Multiplayer Console Games Without Local Multiplayer

Discussion in 'Gaming Discussion' started by AliceShiki, Jan 12, 2022.

?

Do you care about having the local co-op function?

  1. I do!

    6 vote(s)
    37.5%
  2. To some extent.

    6 vote(s)
    37.5%
  3. I don't really care.

    2 vote(s)
    12.5%
  4. Feels like a waste of dev time to add it tbh.

    2 vote(s)
    12.5%
  1. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    How do you feel about those? Like... Mass Effect 3's Multiplayer, Dragon Age Inquisition's Multiplayer, Vermintide, Final Fantasy Dissidia NT... And other stuff like that. Basically, I'm asking specifically about games that could very very very easily add local multiplayer by simply adding a split screen function (like how every normal shooting/fighting game has done since forever), but that for some reason hasn't done it.

    Personally speaking, I hate those, and the lack of local multiplayer can be enough to make me give up on buying a game if it doesn't have enough extra appeals to it... Like, Mass Effect 3 had a good story mode and stuff, so I just dealt with the fact I couldn't play co-op locally, but... Dissidia? It's a fighting game? What's even the point of buying a Fighting Game without local multiplayer...? Geez, it feels so mindblowing to me.

    I mean, sure, it's not like every gamer out there lives with their family and has gamers within the family, so like... Lack of local co-op obviously won't be the end of the world for everyone, but... Geez, seriously? I can't even invite some friends over to play those games with me because... Well, we can't play it together. It's so annoying, and I just don't get how hard it can be to add a split screen function... It's just way too much of a basic function that has been around since forever, geez.

    Anyways, thoughts on that? Does it bother you? Do you not care? Do you prefer if they don't offer local co-op? Give me your thoughts, I'm curious~
     
    AMissingLinguist and mir like this.
  2. asriu

    asriu fu~ fu~ fu~

    Joined:
    Jan 9, 2016
    Messages:
    18,546
    Likes Received:
    18,145
    Reading List:
    Link
    cuz internet..... maybe those developer think meh if ya wanna multiplayer just play on internet.... heh....
    this cat is single player forever..... so it not annoy mua~
     
    GonZ555 likes this.
  3. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    Yeah, but I don't have two consoles! And I don't own two games! >.<

    If I wanna play with my brother or my friends, then I just can't!!! >.<
     
  4. ANonMouse

    ANonMouse Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 23, 2019
    Messages:
    612
    Likes Received:
    809
    Reading List:
    Link
    I was going to play through tales of arise with my friends but found out they ditched the coop aspect for the game... major sadge. I still played and enjoyed it, but tales coop is a nostalgic experience and my friends were willing to try it. We have such a hard time finding a game we all enjoy, so it was sad that the coop, which has traditionally been part of the tales formula, was abandoned.

    But yea, lots of companies just assume you'll play on the internet, not to mention forcing people not to play local coop means they can sell more copies since local coop only needs one copy. You know how things are these days... it's all about money. That's why I try to buy from devs that include thiings like local coop : want to reward them for being considerate and not trying to nickel and dime us to death.
     
    mir and AliceShiki like this.
  5. Liyus

    Liyus Laksha's Desu~ Cat

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2015
    Messages:
    4,216
    Likes Received:
    4,757
    Reading List:
    Link
    the last year i played "fall guys". what i found unfortunate is that i could't play together with friend or family but had to do 1 game at times then pass the controller. it's would have been the best if you could at least make it 2 players with a device instead of buying again the game in another device and adding friends.

    since years ago i only buy single player only games, because the other aren't worth the money.
     
    Last edited: Jan 12, 2022
    AliceShiki likes this.
  6. Viator

    Viator [Cult of Pyoo: Pyoo's Oak Tree]

    Joined:
    Mar 25, 2016
    Messages:
    613
    Likes Received:
    4,443
    Reading List:
    Link
    I'm one of the weirdos who always hated multiplayer games. I'm a single player all the way. I use games to relax and mentally drift in sublime introversion. I don't really have a stake in the thread except to throw out support to the single play people!
     
    GonZ555 likes this.
  7. GonZ555

    GonZ555 What i want for christmas is you

    Joined:
    Nov 10, 2015
    Messages:
    2,045
    Likes Received:
    41,257
    Reading List:
    Link
    *hi5*
    Go single player team!
    ...and booo!! at sucky internet.. >_>;;

    I just think local co-op on a multiplayer games are just the game dev cuttin cost on server handling stuff..
     
    asriu likes this.
  8. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    The weird part is that I don't think this even makes sense.

    Like... Let's use Mass Effect 3 as an example here... If I wanna play with my brother, I have two options:
    1) Buy a 2nd TV, a 2nd PS3 and a 2nd copy of ME3.
    2) Not do it.

    ... Obviously I never played ME3 with my brother because of that.

    With friends the argument becomes like... With co-op the friends can come over to play and not buy the game, but with online play you'd need two copies of the game when you already own the console... But well... It's not like my friends can come over all the time, yanno? So... Often times we'd just play together online anyways if they happened to own the game... But if they never played the game at my home to get the feeling of what the game was like, they most likely won't buy it because it hasn't interested them already, so... I don't think any sales were earned by the lack of local co-op... >.>
    Oh yeah, this one too, I had forgotten about it. Another game that I couldn't play with my brother... A friend gave it to me as a birthday gift and like... Well, I played it a few times with my friend, but not thaaaaat much... I would have played it a LOT more if I could have played it together with my brother, but... Well, I couldn't.
    Plenty of people prefer single player, you're no weirdo! xD

    I prefer single player too, but well... I just so happen to have a gamer brother and gamer friends (and a gamer boyfriend too~), so it doesn't hurt to have some games that we can play together, yanno?
     
  9. Fossil

    Fossil 「Spooky」「Scary」「Skeleton」

    Joined:
    Jun 5, 2016
    Messages:
    3,566
    Likes Received:
    19,341
    Reading List:
    Link
    Depends on the game. Some are a bit too clunky with local co-op and shouldn't have it. I was playing Ark Survival on PS4 with someone else, and it lagged like crazy. It's also why I don't think I'd want Monster Hunter as local co-op. However, I do believe that Halo should definitely keep the split screen like they have been.

    It truly depends on the game. Overall, I do believe that I prefer local to non-local, though. However there's also a case to be made that non-local gives greater freedom in some games, like Minecraft Dungeons, as you'd potentially be able to play without one character needing to be the camera. I'm not sure as I haven't played it online yet.
     
  10. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    Ah, well, if the game would lag horribly on co-op, then some adjustments would definitely need to be made.

    Like, reducing UI elements, taking away some particle effects from special effects and stuff like that... To like... Well, ensure that the gameplay is smooth, otherwise the co-op will just be a clunky mess! >.<
     
    Fossil likes this.
  11. ANonMouse

    ANonMouse Well-Known Member

    Joined:
    Jan 23, 2019
    Messages:
    612
    Likes Received:
    809
    Reading List:
    Link
    That's probably why steam developed family share function : so we can "demo" games on each other's libraries, not to mention the <2 hours no questions asked return policy. It's weird how demos were all the rage back then as well, but now, it's a rarity.

    In terms of developers, it's also tiime and work put in to implement a feature not a lot of people would use in the developers' estimate. Rather than put time and money into something that may not pay off, might as well bet on friends roping theiir friends into buying their own copies to play online. I do notice a lot of coop games try to sell 4packs or 2packs, to make it a bit cheaper if you're going to buy copies for the whole group.
     
  12. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    Well, demos aren't very worthwhile from a sales perspective IIRC, so that can't be helped~
    Well, I just can't imagine it being a hard to implement feature when it has been around since forever, so it feels like they just thought of it as not worth the trouble... Which is just insane to me... >.>

    And well, if I wanna play online with friends, we'll have to buy multiple copies with or without local co-op, so I don't think the lack of local co-op would change that... >.>
     
  13. lnv

    lnv ✪ Well-Known Hypocrite

    Joined:
    Jan 24, 2017
    Messages:
    7,702
    Likes Received:
    9,044
    Reading List:
    Link
    How else are you gonna make people pay for the same game twice? Then force them to buy the new game if they want to continue to do multiplayer?
     
  14. Dahna

    Dahna (-, – )…zzzZZZ

    Joined:
    Feb 13, 2021
    Messages:
    603
    Likes Received:
    464
    Reading List:
    Link
    I prefer LAN co-op; you can play co-op without worrying about Ping. Also, multiplayer cross-platform isn't bad too; technically, you need to buy two copies without buying one more console/PC to enjoy the games with family members.

    For local co-op on console, many AAA game developers don't think about maybe because of technical issues. When you play solo, those games use almost all resources to run it smoothly; split-screen will add more stress to limited hardware, causing reduced FPS and hardware lifespan.
     
  15. Blitz

    Blitz ⛈️ awakened from the reverie❄️

    Joined:
    Mar 21, 2016
    Messages:
    7,891
    Likes Received:
    59,555
    Reading List:
    Link
    Split-screen being more and more of a rarity is sad. Even some shooters seemed to have ditched it and just gone with online:blobastonished:
    It's still common in more indie games but for bigger stuff, it's a whole other story. Although I do understand that it's not optimal for certain types of games based on graphics, gameplay style but even for games where it's fit, it's often disregarded.


    I don't even remember inquisition or mass effect having a multiplayer mode:hmm:
    Dissidia brings back memories. I remember me and friends having a tournament with all our psp's.

    Monster hunter tri had split-screen, although it was only for arenas XD. It worked decently and it was on the WII
     
    Fossil likes this.
  16. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    You won't make me buy the same game twice, because I'd need to buy a 2nd console and a 2nd tv for it.

    If I needed just the game, then it could have actually worked, like... For real, it really could have worked for ME3, because I really loved that game and would be really happy to be able to play it in co-op with my brother... But when you take into account the need of a new TV and a new PS3... It was just unfeasible.

    So yeah, 0 extra sales for me, and probably from anyone else on that matter. A new console and a new TV just aren't worth the ability to co-op "locally" on those games.
    Ah, cross-platforming certainly does help quite a bit. Being able to play on PC together with someone on a Playstation definitely solves the problem of needing extra consoles/tvs.

    And yeah, I know that those graphics-heavy game do consume most of the resources of the console, but... All that they need to fix that, is enforcing lower graphics during the split screen... It can't be that hard.
    Inquisition's multiplayer sucked and was very easily forgettable, so don't mind it.

    ME Andromeda's multiplayer was kinda subpar too, so it's easily forgettable too~

    ME3's though? Not remembering that is heresy. The only reason I got into Mass Effect was because of ME 3's multiplayer! xD
    I mean... I think the mainstream shooters still have the split screen? Like... I can't seriously imagine Call of Duty or Battlefield giving up on giving the option of playing Split Screen. It would be the same as seeing a Street Fighter/Mortal Kombat give up on local co-op... Like... Basically total and utter heresy! >.<
     
  17. lnv

    lnv ✪ Well-Known Hypocrite

    Joined:
    Jan 24, 2017
    Messages:
    7,702
    Likes Received:
    9,044
    Reading List:
    Link
    Maybe for you but plenty of other people.

    The did their math and more sales + less work was a win in their book. You are just a statistic to them.
     
  18. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    Pretty sure nobody ever bought a 2nd tv/console for the sake of playing co-op.

    They're not gaining more sales from this for sure. I'm 100% sure about this one.

    What they're gaining, is less dev time spent making the local co-op, implementing split screen, making sure that the UI doesn't get too cluttered in split screen, and adjusting graphics/performance in order to make sure it works in split screen no matter what console you're running the game on.

    That's a decent amount of work that they're cutting, which does indeed reduce funds/time spent on the development of the game, and yes, this can make up for the loss of sales from people that decided to not buy the game as it lacked a local co-op function.

    So yeah, this can lead to overall higher profits, but I'm 100% sure it's not because they get more sales. More sales from lack of local co-op is not happening.

    ... And I still think the games should have the local co-op anyways. I don't seriously think the extra dev time needed to implement a functional split screen would be big enough to the point it would put a serious dent in their short-term profits, and it would make the game be overall better received, which could lead to better long-term profits.
     
  19. Generic.Archdemon

    Generic.Archdemon Bleh~ too lazy

    Joined:
    Feb 9, 2021
    Messages:
    102
    Likes Received:
    580
    Reading List:
    Link
    Console games maybe... but a lot of PC games are not optimized for it, it may not be a "one-more-player = double the RAM" situation, but most Tripple AAA games are ready pushing on resources, so running off a server and each player rendering their own game works better for the developer, I imagine...
     
  20. AliceShiki

    AliceShiki 『Ms. Tree』『Magical Girl of Love and Justice』

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2016
    Messages:
    24,647
    Likes Received:
    98,364
    Reading List:
    Link
    Oh, for PC games I agree that local co-op often times makes no sense.

    For example... Any game that runs on keyboard + mouse are incompatible with split screen by default. It has to be a game that uses only the keyboard for it to work out.
     
    Generic.Archdemon likes this.