Myst and Doom (which also had pretty popular multiplayer).

The problem is that devs have been competing in an inane graphical and storytelling arms race that has driven up the budgets of these games, without attracting the audiences to fund them. Titanfall 2 shouldn't sell something to the effect of 5 million copies and still be seen as a bomb.

The cinema shooter is going to die outside of the occasional console exclusive by Naughty Dog or whomever. Devs need to accept that a linear game isn't going to sell 10 million copies anymore. Even Capcom realized this and pared back the ludicrous excess of Resident Evil 6, but I wouldn't be surprised if Bethesda decided to quadruple the amount of cutscenes and story in nuDoom2.

 

[TheHeroOfTime]

This is a year where a lot of singleplayers games came out and were a success: Resident evil 7, Nier automata, Persona 5, Zelda Breath of the wild, Ni-oh, Mario Odyssey... But hey! We need to save one player experiences asap, Bethesda to the rescue!

Only Player unknown battlegrounds managed to be a hit this year as a multiplayer game. The reason because this retardation about saving onanistic games became a trend is beyond me.

 

[Ash]

This is a year where a lot of singleplayers games came out and were a success: Resident evil 7, Nier automata, Persona 5, Zelda Breath of the wild, Ni-oh, Mario Odyssey... But hey! We need to save one player experiences asap, Bethesda to the rescue!

Only Player unknown battlegrounds managed to be a hit this year as a multiplayer game. The reason because this retardation about saving onanistic games became a trend is beyond me.

Notice a pattern with all those games? All Japanese. Western singleplayer is collectively a massive pile of shit and does need saving. Not that Bethesda are the ones for the job.
...Well, unless they hire Obsidian again for a Fallout 4: New Vegas.

 

[Hines]

Prey outsold both the System Shock games combined (by a large margin, I may add).

Unfortunately you're omitting the fact that System Shock 2 only cost $1.7 million, shipped on a single platform, received essentially zero marketing support by EA, and took 18 months to develop by a tiny team, and was still considered a commercial failure.

https://web.archive.org/web/2008032...feature/3406/postmortem_irrational_games_.php

System Shock 1 only sold 170,000 copies, but that was 1994.

Prey, however, cost a-fucking fortune in comparison. Four years with a team of 70, not to mention dozens of contractors, for PC, PS4, and XBOX One; the marketing included, but was not limited to, an expensive CGI trailer by Blur, a Game Informer cover story, Quakecon panels, a splashy E3 reveal event, Gamescom, a demo, and a coveted (and pricey) spot at the Game Awards. They had the costs of engine licensing, the Prey IP, and turning the Austin studio into a fully-fledged AAA development house. Despite all these resources, Prey was discounted by a 3rd within two weeks of launch, and was outsold by Zelda, GTA V, and Mario Kart, so while it may have outsold the previous System Shock games, when you look at it's performance in context and consider how much it cost relative to those projects, the game was a unquestionably a larger failure than any title in the Shock series (before it received massive discounts, Prey had barely outsold those games). The Shock games were also enormous critical hits, which is something that Prey certainly wasn't.

https://venturebeat.com/2017/05/20/...on-redefines-the-troubled-franchise/view-all/

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

Thanks, Bethesda!!!

 

[TheRedSnifit]

Prey outsold both the System Shock games combined (by a large margin, I may add).

Unfortunately you're omitting the fact that System Shock 2 only cost $1.7 million, shipped on a single platform, received essentially zero marketing support by EA, and took 18 months to develop by a tiny team, and was still considered a commercial failure.

https://web.archive.org/web/2008032...feature/3406/postmortem_irrational_games_.php

System Shock 1 only sold 170,000 copies, but that was 1994.

Prey, however, cost a-fucking fortune in comparison. Four years with a team of 70, not to mention dozens of contractors, for PC, PS4, and XBOX One; the marketing included, but was not limited to, an expensive CGI trailer by Blur, a Game Informer cover story, Quakecon panels, a splashy E3 reveal event, Gamescom, a demo, and a coveted (and pricey) spot at the Game Awards. They had the costs of engine licensing, the Prey IP, and turning the Austin studio into a fully-fledged AAA development house. Despite all these resources, Prey was discounted by a 3rd within two weeks of launch, and was outsold by Zelda, GTA V, and Mario Kart, so while it may have outsold the previous System Shock games, when you look at it's performance in context and consider how much it cost relative to those projects, the game was a unquestionably a larger failure than any title in the Shock series (before it received massive discounts, Prey had barely outsold those games). The Shock games were also enormous critical hits, which is something that Prey certainly wasn't.

https://venturebeat.com/2017/05/20/...on-redefines-the-troubled-franchise/view-all/

I didn't "omit" anything, you nerd, this is literally my point. Go back and read past my second sentence this time.

 

[Zarniwoop]

If Bethesda really wants to save single player games, they would stop making them immediately.

It's like testicular cancer saying it cares about balls. GTFO then and let the balls/games be healthy.

r00fles.

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

What's odd about the whole "multiplayer will replace single player" thing is that at the same time, publishers would very much like you to be able to play multiplayer games the same way you play single player games.

It's about money. Multiplayer is a continual stream of income where the developer can sell a subscription and/or other addons.

Single player is a one time purchase. DLC helps with this though.

 

[Cyberarmy]

 

[DeepOcean]

If EA sold cars:

Spoiler

EA: Do you want a car, sir?
You: Yes, thank you very much.
EA: It is only 10.000 dollars.
EA: Sir, we started a revolutionary new program called Cars as a Service.
You: (While you are distracted smelling your beautiful new car.) Hmmm... tell me about it...
EA: We discovered we shouldn't only sell cars, as is expected of a company that... sells cars, but that we need to engage the customer too.
You: (The inside of the car looks really pretty, you are happy with your purchase) Engaging the customer is really important... sure...
EA:We believe that we should engage the costumer, providing him a long term service, we even offer you free benefits after we sell you our car.
You: Sure, I'm in, I will buy it.
EA: A pleasure in doing business with you.
You: (As you sit down on your car to drive it, you notice a huge padlock on the steering wheel.) Hey... What is happening?
You: (After fiddling with the padlock, you see some small inscription on it.) "To unlock this steering wheel, you need to drive 10.000 miles or purchase our deluxe service."
You: What is this? I don't understand...
EA: This is part of our new plan, "Cars as a Service", we thought it would a great way to make the customer feeling engaged as you know, you could just drive with this car you paid for out of here but where is the feeling of accomplishment on something like that? When the customer feel he needs to work towards something, he feels he accomplished something in life, we are proud we are offering this experience.
You: How the fuck am I going to drive 10.000 miles on a car without the steering wheel?
EA: This is where we offer our very special service, we are selling you the car and additional products for free, like this here...
EA: "Hey! You, minority quota lizardman identified penguin! Bring our special free content for the customer here.
Penguin: Sir, you are oppressing me, I identify now as an amazonian warrior princess. I told you last week.
EA: I thought you were male.
Penguin: Don't call me that!
EA: Sure... we don't want a Kotaku fake ultrage click baiting article here...right? Sure... Amazonian princess, bring this man the proof of our service.
You: (You look confused as you look to what appears to be a monocycle.) But... this is a monocycle.
EA: Yes, a FREE monocycle, you gain this free monocycle as additional content for your package for FREE.
You: What am I supposed to do with this monocycle?
EA: I thought it was obvious, you will have a wonderful experience travelling across america seeing all the sights and get a healthy life style as you drive your 10.000 miles with it, not mentioning, it is a very, very green vehicle with very low emissions.
You: Am I buying the right to work hard to maybe earn enough to unlock the car I just bought?
EA: Exactly that! Cars as a Service!
EA: Look, I recognize that some customers have more money than time and others have more time than money. If you don't have the time, I just could sell you a Lootkey.
You: Heh... okay, some customers have more time than money and others have more money than time... but if you didn't place a padlock on the steering wheel in the first place, wouldn't be both happy?
EA: Ehh... (the EA executive hushes something, almost unintelligible on the ear of his assistant) Amazonian queen... remind me to have a meeting with the marketing department to have a customer friendly answer for this line of inquiry.
EA: Oh Sir, sometimes people misunderstand the gaming as a service program, this isn't about nickle and diming, of course not. See, look to our legendary lootkey system, you buy a lootkey and maybe you will be rewarded with the key for the padlock, only for 10.000 dollars.
You: Maybe? Another 10.000? What if I don't get the key?
EA: You buy another lootkey only for 10.000 dollars.

In shock, you give up on the buy and mutter for yourself as you leave the car shop... "This is madness... no way any rational human being would fall for such scheme."
To your horror, as you leave the car shop, you see a long line of monocycles entering the car shop.
You caught a brief conversation between two men:
Man 1: I bought a booster pack for 1.000 dollars and they even gave me a bicycle instead of a monocycle.
Man 2: You fool, you paid money for them, I did the proper way, I grinded so hard, my strategy was just driving around on circles around my house, this is a more efficient miles farming strategy.
Man 1: Wasn't that terribly boring?
Man 2: Yeah, sure, but to only think that sweet car I paid for could be mine one day... more than rewarding for the hard work.
Man 1: Man, why all people always find a way to exploit the system? We were supposed to drive 10.000 miles on america seeing the sights and getting healthy on an eco efficient vehicle not to farm miles this way.

Distracted, you were hit by an stampede of monocycles as they rush towards the entrance of the car shop, it probably was thousands and thousands of monocycles that drove over you, you don't know just that at some point, you lost consciousness and died.

So, this was the saga of the last rational man.