Skip to content

Reggie Says Not Having A Single Player In A Multiplayer Game Would Be A Mistake

Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime has told Venture Beat that in the current market, making a multiplayer only title would be a mistake. However, Reggie concedes that on online titles such as the recently announced Splatoon, the majority of time will be spent by gamers on the multiplayer component. But he says it’s important that the game has a campaign mode.

GamesBeat: I’ve seen quite a few games that have multiplayer only, is why I ask. In some ways that seems like a good way for smaller companies to cut budgets and save time. But it also seems like it’s a direction gamers are going in.

Reggie: I’d disagree on that last point. I think gamers want a full-featured experience. I think it’s actually a mistake to cut out modes. Now, certain games, in the way they’re conceptualized, they are what they are. I played Rainbow Six: Siege, Ubi’s five-on-five game. The innovation there is that it’s a one-shot kill. Now there’s strategy to it, which makes that interesting. I don’t know if they’re going to have a mode where all of the other entities are non-playable characters. That doesn’t seem like a lot of fun to me. I think it needs to be that online multiplayer to bring it to life.

So it depends on the game. But in the first-person shooter genre, I would argue that not having a fully featured campaign mode, in this day and age, would be a bit of a mistake. Even though all of the hours played are likely going to be in multiplayer.

110 thoughts on “Reggie Says Not Having A Single Player In A Multiplayer Game Would Be A Mistake”

          1. Nostalgia_w & Neff Are Dumbasses

            If it’s fucking obvious then why doesn’t Titanfall have a campaign mode???

                1. No by my logic you’re a dumbass and so are the rest of the nintendrones. Go give them all your aids.

                  1. Nostalgia_w EXPOSED

                    You fucking said “Well, no shit.” meaning that Respawn should’ve known to put a single player campaign in their AAA game since it’s so fucking obvious. Guess you’re fucking wrong. Dumbass. EXPOSED.

                    1. When I say logic, I mean truth. And the truth is that you fanboys need to get a life. You close minded , dumbass cum leeches.

                    2. Valve Admiral GLaDOS

                      What truth? The only truth I see is Nostalgia_w has an inferiority complex, and its been compromised.

        1. Valve Admiral GLaDOS

          No no not Neff, there’s a name for someone like him…but for now we’ll just call him Squidward.

  1. Pingback: Reggie Says Not Having Single Player in a Multiplayer Game Would be a Mistake

          1. NIntendo Commander was hacked by sickr so that he would be reborn and have a new name- Nintendo Commander Quadraxis

              1. Valve Admiral GLaDOS

                I wish the real Grape Ape would comeback so we won’t have this clone who repeatedly talks about his favorite pornstar with a weird fetish for Down Syndrome people.

      1. i don’t usually take the time to comment on this blog but I felt I had to express how much you disgust me nintendo commander. You seem to feel so entitled to make those ridiculous comments about taking sides on every posts of this site, it makes me nauseous. what’s the matter with you, have you no shame? Why do you feel the need to prostitute yourself like that? I’m sure you have an identity other than “a nintendo fan who can’t think for himself” don’t you?

          1. could you please stop pretending you’re something you are not for a minute and answer my question or is it too much to ask?

            1. Nintendo is my Blood

              Dude, what is your problem, NC has been doing this whole gig for over a year, we like it, why are you so agro about it?

            2. Valve Admiral GLaDOS

              There is something called “roleplaying” and “fun”. Let loose and go with the flow.

              1. Nintendo Commander Quadraxis

                They have fragile minds and expect to answer their questions when they first insult me, pathetic…

                1. look, I’m sorry, didnt mean to insult you, i’m just being honest though. I dont like your comments but it seems like im the only one to feel like that i guess. I just hope you aren’t being serious with that fanboyism.
                  I would prefer to read what you really think rather than what your commander persona does, but whaterver.

                  1. Nintendo Commander Quadraxis

                    I commented serious things back in the Sonic Boom thread as an example…

                    Apology accepted though…

                    If you want to add me on the Wii U then go on ahead, we can have better discussions there…

                  2. It annoys me to but in the end, he’s not the one doing it to make everyone mad and always starting regarded discussions. (He does but not as much as other trolls tough.)

          1. Tallon Ridley XIII: Kalas

            Late to the party, I see. He bought one last week. Or was it this week? Eh. I barely keep up with time.

  2. Nintendo is my Blood

    Wait… isn’t that Squidward?

    Is this official artwork or fanmade, cause I am pretty sure they can get sued over this

    1. Valve Admiral GLaDOS

      Really? Can you explain to me how being “outdated and stupid” can make a majority of the public say Nintendo won E3.

          1. Agree
            I played bo2 campaign, it wasn’t good or bad, but I’m glad they at least had one. Super disappointed titanfall didn’t have a proper campaign

  3. Reggie doesn’t really make sense here. Why spend development costs on another mode when apparently “all of the hours played are likely going to be in multiplayer.”?

      1. I know what you mean, but the way Reggie put it, it’s as if the only mode that people play is multiplayer, yet he encourages development of a single player mode

        1. I can’t say for sure but I think he put it weird but meant something like “even though people will get more out of multiplayer, it’s still important to have a single-player mode”. That is to say, let’s say the campaign mode or whatever is a 5-10 hour experience. It helps introduce players into the game mechanics and enjoy playing against computers, boosting their self-confidence etc., instead of being thrown into a competitive online mode. Some people also just like 1-player more and might want to experience the game without playing online.

          But at the same time once that 1-player mode is done, it has limited replay value, as opposed to playing online which people can get addicted to and do for hundreds of hours… so yes, people might spend 5-10 hours on the campaign and 50-100 hours on multiplayer which means they spend most of their time on multiplayer, but the single-player experience is still important.

          I think that’s what he was trying to say, just in less words. I think in interviews it can be hard to get things across exactly how you mean to, so eh.

          1. Tallon Ridley XIII: Kalas

            ^Not to mention some people take an interview & like to cut out certain things to make it look as if the one being interviewed is talking stupid or talking negatively about something. Yellow journalism is such a bitch. Also, this is why I like Monster Hunter. The 1st player mode is more of a tutorial than the actual game. Thankfully, Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate expanded the 1st player mode to have all of the online missions, too, for those that prefer to play alone with their CPU partners.

    1. So people that don’t have anyone to play with aren’t left out, granted there is online with random people but still, it’s not the same

    2. It’s only adding more value to the purchase. Nintendo spends more money by not cutting some features that aren’t exactly needed (like the single-player in Splatoon), but in the end, it’s us who end up winning since we get more than intended.

  4. Titanfall I’m looking at you, and I honestly think he’s right. Without that true campaign mode a game like titanfall feels like an incomplete game to me.

    1. At the very least, don’t price it at $59.99… I mean, I bought Titanfall day 1, and it is awesome. But after the hype wore off I realized I just dished out premium for a game that’s pretty much multiplayer-only. >_>

    1. I thought the same thing during the Digital Event, but I can’t really tell if this pic is just fanmade or if this game really will reference Squidward/Nickelodeon in some way.

  5. Having a single-player mode would mean I’d be sitting by myself in a corner playing the game according to Miyamoto.

      1. Tallon Ridley XIII: Kalas

        Ignore him. He’s upset Miyamoto’s opinion differs from his own about virtual reality.

  6. Exactly!! Online only games like Titanfall where all is multiplayer based have that important part missing and generally do not feel like a product worth purchasing for a full price. Single player creates an opportunity for a much deeper experience and also allows a decent story to be told in which then base the multiplayer modes (see what bungie is trying with Destiny)

    1. Valve Admiral GLaDOS

      Yeah, Titanfall is good, but after sometime getting into it, you wonder, what’s the lore behind this game, then you remember that the multiplayer is the story and you can’t play a single player story to know what started it all, kinda why I was really disappointed.

    1. I do agree that is doesn’t, but from my point of view Nintendo wants everyone to be able to play their games. So those people who dont happen to have WiFi can enjoy these wonderful games as well… That’s what I got from this interview. Maybe splatoon will get a offline mode and you can do challenges by playing various maps with computer controlled teams at various difficulties.

  7. He’s right though. Even if the campaign will only be played once by most people and isn’t nearly as popular as the online multiplayer, you still need to offer that single player/offline experience that will provide an interesting story, build the world and characters that you’ll probably be playing as in the multiplayer and have people getting better at the game mechanics so that by the time they finish campaign and hop online to multiplayer, they’re a lot more prepared than they would’ve been jumping in blind. I feel you need both components. To me, multiplayer only games and even a lot of single player only games shouldn’t be $60/full price. There are obviously some exceptions but generally if you’re missing things that are standards in this age of gaming you really shouldn’t charge today’s standard price (unless one mode really overcompensates for the lack of the other; Fallout, Zelda, etc.)

    1. I disagree. They need to leave the story to the imagination sometimes. Tired of the same stories. Lets give it a rest for awhile.

      1. Well in your case how about just not playing the campaign and then making up your own story? Or even making your own game? It certainly makes more sense to include something that will please a bunch of people, (and to those like you who’d rather make up a story in your head, you can just skip it) rather than leave it out, do less work and charge the same price while leaving people who want a single player mode S.O.L. If they include it, everyone can experience it how they want to, while if they don’t, only people that feel the way you do will be satisfied.

        Also, if devs just got lazy and stopped making stories, or developing their characters and worlds that would be horrible to me. If you’d rather imagine your own stories couldn’t you just keep playing old multiplayer games? When it got boring you could just make up something else. Pretend you’re in a different universe, with different weapons, objectives, etc. You really don’t need to buy that many games then do you? I mean smaller scale, digital online only titles, etc. sure those are fine but if it’s retail, or full price I definitely don’t want to have to make up my own story as I play yet another third person shooter or this year’s version of the same rehashed FPS, etc. They could at least attempt to build a new world to delve into. If they’re just gonna serve me the same multiplayer gameplay with no real difference and no narrative or even the smallest amount of lore behind it I could just play the previous installment and make believe something new that i’d love for free. But that’s just me I suppose, and maybe i’m in the minority.

  8. Yeah, just look at Titanfall.. that game costed me £50 for just a nerfed multiplayer with very few people and limited weapons… this on the other hand seems like they’ll be adding more stuff to it PLUS the singleplayer mode which would be awesome.

  9. Which is why Halo does well. It has a very complex storyline in the single player, and as of Halo 4, the multiplayer is linked with the storyline as well.

  10. Woah. That fanart with Squidward was made by one of my friends from college. (He’s apostlebird on deviantart). Thanks for not giving him credit, sickr.

  11. Then why don’t you add online in multiplayer games? Fuck you Nintendo. RIP WII U. Nintendo is barely doing anything to help this shitty console.

    1. Tallon Ridley XIII: Kalas

      Because some multiplayer games are meant to get you & your friends at home together to have fun.

      1. Tallon Ridley XIII: Kalas

        You won’t use the multiplayer for that purpose if you have the choice of online multiplayer.

  12. Tallon Ridley XIII: Kalas

    A multiplayer only game better have a shit load of character customization. If it doesn’t, I’ll pass if it’s 60 bucks. Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate would have been great as a multiplayer only game as long as it had more character customization. Sadly, the customization for creating the character’s base appearance was a letdown when compared to Monster Hunter Tri’s character customization.

  13. keep the price low and it wont be. this isnt a game that single player mode would really benefit it anyway

  14. Everyone doubted the wii and it was outselling the ps3 and 360 combined. if people still doubt nintendo the only reason I can think is that they fail at realising the obvious.

  15. Pingback: As noticias de games mais rápida do Brasil » Blog Archive » Reggie acredita que, salvo raras exceções, games que não oferecem modo single-player são um erro

  16. Reggie says have sex with animals is a healthy way of becoming socially acceptable.

    OMG REGGIE YOUR RIGHT I AGREE WITH YOU, YOU SO SMART, ALL HAIL REGGIE!

  17. I was wondering if you ever thought of changing the page layout of your site?
    Its very well written; I love what youve got to say. But maybe you could a little more in the way of content
    so people could connect with it better. Youve got an awful
    lot of text for only having 1 or two images.
    Maybe you could space it out better?

Leave a Reply

Discover more from My Nintendo News

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading