There is one topic that's been recurrently coming up within the video game industry, and that is the fact that some people believe that single-player games are no longer the norm, but rather the exception to the rule; with players favoring multiplayer games instead of proper single-player campaigns.
Games like Fortnite, Overwatch, and Anthem — to name only but a few —are some good examples that players prefer an online experience rather than a single-player campaign. This isn't something that is intrinsically wrong, but it could become a problem for developers who still strive to deliver games with a narrative instead of a multiplayer experience.
Uncharted series creator Amy Hennig has always been vocal about the single player issue, especially since she's responsible for delivering 3 of the most critically acclaimed video games in recent years with the first three Uncharted games.
In a recent interview with IGN, Hennig revealed that she thinks the current state of the video game industry, in regards to single-player games, is bizarre when it comes to triple A developers.
"The idea that our medium just makes peace with the fact that most people will never see the whole arc of the story we're telling, that's bizarre to me", revealed Hennig — as she added that, outside of the indie scene, the age of triple A developers making single-player games is pretty much over.
"The age when we could make games in the non-indie space that are six to eight hours long, don't have any second modes, don't have a live service, multiplayer, they're just about this finite interactive narrative experience that sticks the landing and is memorable, that's a harder and harder sell."
Amy Hennig does make a very valid point, since it seems that the majority players don't want single-player games unless they also offer a multiplayer experience; with these players sometimes, even, not finishing the single-player campaign before they jump right into the game's multiplayer mode.
Nintendo has proven time and time again that single-player games are alive and kicking, with Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild being critically praised in 2017, and Santa Monica Studio's God of War and Insomniac Games' Marvel's Spider-Man further proving this point.
Regardless, it is great to have people like Amy Hennig defending single-player games and questioning the current state of the video game industry. Hopefully more people will join in and offer their points of view on the subject before the single-player genre is lost.