5 Games Better Without Online Multiplayer
Some great games take away from the single-player experiences by focusing too much on online multiplayer features that don’t work.
A lack of online multiplayer tools could have made some great games even better. Some great games have online multiplayer, which takes away from some parts of the game and from what should be the main focus of the game—its great single-player experience—so that the game can last longer through online services.
There are times when developers split up their teams to work on a multiplayer part of the game, or just because the online multiplayer isn’t that good. Some of these games would have been better without online multiplayer, which could be a sign since some of these games have had their online services taken away and retired.
Batman: Arkham Origins
People have wanted a Batman game where they could explore Gotham City with friends for a long time. When Batman: Arkham Origins announced a multiplayer mode, people were excited. But when it turned out to be a PvP game, that joy slowly faded. Even though it was new and different, Batman: Arkham Origins’ multiplayer mode didn’t last long enough to support its existence, even though it had some cool features.
Something more like Gotham Knights, where Batman and Robin could fight bad guys all over Gotham City, would have made the game better. It’s unclear how much work went into this multiplayer mode, but the extra time spent on the story could have helped with boss fights and new side tasks for Batman’s famous Rogues Gallery.
Dead Space 3
Dead Space 3 didn’t just continue the story of Isaac Clarke, the main character from the first game. Instead, it added a new character so that players could finally play Dead Space co-op. The scary adventure of survival with Isaac Clarke and John Carver might be a fun addition, but it takes away from the scary and horrible things that happen when you’re by yourself.
It was a lot more fun to play Dead Space games by yourself, without anyone to watch your back while you held the Plasma Cutter. But co-op in Dead Space 3 changed that by letting players count on another soldier. The series became more of a shooter than a horror, which took away from the scariness and realism. The co-op mode is still a lot of fun, though.
Halo: Infinite
It feels like years have passed since Halo fans decided on where the series should go. Bungie left Halo and put Master Chief to sleep for a well-earned break. It wouldn’t be long before 343 Industries took over the Halo series and led Master Chief’s new direction and future campaigns. Many people were excited about Halo: Infinite, but some players didn’t think it lived up to their hopes. Many people think the online multiplayer is to blame.
Nobody in the 343-person development team was surprised that Halo: Infinite and its free-to-play multiplayer mode would have split them up. Some would have worked on multiplayer and others on the story mode. It might have been better if the game went into more detail about Master Chief instead of having a multiplayer mode that doesn’t seem to be used as much as most PvP games and a Battle Pass system that doesn’t give much.
Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain
This game’s story is very big, and many fans are curious about how the answers will be revealed as the game goes on. Big Boss and Ocelot become more interesting and complex in Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain, but the multiplayer mode makes things more confusing because players can break into the bases of other online players to steal their soldiers, materials, and maybe even their nuclear weapons. This made people nervous when they started Wordle Unlimited because they didn’t know what or who had been stolen from the new Mother Base.
The idea of having to stop attacks takes away from the main story of Metal Gear Solid 5. In the open-world Metal Gear game, players will be too busy making sure their Outer Heaven base is safe, fortified, and free of attackers to explore. If The Phantom Pain didn’t have multiplayer, it might have had more time to finish before Kojima and Konami’s confusing and controversial ending.
Assassin’s Creed Unity
It was planned that Assassin’s Creed Unity would be the first Assassin’s Creed game with both PvE and multiplayer modes. Prior to Assassin’s Creed Unity, multiplayer modes were only used for strategy PvP content. However, Unity was going to let more than one Assassin join the fight in Paris, where fighting and parkour would be a lot of fun. Still, the game fell short in some ways.
Assassin’s Creed Unity’s online multiplayer had a lot of speed problems and some of the most famous bugs in video game history. The multiplayer didn’t always work, and you could only use it in certain goals. The game wasn’t as good as it could have been because of it, and it’s too bad Ubisoft hasn’t tried it again.
