The Tyranny of the Multiplayers

I was a big fan of the original 'Battlefield Vietnam'.  I noticed that Battlefield 2 'Bad Company' had a Vietnam expansion complete with music of the era!  "Nice!" I thought "Time to upgrade". 

Battlefield Vietnam originally had sandbox like maps in which you achieved objectives.  You could play it Multiplayer, or with Bots.  Generally, friendly bots tend to be pretty stupid...and the enemies tend to be much less so.  It's up to you to overcome the failing of your allies and win the game. 

As old as "Battlefield 2 Bad Company" is, it was still $20!  The Vietnam expansion for it was another $15!  "Fine" I thought "Battlefield Vietnam was a great game for how many years?  They must have done some work on those bots to make them smarter.  It should be fun".  Well, after spending $35, I found out that "Battlefield 2 Bad Company Vietnam" is "MULTIPLAYER ONLY"!!!   I guess I should have looked at the fine print.  Who does that?  I don't mind playing a computer game against people I know.  People I can reach over and smack in the head if they call me something obnoxious.  As long as women have sex with assholes (as they seem to do a lot of) there will be children who aspire to "Dad's" example.   I'm not saying that all Multiplayers are like this...in fact, most are not.  But, like I said before, it doesn't take much shit to contaminate the stew. 

So, besides the lack of social accountability, what else is bad about multiplayer?  Well, multiplayer turns any game into a competitive event.  To that extent, I play a game because it entertains me... not because I want to compete with other players.  If I play a game with another person, I generally prefer a cooperative mode that improves teamwork  and communication.  That's what I like.  Not everyone is the same.  A "Multiplayer only" game should say that in the LARGE PRINT...not the fine print!  I suppose this is EA's excuse to say "We just don't know how to make a better bot".   So it's a fucking map with ports!!?!?  Wow!  Don't break your brain making that, EA!!!

Time management:  When I play a game, my responsibilities outside of that game take precedence.  If I need to be called away...it is no problem.  Life, love and opportunity wait for no man.  Your wife, your boss, your parents, or the dinner you have heating up on the stove is not going to enjoy taking a back seat to your online game. 

I've been waiting over 10 years for a decent MechWarrior game to come out.  No sooner did Microsoft sell the franchise than they made their own MechWarrior game entitled TITANFALL.
MechWarrior 5 (Titanfall) - "Because our lawyers are better than your lawyers" - Is MULTIPLAYER ONLY.  This incredible looking game may generate much revenue amongst the Microsoft servers.  I've spent 20 years putting up with what only Microsoft (those slimy bastard) lawyers and well paid off judges refer to as "Not a monopoly" as they use manipulative market tactics that would make a pimp blush.  (enough of a rant on that).  Apparently Titanfall has a story...which you will never actually hear because your team will be a mile away by the time any dialogue manages to finish.  Microsoft is obviously using the same intuition that we've all come to know and love from their office products. 

In summary; there was a time when Multiplayers were off playing Counter-Strike... Team Fortress ... the Call of Duty Series ...etc.   Now, with the money going to online game services, Multiplayer is more lucrative than ever.  With less effort being spent on AI and game flow, more profit can be attained with less overhead.  Through the safety of anonymity with minimal accountability in some games, players can be excessively obnoxious.  Obsessive Multiplayers (92% of which are men) will find themselves single and unemployed a lot more than ever before.  This sedentary activity reduces the likeliness of healthy choices in diet and exercise.  Though all computer games generally have this aspect to them,   multiplayer games have the extra quality of not always feeling like you have the option to leave.  To a gamer it would feel like being a player and walking off the field in the middle of a game (Soccer, baseball, etc.).  

Just say 'No' to 'MMO'