Concern for the potential death of single-player games pervades the industry. Studios that historically develop story-driven experiences are beginning to wet their feet with multiplayer titles. Bethesda Game Studios’ Fallout 76 and BioWare’s Anthem represent the most notable examples. This drives much of the topic’s discourse, despite many studios and publishers proving that their games won’t stray from solo experiences.
One individual who shows no sign of concern is Take-Two’s CEO, Strauss Zelnick. Sure, the publisher’s biggest money maker over the last few years has been GTA Online. However, Grand Theft Auto V’s wildly popular multiplayer mode doesn’t function without its single-player offering, notes Zelnick. In an interview with GamesBeat, the CEO expresses his belief that the days of single-player games are far from over.
“Historically, in entertainment, people take positions like that, but there are also people saying that it won’t work if it’s not a free-to-play battle royale. People really are saying that, and not even tongue-in-cheek. I don’t buy that. Single-player, in my opinion, is not dead, not even close. Companies that feel like they’ll just avoid the hard work of building a story and characters and go right to where the money is in multiplayer, I don’t think that’s going to work. I’d be surprised.”
Just as Call of Duty’s story campaign encourages players to try multiplayer, Zelnick senses a similar trend with GTA V. “I think that’s what happened with Grand Theft Auto Online,” he adds. “We certainly feel like there’s no evidence that people don’t want a single-player, because they’re still playing Grand Theft Auto V.”
One worrying issue is the lack of single-player DLC for GTA V. The game’s multiplayer suite has taken up much of Rockstar’s efforts. Therefore, the concern is whether Red Dead Redemption 2 will undergo a similar shift in focus. Will there be room for an Undead Nightmare-like expansion if Red Dead’s multiplayer success mirrors GTA’s? The wait to find out will assuredly be long.
Red Dead Redemption 2 launches this fall on October 26.
[Source via IGN]
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