NEWS
by Mark Barley
Blizzard: Single-player titles are an 'endangered species'
Rob Pardo of Blizzard recently commented that single-player games are becoming more of an "endangered species" due to many factors.
Factors such as financials, emerging business models, piracy, and game rentals. In a recent interview with GI.biz, Pardo - who is also the executive vice president of game design and lead designer on World of Warcraft - stated that he doesn't think single-player games will be around much longer.
“I don’t see there being a great business model for it these days,” he said. “It’s really sad, there’s just a lot of elements out there that conspire to make those games difficult to make now.
“Between pirating or the ability for people to rent games, it’s hard for publishers to pour millions and millions of dollars into a game and not necessarily see the return they need to make those budgets realistic.
“A big trend is connecting everyone in their games, be it a full online experience like World of Warcraft, or just being able to have a social experience with other people playing single-player games. You’re seeing all these sorts of elements being explored.
“I think it’s really interesting because it’s not just about connecting someone so I can play with them. It’s about how I can have a social experience around the games that I play even if it’s inherently a single-player game.”
There's more through the link at the top. “Between pirating or the ability for people to rent games, it’s hard for publishers to pour millions and millions of dollars into a game and not necessarily see the return they need to make those budgets realistic.
“A big trend is connecting everyone in their games, be it a full online experience like World of Warcraft, or just being able to have a social experience with other people playing single-player games. You’re seeing all these sorts of elements being explored.
“I think it’s really interesting because it’s not just about connecting someone so I can play with them. It’s about how I can have a social experience around the games that I play even if it’s inherently a single-player game.”
What do you think? Will single-player games cease to exist?