Ben-DutkaThese days, developers usually won't release a game without multiplayer. But we at PSXE have a theory that such a "requirement" means resources must be split during development, thereby having a negative effect on creation of the single-player mode.
And you know, at least one designer agrees with us. In speaking with GamerZines , LucasArts assistant producer Cameron Suey has explained why Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 doesn't include a multiplayer option; first and foremost, he mentions the team's "focus on the narrative driven-based gameplay." Thing is, certain games can benefit from multiplayer but contrary to popular belief, not every game needs it, and in fact, working on multiplayer can indeed hurt the single-player. Why? That division of effort, as we noted earlier. Said Suey:
"I certainly think there are a lot of games that shocked me with how good their multiplayer is when I've scoffed at them before. But there are just as many games that have multiplayer that doesn't stand up to the single player and you can't help wondering how much better the campaign would have been if they didn't split their effort."
Bingo. Finally, someone said it. At the same time, Suey doesn't rule out the possibility of adding a multiplayer component in the future (say, if they do The Force Unleashed 3 , which seems like a distinct possibility). But you can bet that if they do decide to add it, they will do everything in their power to keep the single-player campaign as robust and fulfilling as ever. In short, we're not the biggest fans of multiplayer and what it's doing to the industry, although we freely admit the pluses. We just hope more developers take Suey and Co.'s viewpoint.
Related Game(s): Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2
