It seems the last years have brought several games that are merely multiplayer platforms for running and gunning, or some other vaguely unique multiplayer archetype. Rainbow Six Siege, Titanfall, Evolve, Battlefront, and the like. In previous years, these games may have simply been considered unfinished or still in progress; they wouldn't have, or shouldn't have, been released. In addition to games without campaign or story-mode, many titles have taken to increasingly short stories that can be completed in a day or two. Call of Duty and Battlefield are perhaps the most blatant offenders; and though most don't buy a CoD game for its story, I can still remember the days of Call of Duty 2 and Modern Warfare 1 & 2, and the enjoyment of playing their campaigns. They may not have been exceptionally long, but they were far more thorough than what we see today.
One could argue that not every developer has the money to implement a quality campaign and multiplayer platform, but this could be, in part, because most try to issue a new iteration, sequel, or game relatively every year. Is this good? I enjoy both story and multiplayer modes, though I hardly consider a game worth its money (especially $60) if it has only multiplayer. This is not to say there are not very long story modes that fall prey to repetitious mechanics and gameplay.
One issue people need to get over is the idea that every game needs a in-depth story-driven campaign, or campaign at all...As you mentioned, certain games, especially shooters, or played by people who buy it strictly for the multiplayer and don't care that the campaign was lacking or not there at all....You bring up a great point in this article, and it is something I believe is overlooked when it comes to the game design process. – MikeySheff8 years ago
I think the value of a game is often called into question in multiplayer only games or games that don't have a "single player component". I think this is not always a good thing but it is part of the some gamers consciousness. Additionally, thing to think a bout is how hard it is for a developer who specializes in making mutiplayer parts of a gam ego suddenly try to create a single player campaign, it is difficult to switch gears as it takes different things to make a single player campaign good compared to a multiplayer experience,they can be vastly different experiences. Amazing topic! – SeanGadus8 years ago
I love this idea! 'Super Bunnyhop' has a video related to this idea of story modes and multiplayer only games. I used to feel very strongly about games having some form of single-player content. However, after becoming obsessed with Rainbow Six Siege I have totally become convinced otherwise. It might be interesting to show how this idea of 'multiplayer only' started and how the trend evolved over time. – Daonso8 years ago