Single Player FPS, a dying genre?

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soulesschild

Supreme [H]ardness
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Feb 18, 2007
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Will we just never see any good single player FPS's anymore? :(

For reference, I just want a FPS with a SP that's

1) Modern
2) Not obscenely short
3) Real FPS, not third-person with some FPS elements

R6 Vegas was a good length.

Am torn whether I want to get COD:Ghosts or BF4 just for single player and eventually multi-player when my friends pick it up....
 
Yeah I think they are a dying to breed. The only love us FPS fans seem to get is the 20 minute single player games in Battlefield and Call Of Duty games.

Oh yeah, I forgot those awesome shooters Duke Nukem Forever a day who could forget the instant classic Aliens: Colonial Marines.
 
MacLeod said:
Yeah I think they are a dying to breed. The only love us FPS fans seem to get is the 20 minute single player games in Battlefield and Call Of Duty games.

Oh yeah, I forgot those awesome shooters Duke Nukem Forever a day who could forget the instant classic Aliens: Colonial Marines.
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Don't remind me :(

I will say Borderlands is pretty damn good as far as FPS SP goes. But that's about it.
 
Borderlands 1/2 have long SP campaigns. Don't forget the new Shadow Warrior... Tons of fun.
 
Unfortunately, probably. Seems as though most publishers want a game that features both MP and SP, and that just doesn't work very well anymore. Devs could get away with it when they were the first to do something or levels could be borderline randomized, but things are just too complex now.

We do have hybrid RPG/FPS games like Fallout, TES, Bioshock, Dishonored, etc. though. My guess is that we're going to see a greater divide with SP games going more in that direction and MP games (unfortunately) going more in the COD direction.
 
You need a good story to really drive a FPS SP. Gun play is usually pretty similar throughout games so I am going to go ahead and say graphics have a role in the game as well. A few strong current SP titles, Bioshock, Metro, Crysis (because visuals) and Dishonored. Maybe Dues Ex as well. I agree that HL3 and Doom 4 need to revive it
 
soulesschild said:
Don't remind me :(

I will say Borderlands is pretty damn good as far as FPS SP goes. But that's about it.
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It is fun, yes, but it's not really on the level of a game designed with a full SP/co-op storyline in mind. It's basically just a "loot and shoot". I'd love to see some more games with a great storyline like the Half-Life titles.
 
Bioshock Infinite & Dishonored are quite good. I still have yet to play Metro Last Light, which I'l get around to playing soon. :)
 
Metro Last Light and Shadow Warrior came out this year and are both really good.
 
How is Metro Last Light? I wanted to like the first game so much but there was just way too much rationing of ammo for it to be a "shooter". Is LL the same way where you're running around with 5 bullets the whole game? If so, I'll skip it.

I did forget about Borderlands 2. I haven't played it yet but the 1st one was awesome and the reviews seem to be that 2 is as good. I also liked Bulletstorm. I know a lot of people didn't but I had a ball playing it and replayed it 3 or 4 times.
 
Bulletstorm was too linear for me & Borderlands 2 was fun until the more recent DLC started boring me to death.
 
single player fps are trash its all about the multi player, atleast for me the only time single player fps stands a chance is open world, like farcry 3 and i still never managed to finish the story in that.

devs just need to focus on mp and drop all single player story waste of money
 
Far Cry 3 & Far Cry 3 Blood Dragon are kickass. I loved playing both of them but Blood Dragon is my current fave for open world FPSes.

I strongly disagree with you, Wildace. I say dump all MP & go all out SP with great stories bound to open worlds.
 
Wildace said:
single player fps are trash its all about the multi player, atleast for me the only time single player fps stands a chance is open world, like farcry 3 and i still never managed to finish the story in that.

devs just need to focus on mp and drop all single player story waste of money
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You're a waste of money.
 
They're not dead, they're just hidden among the batches of games that come out with lackcluster SP (tacked on to the MP), games that flop due to coop focus (Fear 3 fx.), MP only titles (Titanfall will have story but its tacked onto the MP maps), etc.

Indie- and european devs are still going strong though. Shadow Warrior is a goddamn blast



edit: RTS games, on the other hand... Except for Planetary Annihilation, I can't remember a decent single one in development right now. I'd kill for a spiritual sequel to KKND right about now
 
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I'm sick of MP shooters. I've been playing them since the days of shareware Doom on BBS systems via Sirdoom. Not a whole lot has changed since those days. Every 5-6 years something breaks the mold for better or worse (Unreal Tournament, Counter-Strike, COD) but it has been too similar of an experience for 20 years. Give me something immersive instead.
 
FEAR was a good story line and game in general for the time. I do miss stuff like it.
 
F.E.A.R. 2 was good. Lately I've been playing the Rise of the Triad remake, and I've been enjoying it. SP FPS games are getting harder to find, but you can usually find something if you look hard enough. I have been getting the urge to play Crysis again... hmmm...
 
FEAR 1 & 2 gave me tons of enjoyment. FEAR 3 sucked... I stopped playing 1/4 of the way through.

I might have to try the remakes of Rise of the Triad & Shadow Warrior.
 
The original Half-Life was the pinnacle of single player FPS. Since then, the genre has been on a slow and steady decline. Part of the problem was the success of HL itself. The things it did so well (cinematic set pieces and linear corridor progression) have been driven into the ground by developers with no restraint and little understanding of what makes a fun game. I'm looking at you modern military FPS campaigns!
 
Rasser said:
FEAR was a good story line and game in general for the time. I do miss stuff like it.
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Hell yes it was! I actually started playing that again a few months ago. It's definitely a classic that'll hold up over time. The story is good, the creep factor is excellent, the weapons are pretty good and the combat is solid. Not much to bitch about for that one.
 
Far Cry 3 was good. Crysis 2/3 were okay, though not as good as 1/Warhead. Metro Last Light is good to. Dues Ex: Human Revolution is fantastic, though there is a 3rd person cover mechanic as well. Bioshock Infinite was pretty nice. Not sure if Dishonored counts as there is hardly any shooting.

I agree, not many good FPS SP games out there at the moment. I like Far Cry 3 and similar games. If they can make Far Cry 4 more like 3, but with 2's theme and actually do something with the story it would be a better game than 3 by a long shot. 3's story was pretty uninteresting.
 
A single-player FPS requires a compelling story, a rousing soundtrack, and general creativity. All of these require effort, which practically no current development studio is interested in dealing with.
 
Some of the newer releases have been pretty good with regards to a single player FPS experience. I've put in over 100 hours into Borderlands 2 alone, replaying the storyline to unlock Ultimate mode. BioShock Infinite was also a title well worth playing through at least once plus Saints Row IV, and I actually finished Bulletstorm which was more entertaining than I thought it would turn out to be.
 
The only thing I hate about multiplayer FPS is that cheaters are SO prevalent. There needs to be a real time anti cheat app running on the background. Something like ESEA but I hate esea.
 
Wildace said:
single player fps are trash its all about the multi player, atleast for me the only time single player fps stands a chance is open world, like farcry 3 and i still never managed to finish the story in that.

devs just need to focus on mp and drop all single player story waste of money
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Sometimes I wonder why I quit playing multiplayer games. Then I remember it's because I don't want to deal with people like you in matches. It's amazing how you type exactly like the losers on multiplayer games I'm trying to avoid do.
 
Megalith said:
A single-player FPS requires a compelling story, a rousing soundtrack, and general creativity. All of these require effort, which practically no current development studio is interested in dealing with.
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Well said. Multiplayer doesn't require any of the above because people are too busy teabagging and talking trash to bother with any of those things.
 
chalmer9 said:
Sometimes I wonder why I quit playing multiplayer games. Then I remember it's because I don't want to deal with people like you in matches. It's amazing how you type exactly like the losers on multiplayer games I'm trying to avoid do.
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glad i could help you quit.
 
I'll take good MP over SP any day. CS>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> HL2.
 
I have not been able to complete or even be interested in a singleplayer FPS game in a very long time. I think that's just because multiplayer in general is way more fun and most people and the industry have come along far enough now to have realized that.

Singleplayer had its day when broadband wasn't widely available (even then it was on its way out). The only people clamoring for singleplayer games now tend to be shut-ins and people who can't compete online for one reason or another.

I'm still a huge sucker for Mario and Zelda games and the occasional singleplayer super-hit title, and I still have memories of great singleplayer campaigns in the olden days. But we really should just face it, for most people, multiplayer is generally more rewarding and more fun.
 
I have a really freaking hard time playing Single Player FPS games even though I keep buying them. I hope they stop making them just so I can save my money :D
 
Between Bioshock Infinite, Crysis 3, and Farcry 3; it's been a pretty good year for SP fps's IMO.
 
Not sure where OP has been looking but this year alone from what I remember

Farcry 3 - 10+ hrs
Blood Dragon - 10 hrs
BioShock Infinite - 10+ hrs
Dishonored - 10 hrs (more with DLC)
Borderlands 2 - 20+ hrs (minimum)
Shadow Warrior - 10+ hrs
Crysis 3 (a bit short campaign but you can play on hardest difficulty and have a blast) - 8-10 hrs

If you count MP then Ghosts and BF4 are also well done (even with their faults).
 
I wonder if its more of a numb thing. loads of good titles, just nothing really breakout for him.
 
KickAssCop said:
Not sure where OP has been looking but this year alone from what I remember

Farcry 3 - 10+ hrs
Blood Dragon - 10 hrs
BioShock Infinite - 10+ hrs
Dishonored - 10 hrs (more with DLC)
Borderlands 2 - 20+ hrs (minimum)
Shadow Warrior - 10+ hrs
Crysis 3 (a bit short campaign but you can play on hardest difficulty and have a blast) - 8-10 hrs

If you count MP then Ghosts and BF4 are also well done (even with their faults).
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Crysis 3, you put Crysis 3 on your list? Game was terrible, pretty but terrible. The rest I agree with but Crysis 3 was a shit show, period.
 
Far Cry 3?

Sorry I can't deal with console interfaces. Doesn't matter whether I am on a console or a PC.
 
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