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Have Online Games Changed the Way We Play for the Worse?

  • 22-01-2025 05:36PM
    #1
    Seattle
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 490 ✭✭


    Does anyone else feel like online games like COD and FIFA are a double-edged sword? They’re so addictive and packed with instant gratification that they can overshadow the magic of single-player, story-driven games. It’s like trading a rich, satisfying home-cooked meal for the quick fix of fast food—tempting in the moment, but leaving you missing something deeper.



Comments

  • #2
    Potential-Monke
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,724 ✭✭✭✭Potential-Monke


    It's apparently what the disposable income generation want, so that's what we're getting. The monetisation has ruined online gaming imo, every game has some sort of it now and it always detracts from the experience. But until gamers start voting with their wallets, it won't change. We're seeing planned live service games getting cancelled, which is a good sign, but it'll never be truly gone, they'll just find another way to do it.

    Conversely, you'll have people on this site and outside it say that story is the least important part of the game, so they won't agree either. I'll admit I'm veering towards "easier" games these days, tbh it's because I no longer have the patience to play the same section/boss over and over and over. But nothing will compare to a good story game. Having replayed the Legacy of Kain games recently, I've come to discover they're my favourite games because they bring you on an adventure, the feelings of the main character are detailed by a narration from the main characters point of view. Compare that to the Soulslike genre, which barely have a story or hide it behind bullshit and I lose interest far quicker. I'd probably even stick out the repetitive bosses a bit longer if the story was able to drag me along, but the story is just as hard to figure out as the combat… the online ruining that experience by allowing other players to invade you…

    So yes, I'd say online games have ruined the single player experience, not just by not being single player, but by forcing monetisation into their games which have leaked into some single player games. Rocksteady are a prime example of a great single player game company being forced into multiplayer and failing. Then you have the inexplicable success of GTA Online further muddying the waters.

    But I feel there's a shift or change coming. I can't say what exactly, but gamers are getting sick of repetitive game loops designed to implement horrible monetisation. CoD, FC25 and lots more online games are falling out of fashion due to the lazy yearly updates. Planned live service games are being cancelled. I can't say what will happen next will be good or bad, but it can't be much worse than now, right?



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