The Last of Us: Single Player Isn't Dead

Ed Prosser looks at the prospects of singleplayer games in todays market and uses The Last of Us as an example of what singleplayer can do.

[Kanzes]

BioShock Infinite is the proof that single player game isn't dead, and not all games need a multiplayer.

[Ezz2013]

Single player games are not dead....not by a long shot

uncharted games
Bioshock games
god of war games
the last of us
beyond
heavy rain
ni no kuni
RDR
Batman
Infamous
lord of shadows
MGS4
etc etc etc of Multiplat games and exclusives

can't wait for the last of us (my GOTY)

EDIT : hey, zerocrossing..how are you doing ?!
i said (MY) goty ....i'm only talking about my self here

also from the previews and the videos this game have a huge chance at getting GOTY
can you think of one single bad thing about it ?!

[zerocrossing]

The Last of Us isn't out yet though, I'll admit that it sounds interesting and looks great, but until we get hands on how can we honesty tell that it won't turn out to be bland and forgettable?

(Edit)

Doing good thanks, you?.

Well, I pretty much said the same thing about Bioshock Infinite before I played it and that turned out to be one of the best I've played in years, so Im certainly open to being wrong.

From what the ND have shown us so far I can't think of anything negative to say, what always concerns me are all the things we don't know yet, the game will most likely be great but until I get hands on or can get confirmation from a reliable source I cant personally consider it to be, but of course you're more than welcome to have your own opinion on the matter.

[Ezz2013]

@zerocrossing
i'm good too, my friend

i do agree with you that we can't call it GOTY yet untill it's out

so for now i only call it (my) GOTY
as i'm hyped for it to no end :)

[zerocrossing]

@Ezz2013

Well I certainly can't argue with you there, and I hope it meets your expectations :)

[HammadTheBeast]

I still haven't heard ANYTHING about its multiplayer, and I'm still hyped up. Can't wait.

[Jek_Porkins]

Doesn't Uncharted, Last Of Us, MGS4, RDR, God Of War Ascension and a lot of other games have multiplayer now though? Even games like Mass Effect, Assassins Creed and Tomb Raider all have unnecessary multiplayer modes.

[Ezz2013]

@Jek_Porkins
i'm talking about single player here ...those games have amazing Single player with or without multiplayer
not because they have MP mean the single player is dead
the last of us have MP with almost no info on it at all and the game will be out very soon
yet no one seem to give a damn about it MP...every one want this game for it single player
so i don't know what is your point here ?!

also i don't go online
i only play Single player

[Reverent]

@Jek_Porkins, true all of those games had unnecessary multiplayer, however, that didn't stop any of those multiplayer components from being amazing. Not to mention, all of those games still had great singleplayer campaigns, so in this case, can multiplayer really hurt the game at all? Nope.

[Dirtnapstor]

Don't forget Tomb Raider is an ultimate example of a premium SP experience also. A true reason for not playing online.

[BlmThug]

For me, Single Player is all I need. I rarely touch the multiplayer portion of a videogame, even in FPS (Owned CoD4,completed the campaign a few times but only played online once).

[Prcko]

sp is what i like and what i need!

[Campy da Camper]

Agreed. The last mp I played was MW1. Its just not that much fun for me anymore. If games started offering online action like Chromehounds, Rainbow 6 Vegas, SC spy vs. mercs then I might move back to it.

I buy games like infamous, little big planet, uncharted, demons souls for the sp experience.

[bunt-custardly]

Single player is the back bone of gaming.

[Inception]

95% of my collection are single-player only. If single player is dead than i will quit gaming right now.

[Baka-akaB]

seriously , looking back the only multiplayer stuff i play are fighting games and some football (soccer)

[Inception]

I'm with you mate. The only MP that i play intensively is Uncharted 2 / 3 mp. Besides Uncharted mp, i only played (not intensive) SSF IV, P4 Arena, & BlazBlue mp. Maybe some co-op stuff such as RE 5, Dead Space 3, or Demon's Souls. But single player still dominated my gaming time.

[Salooh]

Then you guys missed a lot. I would quit gaming if it's only about multiplayer too but you guys don't give it a chance. Resistance 1,Warhawk, Cod, Battlefield, Rainbow six vegas, killzone, Gta iv,Red dead, GT5, Tekken...etc are all examples of how fun the multiplayer is. Why limit your self when you can enjoy both?. I try everything in the games i buy. I see people play the single player and don't even try the multiplayer. It's stupid if you ask me because you buy the game and only play half of it. Try it, If it's good play it if not then that's a good reason not to play it but never try it is just a waste..

[IamTheStorm81]

It's not a waste or stupid (who asked you?) if myself and many others don't like/want to play multiplayer.

I don't play games to hop online and compete with others to see who kills the most. I play games for story, characters, immersion, gameplay, to be taken to a world that tell me something, etc.

I've been playing games since 1983 and, should the day ever arise where single player gaming is dead, I, too, will quit gaming because it won't be able to offer me what I want out of gaming.

Thankfully right now isn't that time, and there's tons of fantastic looking games that offer me what I want: a compelling single player experience.

[Salooh]

seriously, No hard feelings but we are in the interent. If someone said something i can replay at him and say my opinion. Why you guys always act rude when i say my opinion?. I'm just giving you an advice to enjoy the multiplayer. If i can't say that then don't accept the opinion articles so we only get news and i'm all for this idea..

I agree with you in the single player. But i think you guys are overreacting on multiplayer side. You are playing with other people in the game you like and that's a good reason to enjoy the multiplayer.

[Inception]

Thank you Kingxtreme81, you explained it very clear ^^

@14 Feb-R
Your key word is "enjoy it" and there are a lot of people who enjoy single player more than multiplayer. You must respect people like us because no one can force us to enjoy something that we don't like it.

Also, if you look at my replay for Baka-akaB, i'm not limit mysyelf entirely for single player. I gave uncharted 2 / 3 mp a chance and i enjoy it. But i've always back to single player because it is the main course for me.

[Salooh]

I respect you guys and i know you gave Uncharted a chance but most of single player players don't do that. That's what i said :). Lol, You guys make me feel bad for giving you that advice. I won't do that again xD. I just wanted to say what i experienced :P , but i guess people here don't want my opinion...

[sourav93]

I think majority of gamers buy video games for single player; the multiplayer is just an added bonus. Of course there are games which are only bought for their multiplayer, as their single player campaign is usually the afterthought that is added on e.g. CoD and BF3 (Though BF4 might be different).

[DasTier]

I'd like to agree, but when you look at a list of the video games with the most sales, generally they are not singleplayer games. COD'S, Halo's and Madden's/Fifa's are all very heavy multiplayer based. There are execptions, but I believe most "gamers" are actually more interested in multiplayer now.

[sourav93]

I see where you're coming from. But what about these franchises:-
GTA
Gran Turismo
Pokemon
Super Mario

And for Halo, I'm no Halo fan, but a few of my friends are, and 95% of them bought Halo games for the story; of course they loved the multiplayer as well, but the single player campaign was one of the main reasons they bought the Halo games. Of course, this could just be my friends, perhaps most other people don't bother with the Halo campaign. But I do see your point.

[DasTier]

GTA and (I believe) Gran Turismo do incorporate some multiplayer though. I'll admit they're not really a major selling point, but the option is there. As for Pokemon and Super Mario, I believe if their respective systems had better online capabilities then the franchise would jump to include multiplayer features in an instant. In fact I feel both of those games could be vastly improved if online mutiplayer was incorporated.

[Father Murder X]

I think that this is the strength of the Ps3. Most of the people that I know don't really play online. On the 360 just about everything is centered around multiplayer. I would rather a game not have multiplayer than to be tacked on like Uncharted. You can tell that the same quality isn't there from the single player campaign.

I haven't bought a game in years that hasn't had multiplayer. If the multiplayer is done right (Halo, BF3, COD, Gears) it adds value to your game and you will find yourself playing it for a long time.

[Zechs34]

Uncharted multiplayer is tacked on and not quality?

Ok...

Maybe you meant to throw in a "IMO" somewhere in there.

[Baka-akaB]

". You can tell that the same quality isn't there from the single player campaign."

Actually i can't really , it's a very well done and excellent mp . Usually the most critic you'd here about it are from people wich prefered the one featured in UC2 .

And it's one of the few games featuring truly excellent co-op campaigns and missions this gen

When it's done like that , and when the sp doesnt suffer one bit for it , it can hardly be called "tacked on"

[rammstein91]

If single player is dead,gaming itself too..article's title must have been single player-only games are not dead.mp is generally buying motive to sell genuine games

[InTheLab]

With TLoU neither is survival horror despite best efforts to kill the genre from Deadspace and RE.

[Hydralysk]

Anyone who actually thinks single player is dead might want to stop exclusively playing AAA action titles.

[Roccetarius]

If developers continue to backseat SP gaming, just to check off a MP box, then i'm pretty much done. I haven't really found a MP game, which i always want to return to.

I just can't get excited by MP games anymore, but maybe that's because i played UT, CounterStrike and Warcraft 3 etc back then.

[medman]

When I think of my favorite games this generation and the games I'm most looking forward to, they are dominated by single player experiences. Mass Effect series, Uncharted series, MGS4, God of War 3, Watch Dogs, Beyond:Two Souls, The Last of Us, Bioshock, Bioshock Infinite, GTA IV and V, etc. etc. Single player is excelling, it's the multiplayer component of most games that leave alot to be desired and need innovation and fresh ideas.

[Bathyj]

Looking at that list, its obvious most of the truly great games are single player.

[Bathyj]

The last games I played and really enjoyed multiplayer were Tekken Tag, Mariokart 64 and Perfect Dark 64. So for me multiplayer died with splitscreen.

I have no desire for the endless omline shooters. Running and gunning over and over again. I much prefer to play at my own pace and mess with the AI.

[Rai]

anyone who says its dead is either just start gaming this gen or a guy who loves to play the same MP over and over again.

Games is another medium to tell stories with, without it we're just reading books and watching movies.