This tweet is well worth a discussion. What do you reckon?
Emily (aka Domino) Taylor pentapod Dear computer game players who prefer to play solo, not co-op/multiplayer ... why do you prefer to play alone? What prevents you from trying multiplayer games? (As someone who's gameplay has been very MMO-focused, I'm curious!)
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3 decades of RPG gaming from green screen to 4K. Moderator posts mostly marked by 'Police' emoji. Other views shared are just personal ones. On UK time zone.
Post by Giant Ambush Beetle on Feb 4, 2019 22:07:16 GMT
Since she mentioned ''Games'' -plural, I assume this is a question that is not just limited to Anthem.
So here are my own personal reasons for disliking most of the multiplayer games / modes:
I'm an introvert, just like in real life interaction with and being around people exhausts me a lot - and part of my real job requires me to deal with annoying company bosses and fickle (and frankly, often surprisingly dumb) purchase department CEO's of big companies 9 hours per day.
I use games as a way to do something fun and relaxing FAR AWAY from people - just like reading a book, exercising or scale model building.
Also there is the fact that multiplayer requires specifically designed gameplay (arcade-ish), which often does not lend itself well to deep atmospheric storytelling and immersion. Which happen to be the things I like most in games.
So long story short, at the end of the day I'm fed up with people and I want to be alone when I perform my hobbies and relax, which includes gaming.
And for the record, occasionally I DO feel the itch to play mutiplayer games, mainly for the challenge and to see how I measure up against real human players (Which is also the reason why I DO hang around at bars from time to time, even as an introvert, lol ), I have a Kill-Death ratio of 3.5 to 1 in classic Unreal Tournament, UT3 and Wolfenstein ET. But thats just for 3-5 hours per week, thats enough to scratch said itch.
As far as the story elements of the missions is concerned, there's no question I prefer solo because I want to take the mission at my own pace. I want to wait to hear and absorb the messages from the NPCs and understand what I'm doing and how it relates to the story. If there's a riddle I want to take the time to solve it myself. I don't want to be trailing behind a bunch of people who already know what they're doing, don't care about the dialogue or the plot and, already know how to solve the riddles and just storm through the game with me barely registering what the mission was about.
With the Stronghold (and similar content in other games) I just feel too much pressure to perform well and not let the side down. Basically because I'm not very good
I panic when the group goes rushing ahead of me leaving me bouncing off mountains or getting lost or getting pinned down by the bad guys that the others managed to evade. I'm embarrassed if I get killed and have to be brought back by other players. I'm annoyed if the group runs off and wipes leaving me the sole survivor because I didn't keep up and it's particularly galling if I pick up things that I'm supposed to put somewhere and can't find where to put them, thereby holding up the whole team!
I tried the Stronghold once but we kept wiping because the group went rushing on ahead while I was still trying to take out the first turret. Occasionally I managed it but soon after I ended up getting overwhelmed and found out I was the last one alive and the team had wiped. After the 7th wipe I gave up. It wasn't a pleasant experience and I know from other games (WOW, Destiny, SWTOR) that it's never going to be my thing. Too much responsibility and stress and requirement to be competent!
Having said that, I really enjoyed the Freeplay and Quickplay missions (after I'd already solo'd them myself). I didn't need to follow the story and I was just extra help rather than an integral part of the team. I could take things on myself even without backup so there was much less pressure to perform. I was just an extra helping hand if I teamed up rather than an essential cog in the wheel like in a stronghold.
This tweet is well worth a discussion. What do you reckon?
Emily (aka Domino) Taylor pentapod Dear computer game players who prefer to play solo, not co-op/multiplayer ... why do you prefer to play alone? What prevents you from trying multiplayer games? (As someone who's gameplay has been very MMO-focused, I'm curious!)
Many reasons. One of which is I play games for pure escapism. Games take me to another world, sometimes rich and vibrant, to do fun things like killing undead scum. This escapism is broken just a tad when everyone in the game chat is talking about how boring the blasted Superbowl is ... as they were doing yesterday on ESO.
Short and sweet version...I hate playing with stupid people and would rather go at my own leisure.
Nothing worse then going in to a hour endgame ops with a pug and fail. If you have a group a friends that are really good then maybe but that puts the pressure on me to play at a certain time and I just don't like that. I've done this with several games like GW2, FF14, Destiny, SWTOR and in the end I've always felt solo was more my style. I play every game I buy at max difficulty and welcome the challenge. I know that if I fail it's because of me and me alone.
Drama, for one. People bring drama and I don't want the drama, period. The other thing I don't like is feeling dependent on other people for progression, or alternatively, that I am obligated to make time for playing if I don't want to because other people are depending on me. I don't want it, I hate that. I can think of nothing worse than feeling like I *have* to do something at a certain time. That feels like work, iow, time that is not really my own.
Post by Qui-Gon GlenN7 on Feb 4, 2019 22:46:01 GMT
I find it hard to believe the question needed to be asked.
It also is a little bit finger pointy.
As others have mentioned, I too am an introvert. My job forces me to be a gregarious guy with some enthusiam or at least quality sarcasm. It is exhausting.
Playing with others is literally work. Give me a sci-fi/fantasy realm with some reason to explore, and I'm good. Add forced social interaction and I'm probably looking elsewhere. ME3MP was likely the only MP I will ever have taken the time to "git gud" at; the mechanism of my interest and care there was a unique situation in time and space that will likely never happen again. That is ok; it's actually good.
Nothing prevents me trying. It is keeping interest.
For me. I prefer to do things at my own pace. Especially when story is involved. Most times a group just drives me up a wall. I'm not against grouping or such. Really depends on the game. Course I do play some MMO's. SWTOR, ESO, and WoW currently.
Use to play a lot of Battlefield up until BF4. Yet to mess with the last few. Use to play a ton of Mech Warrior 4/Mercs back in the day and even played in the MWL with a crazy group of people from around the world....Team Banzai
Now I did enjoy grouping in Anthem. So if Anthem can let me deal with the story at my pace and group up out in the world. I may be really ok with that. As with last few BioWare games that had MP in them. That wasn't the reason I bought them to play and never once played any of it.
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, KOTOR, Jade Empire, Mass Effect Andromeda, SWTOR, Anthem, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
Just repeating mysefl here, I like doing the story quests at my own pace but i have no problem in being on a group for the strongholds. It is fun when you are on a good random group, just like ME3MP was fun most of the time.
As far as the story elements of the missions is concerned, there's no question I prefer solo because I want to take the mission at my own pace. I want to wait to hear and absorb the messages from the NPCs and understand what I'm doing and how it relates to the story. If there's a riddle I want to take the time to solve it myself. I don't want to be trailing behind a bunch of people who already know what they're doing, don't care about the dialogue or the plot and, already know how to solve the riddles and just storm through the game with me barely registering what the mission was about.
This exactly.
Have in mind that I'm not all anti-MP - I've spent my share in ME3mp DAImp and I used to be a frequent player in couple of MMOS (including coop-like DIABLoids), I could even add NWN shards to the list. But this?..
I loved the way the (vanilla) SWTOR had handled it. Story-based single with optional and fun coop? Yes, please. Mandatory coop for ANY kind of story or mission is ridiculous. And don't tell me about private settings - those missions had never been designed for solo.
Remember forcing ME3mp for TMS scores? It did no good at all. SPlayers were not interested in the matches, but they had to play it. Adding very little to the party efforts (if anything at all). They hated MP just because it was mandatory. What kind of fun is that?
My first Anthem mission - I could barely control the mech, and I was hoping to explore the new world. Hate to say it, but I really did not care for those guys, and constantly teleporting me to their location did not help it. I hated them for knowing the map and for solving the puzzles, even while I knew that they were not to blame for the design.
Me I just want to be alone and not bothered by the hard core rear ends with that said I will play the MP portion but only with those I know so its solo for me most of the time besides I'm not in competition with the other players I'll get where I want to go on my schedule
There are many reason to prefer single player to multiplayer...
Pause button: I don't care how sensible people can be on the other side of the screen, if I have to go to the bathroom/take the dog out/answer the phone/do whatever, I have no intention of depending/having people depend on me, and having them wait, or me having to wait them. I want to play when I want, for as long as I want, how I want.
I like take my time in game, taking picks of this and that, reading codex, listening to dialogues, exploring etc. All stuff that I would not have the chance to do with people in my game, because either I would be left behind, or others would became annoyed by my slow pace.
I'm not competitive. Most MMO players are. I have no time/desire to train myself to became good at a specific game. I'm a "easy level" gamer, and I have no intention of having to listen to the other players insult me because I'm not good enought.
The few times I tryed a MMO, I had creepy guys tryng to flirt (in a very disgusting way) to me. Or just insult me. No, thanks. I'm tryng to have fun, dealing with toxic people is not fun.
I work all day in a shop, talking and interacting with people. I want to to stay away from people in my "me" time, playng my videogames, letting myself be enraptured by the game story and characters.
I'm more of a story-driven game. And a satisfyng story-driven experience is not compatible for me with a multiplayer experience. Like reading a book is not compatible with people talking into your ear, or watch a movie with someone skipping forward the scenes. It doesn't work.
MMO require lots of time to play I don't have, nor I want to. I like variety, one day I can play strategic game, the other an action, the day after a point and click. I'm not willing to just play one kind of game for a long time. And MMO need a dedication that make me yawn in boredom just thinking about it.
"Odin è un nome ispirato alla mitologia nordica, ma in russo vuol dire qualcos'altro... significa uno! Chissà poi perché mi sarò scelto un nome russo?" Uno. PKNA
"Odin is a name ispired by norse mithology. However in russian it means something else... It means one! Why did I choose a russian name, I wonder?" Uno. PKNA
As far as the story elements of the missions is concerned, there's no question I prefer solo because I want to take the mission at my own pace. I want to wait to hear and absorb the messages from the NPCs and understand what I'm doing and how it relates to the story. If there's a riddle I want to take the time to solve it myself. I don't want to be trailing behind a bunch of people who already know what they're doing, don't care about the dialogue or the plot and, already know how to solve the riddles and just storm through the game with me barely registering what the mission was about.
This exactly.
Have in mind that I'm not all anti-MP - I've spent my share in ME3mp DAImp and I used to be a frequent player in couple of MMOS (including coop-like DIABLoids), I could even add NWN shards to the list. But this?..
I loved the way the (vanilla) SWTOR had handled it. Story-based single with optional and fun coop? Yes, please. Mandatory coop for ANY kind of story or mission is ridiculous. And don't tell me about private settings - those missions had never been designed for solo.
Remember forcing ME3mp for TMS scores? It did no good at all. SPlayers were not interested in the matches, but they had to play it. Adding very little to the party efforts (if anything at all). They hated MP just because it was mandatory. What kind of fun is that?
My first Anthem mission - I could barely control the mech, and I was hoping to explore the new world. Hate to say it, but I really did not care for those guys, and constantly teleporting me to their location did not help it. I hated them for knowing the map and for solving the puzzles, even while I knew that they were not to blame for the design.
SWTOR was good up until you had to do the ops. I remember being kicked for wanting to watch the story for the first time and everyone getting pissed with me....
I find it hard to believe the question needed to be asked.
It also is a little bit finger pointy....
Indeed. I thought it sounded a bit like that too.
Every time BioWare throws that line out about playing a game "with your friends," I wince a little bit. I am older and a woman. My friends are all older and are women, and among them, I am the only one who games. I can imagine their looks of horror if I were to suggest they give it a try. Most of them aren't even aware I play. But that's not really the issue, because I do have two grown sons who would be happy to team up with me, and if I asked, my husband would go along for the ride as well. But I've observed the intense pressure of performing as part of a team in online games, and I am simply not of the personality type to regard that as fun or relaxing. I play games for the same reason I read books -- to disconnect from reality for a while, to unwind -- and having to deal with the expectations and opinions of living, breathing people is the exact opposite of that.
Have in mind that I'm not all anti-MP - I've spent my share in ME3mp DAImp and I used to be a frequent player in couple of MMOS (including coop-like DIABLoids), I could even add NWN shards to the list. But this?..
I loved the way the (vanilla) SWTOR had handled it. Story-based single with optional and fun coop? Yes, please. Mandatory coop for ANY kind of story or mission is ridiculous. And don't tell me about private settings - those missions had never been designed for solo.
Remember forcing ME3mp for TMS scores? It did no good at all. SPlayers were not interested in the matches, but they had to play it. Adding very little to the party efforts (if anything at all). They hated MP just because it was mandatory. What kind of fun is that?
My first Anthem mission - I could barely control the mech, and I was hoping to explore the new world. Hate to say it, but I really did not care for those guys, and constantly teleporting me to their location did not help it. I hated them for knowing the map and for solving the puzzles, even while I knew that they were not to blame for the design.
SWTOR was good up until you had to do the ops. I remember being kicked for wanting to watch the story for the first time and everyone getting pissed with me....
I always want to scrummage around in containers and stuff in ESO and I continuously see people just fly by me. Dunno what the rush is : S
SWTOR was good up until you had to do the ops. I remember being kicked for wanting to watch the story for the first time and everyone getting pissed with me....
Well, they DID have the planetary+class+heroic+FPs, didn't they? Being locked out of the obviously-hard-MP-content is one thing, being locked out of...literally everything is just another kind of story.
SWTOR was good up until you had to do the ops. I remember being kicked for wanting to watch the story for the first time and everyone getting pissed with me....
Well, they DID have the planetary+class+heroic+FPs, didn't they? Being locked out of the obviously-hard-MP-content is one thing, being locked out of...literally everything is just another kind of story.
SWTOR is one of those games that I'd throw at them (Cash) whatever Bioware want me to if they ever converted it out to a full single player game when they decide to shut down the servers...
Honestly, I just like playing with myself, I prefer to go at my own pace & not rush through a game because someone's done it a million times before & has a moan that I'm holding everyone up, as an example.
So yeah, other players can be knobs & I prefer solo play, that being said, I'm not averse to mp modes in games, loved the hell out of ME3MP & to a lesser extent DAIMP, even enjoyed MEAMP, so it's mainly just mmo's really.
Just my ramblings.
The last time I took a personality test I failed it.
There are many reason to prefer single player to multiplayer...
Pause button: I don't care how sensible people can be on the other side of the screen, if I have to go to the bathroom/take the dog out/answer the phone/do whatever, I have no intention of depending/having people depend on me, and having them wait, or me having to wait them. I want to play when I want, for as long as I want, how I want.
I like take my time in game, taking picks of this and that, reading codex, listening to dialogues, exploring etc. All stuff that I would not have the chance to do with people in my game, because either I would be left behind, or others would became annoyed by my slow pace.
I'm not competitive. Most MMO players are. I have no time/desire to train myself to became good at a specific game. I'm a "easy level" gamer, and I have no intention of having to listen to the other players insult me because I'm not good enought.
The few times I tryed a MMO, I had creepy guys tryng to flirt (in a very disgusting way) to me. Or just insult me. No, thanks. I'm tryng to have fun, dealing with toxic people is not fun.
I work all day in a shop, talking and interacting with people. I want to to stay away from people in my "me" time, playng my videogames, letting myself be enraptured by the game story and characters.
I'm more of a story-driven game. And a satisfyng story-driven experience is not compatible for me with a multiplayer experience. Like reading a book is not compatible with people talking into your ear, or watch a movie with someone skipping forward the scenes. It doesn't work.
MMO require lots of time to play I don't have, nor I want to. I like variety, one day I can play strategic game, the other an action, the day after a point and click. I'm not willing to just play one kind of game for a long time. And MMO need a dedication that make me yawn in boredom just thinking about it.
Pretty much my reasons, minus the creepy flirting.
For me I'd add I have little time to invest into that sort of game anyway. I usd to play MMO's, and made some friends I will still occasionally ply online games with today, but much less these days.
Surprisingly they still occasionally want to play games with me after years ago in Everquest when I fell asleep during a raid
Mass Effect Trilogy, Dragon Age: Origins, Dragon Age 2, Dragon Age Inquisition, Neverwinter Nights, Mass Effect Andromeda, Mass Effect Legendary Edition
My reasons are pretty much the same as other people here. I want to play at my own pace, pause when I want, install all the mods I want (including some "cheaty" ones), change the difficulty level to suit my whims, stop completing quest tasks in order to do stupid shit like jump in puddles or run around on rooftops, or simply pause to admire the views. I can't do any of that if other people are playing with me.
Plus, when I'm playing on my own, I can't possibly be the weak link on anyone's team. If I suck against a certain enemy, the only one annoyed by my incompetence is me.
You don't have a grenade launcher, lady. Get lost.
Most of my reasons have already been shared by others, but I guess I'll just be repetitive.
1) I'm a mom. So, I get interrupted a lot. I have to check the kid's homework or take a load of laundry out of the dryer or I just want a cup of coffee. The pause button is LIFE. 2) As may be obvious from #1, I'm middle-aged and female. I hate playing games with 20-something boys. I didn't like hanging out with them when I was 20, and I sure don't now. The creepy flirting and/or cursing at me for being slow and/or other disagreeable behavior is just not something I can reconcile with my idea of "fun" or "entertainment." 3) Some of my favorite things in games are rich stories with interesting characters in imaginative game worlds. I like lore, and scenery, and shooting the breeze with my companions and NPCs. The richest worlds and stories are almost always in SP games. Sometimes when I play Skyrim, I just sit around for half an hour reading the books in the game. Seriously. No MP group is EVER going to go for that. And as others said, I want to solve the puzzles myself. I want to figure out where to go, not be led by someone who's done it 20 times already. 4) "Playing with your friends" is a fine concept I suppose, except very few of my friends play games, and those who do prefer other types of games (like strategy games and such). I can't play games with friends if my friends don't play MP games. So I end up playing with random strangers. That's hardly the same thing as friends. Thus comment #2 above. 5) I'm not a terrible player or anything, but I'll never compete against the really good players and I don't care to. I just want to have fun and make my javelin look cool. But when there are other players in my game there is the pressure to keep up, pull my own weight, not let people down. That's not what I consider fun. That's too much like work. 6) I'm not really introverted, but my work does require a lot of interacting with people and then of course so does being a parent. I like people just fine, but sometimes I also need to be alone and have some "me time." Playing SP games is good for that. MP not so much.
If I could have had a SP version of Anthem I'd have pre-ordered the priciest version they offered and likely bought whatever DLC came later. As it is, I bought the regular version after liking the demo enough to support BW with a purchase, but I'll play on Private as much as I can, and probably not spend any more money on it after this.