Co-Op In Modern Games

[Keldoth Wolfram Dekel]

Alright, I'm seriously trying to figure out what's up with this crap. I'm sure you've all noticed the recent trend in Co Op games. So far, Mercs 2, Fable 2, and several others, all of which contain Co Op, but for some reason don't contain offline co-op.

And this perplexes me beyond belief. Honestly, the reason Co-op is fun is because I can sit a guy down next to me and play with him, enjoying the awesome moments and laughing when we suck ("BEST GEARS EVER" *high five*. Line used constantly between me and a friend while playing Gears of War, both sarcastically and not). I don't enjoy playing with some guy on the internet I can't see and can only talk besides through a headset I can hardly understand. Co op is about just hanging out and playing together. And yet games these days don't seem to get that, and we're getting further and further into online only, which to me makes absolutely no sense to me. It only ends up disappointing me when a game promises co op. Especially because most of my close personal friends lack Xbox Live.

And yet this seems to be happening in game after game. Similar thing in CoD4, you can't bring any friends online with you. And Halo 3, you could only play 4 player co operatively on the internet.

Thoughts on this recent trend?

[Sefris]

Yeah, I miss split-screen co-op. Perfect Dark had such great times playing with friends on my N64, along with Jet Force Gemini, with the second player using Floyd. I was just thinking about this at lunch today. Recent games seem to be forsaking all kinds of split screen play, which is really disappointing.

Also; Games need more counter-op. Good times in Perfect Dark.

[Twayblade]

Yeah, I miss split-screen co-op. Perfect Dark had such great times playing with friends on my N64, along with Jet Force Gemini, with the second player using Floyd. I was just thinking about this at lunch today. Recent games seem to be forsaking all kinds of split screen play, which is really disappointing.

Also; Games need more counter-op. Good times in Perfect Dark.

you win the day, Jet Force Gemini FTW!!

[Chaosye]

Lol Crackdown co-op was the only reason me and my bro got another controller for our 360
Then we found it was online only.

Also Perfect Dark was AWESOME
I loved using the Reaper or whatever the chainsaw thingy was.

[Luca Fox]

Fable 2 has offline co-op.

Also, you don't have to pay for offline co-op. You can squeeze a few more dollars out of your customers if you make the co-op cost money by forcing them to pay for online access.

[Keldoth Wolfram Dekel]

Wait, it does?
How does one do it ?

[=(]

Well...I have seen a bit of this, but hey I've slowly been loosing my mind to tf2, so considering i only recently picked up the controller again, i have to agree with you. However really...who needs fable 2 co-op, so far its been no harder to get through than the original fable, and i didn't die almost at all, so really co-op seems like a useless addition in that game...pretty much goes for most of merc's two. Personally i actually prefer just getting in a circle with two, three other people and passing the controller every once in a while. It makes for less stupid moments where your friend is a [censored], and less times where you and your friend just end up killing each other when you should be progressing through the games * remembers almost every attempt at halo co-op at kell's house *.

though some games have really great, and often needed co-op, for instance gears, if you played on the hardest mode, i couldn't even think about beating that mode solo...

anyway, thats just mah two cents....i guess.

Also, yeah I agree with however said the whole, well if we can make our customers pay a few more bucks to play together, I'm surprised it took so long.

[Ster Zetanee]

Wait, it does?
How does one do it ?

Hook up a second controller and press start.

[Sefris]

However really...who needs fable 2 co-op, so far its been no harder to get through than the original fable, and i didn't die almost at all, so really co-op seems like a useless addition in that game....

NO NO NO NO NO NO.
Co-op is NOT just about beating games too hard to play alone. If it was, Crackdown wouldn't have it. Gears was really fun on co-op split screen, me and my friend played through the second highest setting with little difficulty, but it wasn't about working together to beat it, it was about just plaything through it together for the fun of it.

Different tangent; Its really not just co-op split-screen that's disappearing, a lot of games lack any split multi-player. And the ones that do have terrible split-screen play (I'm looking at you, Call of Duty 4.) compared to the online play.

For the record: He screwed me over in Gears at every possible opportunity where there were kryll. "Hey, I'll man the spotlight, you move through it." *half way through the dark area* "HA HA LOOK AT THAT THE SPOT LIGHT MOVED." But its times like that which make split screen games so fun, both people can laugh at that (most of the time). On online play with a stranger, or even sometimes a friend online, you would just think that the guy is an [censored].

[Keldoth Wolfram Dekel]

I agree with Sefris on this. And those silly kill each other moments are fun

Tank rocket was awesome.

And Fable, provided you take your friend NO WHERE NEAR YOUR WIFE can hardly be screwed up by another player.


As for the decline of split screen as a whole, yeah. I know the make the games based around what the player wants, so it's almost as though gamers are becoming what bullies think we are, kids that go home alone to play Halo with no friends. I want social gaming along with my solo play dammit!

[=(]

I agree with Sefris on this. And those silly kill each other moments are fun

Tank rocket was awesome.

And Fable, provided you take your friend NO WHERE NEAR YOUR WIFE can hardly be screwed up by another player.


As for the decline of split screen as a whole, yeah. I know the make the games based around what the player wants, so it's almost as though gamers are becoming what bullies think we are, kids that go home alone to play Halo with no friends. I want social gaming along with my solo play dammit!

MMkay, but if you read my later bit of the post i referenced that i *personally* prefer to go on with solo games and pass the controller along ( so hell, i probally just don't understand or something ^_^ ) and if i want to play co-op i switch games

Also i try as much as possible to avoid the people that go home and play video games with no friends stigma as much as i can. So long as you do other things ( even hell..go to school ) than its not like that will ever happen. I mean, its not like anybody that declares themselves gamers just play video games, and don't actually have friends...if you go and do something active its not like your going to be a loner.

So basically, rather than being afraid of video games suddenly not supporting your friends co-oping to you, go outside and develop connections, though if i remember correctly i believe you already have kell, and i have a hard time believing that anybody here hasn't.

Honestly though, again im not all that into co-op, not that its bad, i just see it as more of a bonus, such as downloadable content, or a demo for another game, and not where the heart of the game truly lies, so i probably just don't get your frustrations, but that was just my two cents.