Are Single Player or Multiplayer Gamers Eating Better Right Now?

The worlds of single-player and multiplayer gaming rarely overlap, with fans of either medium convinced theirs is better. At different times, one or the other style of gaming is typically in ascendency, having better options and bigger titles to its name for fans to boast about. But who is currently sitting on the gaming supremacy throne?

It’s a never-ending debate: Are fans of single player or multiplayer games better served by the industry? Often, one camp cares very little about the success of the other camp, with single-player gamers often avoiding the arenas of multiplayer combat like they’re infected with plague, while fans of besting other players online can’t seem to keep themselves awake when engaging with single-player experiences. 

Luckily for modern gamers, the truth is that they have access to more and better games today than at any other time. It doesn’t matter if you’re a fan of fast-paced arena combat, gambling and enjoying casino table games like craps online, or diving into a complex and well-written single player story; there are plenty of options to suit you. Sure, there are some classics that aren’t playable without emulation or that have had their servers shut down, but by and large, gamers everywhere are eating very well today.

While we definitely can’t suggest that one type of play is better than another, we can have a look at a couple of important titles that each camp has access to at the moment.

The Single Player Experience

In modern gaming, the single-player experience is largely one that is driven by atmospheric settings, well-written characters, and stories that make you feel something. Here are two that we think are important examples of excellent single-player experiences.

Elden Ring

Miyazaki, you’ve done it again. FromSoftware has delivered hit after hit over the last two decades, and Elden Ring might just be their magnum opus. Hell, we hope they can prove us wrong and make games that surpass what Elden Ring offers, but in this case, we have to express a little doubt.

Elden Ring might not have a traditional narrative, with a player character who is unable to speak beyond yelling ‘HEY!’. But it does have a deep and rewarding world for players to explore, and stunning boss fights to struggle through. Some might say that naming this a single-player game is cheating, as it offers PvP and coop options, but there’s the rub: They’re optional. You can go from Margit to Promised Consort Radahn without ever encountering another player character.

The Last of Us Part I

Okay, okay, we hear you! This one might be a bit cheeky to include, being the remaster of a game that was originally launched in 2013, but the remastered The Last of Us Part 1 is a new release as of 2022 and has been brought up to a modern graphical standard by the Naughty Dog team. Because of that and its relevance, we think it’s fair to mention.

The Last of Us might be, in a way, the polar opposite of Elden Ring. While you do explore, there is little freedom, and the game is mostly a vehicle through which we experience the mesmerising story of Joel and Ellie. The game has recently been made into a very successful HBO adaptation, which, alongside the Fallout show, has helped to break the curse of terrible video game-to-screen adaptations. If you like slow-burning narratives interspersed with well-designed combat set-pieces, you’ll love TLoU.

Player Two Has Entered the Game

When we talk about modern multiplayer games, a few things come to mind: Live-service models with constant updates, competitive scenes that drive engagement with the game at a high level, and communities that help a game to survive in a world of fierce competition. Here are two games we think exemplify some of those qualities.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III (and Warzone)

When you think of arcade-arena shooters, unless you’re a million years old like us and Quake comes to mind, you’re probably thinking of Call of Duty. Some might say that the recipe they are using is getting a little stale, but the general public clearly disagrees, as year after year, Call of Duty games get bought and played by millions of players.

With fast-paced gunplay, fast-paced matches, and seasonal updates to keep things fresh, the CoD games give players exactly what they expect, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

League of Legends

We can hear some of you rolling your eyes from here, but League of Legends continues to be a big deal, and you’ll just have to accept that. LoL has over 150 million active players and is one of the best examples of a community helping to keep a game relevant.

LoL is much more than simply a game to unwind to many people, with well-established competitive tournament scenes and a strong culture of streamers surrounding it, many people all over the world live and breathe LoL.

Final Thoughts

It doesn’t matter if you’re a hardcore CoD fanatic that can’t wait to jump into the next seasonal update, or if you’ve purchased every single release of TLoU that Naughty Dog has put out, gamers today have it really good. 

While the two sides to gaming’s coin might not always enjoy being in the same room as each other, at least both can agree that there’s plenty of good in the gaming world today that can be enjoyed.