Split screen co-op is dying

Written by Erik Kubik Sunday, 19 December 2010 06:00

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Some gamers refuse to acknowledge that split screen co-op and local multiplayer are dying off. Gamers still love the idea that the Halo series has local co-op. But most games are moving away from the idea, as gaming is supporting playing over a LAN/wireless connection through XBL/PSN. But back in the 1990s and early into the new millennium, local co-op was the way to go for multiplayer. Games such as Donkey Kong Country , GoldenEye , Halo 1 and 2, Mario Kart , Twisted Metal 2 were the meat and potatoes of co-op games.

What was the fascination with local multiplayer/co-op? Well, gamers could cram several of their friends into a small un-ventilated room glued to one or two TVs, if your system was capable of some sort of system link. A good example is Goldeneye or Mario Kart, sure the single player game was fun, but the multiplayer would keep gamers up for hours. I remember in high school and even college when the N64 was no longer popular, we would fire Goldeneye up on the big screen and play into the wee hours during finals week. We’d also fire up Halo 2 , with two TVs in the room and go around and around on CTF/TDM, eight men at a time.

Games that fulfilled the co-op feeling like Twisted Metal 2, Donkey Kong, Final Fight, Streets of Rage, and Halo 2 were fun because taking another person through the single-player story was a kick in the pants. Having someone to help you outside the idiot A.I. is a good thing. For myself and many other gamers, this option added to the game’s value, making it a must-have purchase back in the day. Or even now I’d consider these games must-haves for fans.

What about arcade games? Do you know how hard it is to find a modern arcade game with co-op? Time Crisis is about the only game I can think of these days. My wife and I have a blast playing Time Crisis 3 together. Most arcade games consist of DDR, fighting games, or racing games these days. But back in the day, gamers had so many games to waste quarters on, the Simpsons Arcade, TMNT, X-men, and of course the Metal Slug series. Even the arcades we grew up with are becoming a thing of the past.

In the end, fans of local co-op have a few options left. Many of our favorite arcade games are coming to PSN/XBL and they support old school local co-op. The music series of games, the Guitar Hero games and Rock Band 3 games fill the niche of local co-op for now, although they lack the stupid simplicity gamers need. For now gamers will have to make do with limited options. The beauty that once was local co-op, cramming eight people in a room has migrated to people sitting by themselves and playing over the internet.

Related article: The Lone Gamer and the Decline of Local Multiplayer

Comments  

 

-3 # JnB 2010-12-20 22:17

I find the premise of this article preposterous. Local co-op is hardly dying. My wife and I are one of half a dozen couples we know who play EXCLUSIVELY local co-op games on all three counsel systems. We simply don't purchase or own any single player games and lament how many great titles we have to pass up. We also go out of our way to buy family games that allow 3 players or more. Online multiplayer play is something we do only when we can go online together. Game developers need to know the market for people like us is growing not shrinking. Catering to those playing shooters or action RPGs together as either a couple or a family is a community to expand, not neglect.

JnB
Atlanta

 

 

+7 # Kotlarz 2010-12-20 22:31

I don't think you fully understand what the author is trying to say. He's saying games are moving away from local co-op, not that people aren't playing local co-op. And I have to agree with him. There are so many games that have multiplayer components but do not support local multiplayer. It definitely saddens me.

 

 

# Bill 2010-12-23 06:55

I exclusively play couch coop games with my friends. While it's possible to find two player coop games still, 4 player coop is nearly nonexistent on the PS3 and XBOX360 - if you want to have a party all playing video games at once, you either take turns (PSMove Sports Adventures, Dance Central, etc.) or you go back to the Wii with Mario Kart.

 

 

-6 # no 2010-12-21 00:56

And people don't write letters and send them through the post office, anymore. So what? I'm in my thirties and have a busy life. I don't "hang out with my friends", so I'm not likely to be sitting around the house with a buddy and spontaneously decide to sit down and do some split-screen (and even if we did, I wouldn't, because split-screen SUCKS. Why turn my nice big TV into a tiny poorly scaled annoying version of the game?).

Not to mention, when you get older, your friends and colleagues stop playing games. Or if they still play, they don't play as often. It's hard to find people who both play games and play the same ones you enjoy and on the same systems. So being solo is usually the best or only choice when you're not twelve years old.

And. . . again . . . who cares? You might as well be whining about how people don't play board games as much. Or how young people don't sit around the mall ordering one shake and two straws anymore.

 

 

+9 # MusedFable 2010-12-21 01:34

"no" you are a sad silly person.

Split screen is great.

I am getting older and I find no reason why I should be playing games less. Why would I want friends that don't share the same hobbies as me. I'm sorry you and your friends have started to live boring lives where you don't have any time for games anymore.

Also boardgames are doing better than they ever have. In fact there are one of the few toy markets that is growing during this recession. Video games are down, toys are down, but board games are up and growing very well. The best board games are being made right now.

 

 

+2 # Fsm 2010-12-21 03:01

How can you say split screen sucks?

You would tell a friend (which you've stated you don't have) to go home just so you could play a multiplayer game? Kind of defeats the purpose. Now you're playing in a room by yourself.

You'd prefer to talk to someone on the phone rather than talk to them in person I bet, also. Same logic.

I think we're discovering the reasons your friends don't hang out with you...

 

 

+1 # Carp 2010-12-21 07:21

You can quit playing games as you get older, that's fine with me. But there are plenty of us out there who didn't. I'm around 20 years older than you, and I still game, and I have a group of people I know around my age who game as well. We may be "casual" players, but most of us are also playing daily.

And yeah, it bugs me that you can't find local multi-player games, or that they're difficult to find. My son and I game together as well, and the most fun we've had with console games has been with those that have a local multi-player mode.

Since there aren't many of those that I enjoy, we stick mostly to PC games,

And, btw, there's a very large population of people who play board games, and who even prefer them over video games. I don't know about sharing a shake.

 

 

+4 # BaffledReader 2010-12-21 02:58

Confused, this article lists how in the old days GoldenEye, Donkey Kong, Halo and Mario Kart were coop kings... but guess what? All those games right now support coop in their latest iterations. We, unfortunately, have no new Twisted Metal to compare, but every racer I seen has split-screen coop.

What game is missing the coop that suddenly points at the death of the feature? Resistance 2? Cant think of any other, and can't help but insist how overrated that game is.

Maybe the arcade, but the only thing we can get here is that he misses Brawlers, a genre that got killed by vs fighers. Last time I was in an arcade, it was filled with multi-booth racer games (as they have always worked,) 2 player on-rails shooters and fighting games. Rare are the single player arcades, and most actually have multi-booth options the arcade didn't bother to invest into.

 

 

# DonJoe 2010-12-21 06:36

Quoting BaffledReader:

but every racer I seen has split-screen coop.

What game is missing the coop that suddenly points at the death of the feature? Resistance 2? Cant think of any other, and can't help but insist how overrated that game is.

Every racer you've seen has split-screen co-op? How about Criterion's latest: Need for Speed hot pursuit? Both my wife and I enjoy playing NFS:HP, but there's no way for us to play together besides buying 2 consoles and putting 2 TV's next to each other. Same thing with Burnout Paradise.

There are plenty of games that don't offer a local/split-screen multiplayed version anymore. Most just take the easy way of only offering the online multiplayer. Split screen takes a lot of extra work and the game companies simply see it as a waste of resources.

 

 

+2 # pat 2010-12-21 03:05

Ya my friends and I used to play Goldeneye/Halo 1 all the time. The ability to be in the SAME ROOM playing at the same time is the reason why we did it. It was fun. Now they don't offer that option. The ability to have that shared experience is gone (except for Halo Reach and a few select title). I'm sure software companies think its better for sales since it means more people will buy and copy...like Battlefield Bad Company, etc...but the reality is only I bought BFBC...they won't cause others can't play in the same room with them. If they did I'm sure they would. Its a bad business decision...honestly how much extra will it cost to include it?? Next to nothing...

 

 

+2 # Xeno 2010-12-21 04:36

Killzone 3 is getting split-screen co-op in 3D with traditional and move support. That's not "dying". Black ops is split-screen online. That is not "dying".

 

 

# gary 2010-12-21 05:01

It sounds like the author has no friends. Left for dead 2 had system link, I excpect more games to continue it. Also, social gaming is the new rage, wii has been doing it for years and now Xbox is jumping in. I don't see any reason why you say split screen/co-op is dying. Its amazing why gets put on the internet nowadays and what it takes to be an online journalist

 

 

+1 # Chris 2010-12-21 05:48

I often lurk, but rarely post comments, but I totally have to agree with you. I remember spending hours and hours playing co-op games with my siblings growing up (I'm an 80's-90's kid) but now it seems like the only few bastions of multiplayer co-op are the Halo games, the Lego games, and a few others, but most often co-op is poorly setup (Fable 2 anyone?) or simply nonexistent.

I still like to game with my girlfriend when the time is available, but it seems I we are resigned to PC gaming to get good games in co-op. Please, developers, look back at what made gaming fun, sitting with your friends and playing together as well as against each other.

 

 

+1 # @Serblander 2010-12-21 07:59

I'm all for local split-screen & online capable games (ESPECIALLY LAN enabled) where the choice of play lies with the end user. However, playing online with people can't match the intensity of challenging friends & foes in person. Nothing will ever beat local console LAN for me! It's one thing to hear your opponents shriek as they just lose a match, but its another seeing the anguish on their faces. Victory is always sweeter in person.

I still have my multiple XBOX's, multiple 360's & multiple retro consoles (like 6 Atari Lynx's) for LAN tournaments between mates. I'm glad some companies still support network play even for small down-loadable games, but it 's a shame when the majority of games miss out on great potential by not including LAN support. Can you imagine a local network of 22 consoles playing FIFA 11? Lag free?! Well keep imagining because companies like EA will probably never let that happen.

 

 

+1 # Boodle 2010-12-21 10:26

Building a quality game that even one person can play is a huge challenge. Adding local multiplayer involves a lot of work. Adding online multiplayer is actually even more work. Developers always have limited time and budgets. We never have enough time to do everything, so we include the features that our target players want the most.

At the company where I work, we are currently in the early phase of developing a new game, and we were looking at these three feature sets and deciding where to focus: single-player, local multiplayer, online multiplayer. The research we did shows that online play is MUCH more of a buying point than local multiplayer for our type of game.

If more people expressed the preference for local multiplayer, then the feature would become a priority.

 

 

# Ryan Johnson 2010-12-21 15:25

I just hate that games are coming out on multiple platforms that are multi on one but not on another. Plus, graphic superiority makes local MP impossible at times. My name on this comment links to my article on the subject, if you need more to discuss. :)

 

 

+1 # Kevin Adams 2010-12-21 15:25

Personally, i've never been terribly impressed with the co-op play on any of the consoles, etc. I've been gaming since the beginning of the multiplayer craze. I"ve tried Halo split screen and golden-eye as well as one or two others. In my opinion, the split screen detracts from play in a big way. Cant say im sorry to see it go.

 

 

# Eric Blade 2010-12-21 17:31

Well, you're going to love the hell out of Dungeon Defenders. Split-screen, co-op, network, even playable between iPad, iPod, iPhone, Android, and PC.

 

 

# Axe99 2010-12-21 18:23

Sounds like you need to spend more time on PS3 - let's see (number in brackets is number of people playing it at once on one screen):

- Gran Turismo 5 (2)
- Motorstorm: Pacific Rift (4)
- Dead Nation (2)
- Alien Breed (2)
- LittleBigPlanet (4)
- Buzz (4)
- Calling all Cars (4)
- Super Stardust HD (4)
- Resistance (and sequel) (2)
- Singstar (2)
- Any Soccer game (4)
- Cricket games (2)
- Apache Air Assault (2)
- Sports Champions (2)

And they're just the exclusives - in multiplats you've got:

- CoD 4,5, 6 and 7 (4)
- Rock Band/Guitar Hero
- The Lego games - all of 'em, of which there are oodles (2)
- Marvel Ultimate Alliance and sequel (at least 2)

And that's just off the top of my head. There's a bunch more retail and PSN (and I'd be very surprised if there weren't XBLA titles as well) that support local multiplayer - it's far from dead or dying.

 

 

+1 # noyb 2010-12-23 10:13

Poorly researched. A quick google search can turn up the following:



.... and that's only the start of a very long list.

 

 

# noyb 2010-12-23 10:15

bah stupid comment system.

http://www.giantbomb.com/split-screen-multiplayer/92-322/

34 pages of co-op games including release dates... many of them in 2010

 

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