Iā€™m really frustrated with how almost every new game these days is being forced into this ā€œlive serviceā€ model. It seems like no matter what type of game you want to playā€”whether itā€™s an RPG, shooter, or even something traditionally single-playerā€”youā€™re stuck with always-online requirements. And for what? It adds nothing to the experience for most players and, if anything, it makes the game worse.

Take Fallout 76, for example. You canā€™t play it offline, period. Youā€™re expected to pay $100 a year for a subscription to play by yourself, but even then, youā€™re still online, and any slight hiccup in your internet connectionā€”or their terrible serversā€”means you get kicked off. Itā€™s absurd. Fallout has always been a solo game experience, but now weā€™re locked into an online system no one wanted. Who actually benefits from this? Not the players, thatā€™s for sure.

Another perfect example is Once Human. This is a game that could have been incredible, but instead, itā€™s trapped in the live service model from the start. Iā€™m sitting there playing, and thereā€™s no one around. So why am I online? Why canā€™t I just enjoy the game offline? Itā€™s not like Iā€™m asking to avoid multiplayer altogetherā€”just give players the option! If I want to jump into a server and play with others, fine. But the fact that Iā€™m forced to connect even for big chunks of the game that should be playable offline just feels unnecessary.

One of the worst offenders in recent memory is Temtem. Itā€™s like they tried to make a multiplayer PokĆ©mon and failed miserably. The game is fully online, yet itā€™s a ghost town. Steam shows fewer than 100 players on at any given time, but they still force everyone to play online. And one day, the servers will go offline entirely, and what happens to your game then? Itā€™s completely gone, and so is your money. It feels like a scam.

The worst part is, nobody seems to be fighting against this trend except for the EU. Theyā€™re already working on passing laws that would require games to be playable offline if the servers get shut down. Imagine that! A game company actually having to care about whether you can play the game you paid for after itā€™s abandoned. Itā€™s crazy to me that this isnā€™t already standard everywhere. The fact that we even need a law to ensure you can still enjoy your purchase after the servers are gone is telling.

Itā€™s just sad to see so many great games ruined by forced online connectivity. Live service works for some titles, but not everything needs to be connected 24/7. Developers need to wake up and realize that players want the choice, not a one-size-fits-all approach that makes everything worse in the long run.

  • bbb@sh.itjust.works
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    18 hours ago

    Iā€™m confused. Are you running out of games to play? Do you only play on console or something?

    • Buttflapper@lemmy.worldOP
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      17 hours ago

      No, I play on PC. Itā€™s just tough to find new games for me. I use redditā€™s gaming suggestions sub, sometimes theyā€™re good. Thatā€™s how I first discovered things like Wasteland 2/3, and Deep Rock. But now, itā€™s challenging to find new games to playā€¦ people just play the same things or recommend ā€œthe hitsā€ repeatedly. Canā€™t tell you how many times I have seen the same games recommended on Steam. Iā€™ve started ignoring them now entirely. Idk how to find new games now :\

      • SuperSaiyanSwag
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        7 hours ago

        Just buy humble bundles and check the games based on their Steam user reviews

      • bassomitron@lemmy.world
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        11 hours ago

        This just sounds like youā€™re being kind of lazy, to be honest. You can browse Steam by tons of filters, narrowing down a genre with like a dozen subgenres and tags (including only showing single player/offline games). Then you can sort that list by rating, release date, cost, if theyā€™re on sale and/or offer a demo, etc. If youā€™re just going to hate on peopleā€™s suggestions/recommends, then get to searching the long lists and find something that looks interesting. Steam lets you refund anything under 2 hours, so there isnā€™t much to lose.

      • BassTurd@lemmy.world
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        17 hours ago

        Google search for good games and read through various results and see if thereā€™s something you havenā€™t seen. Or in Steam customize your search for what youā€™re looking for and crawl through the options. If you get off the front page of Steam the entire catalog is available to filter and search.