Am I the only one...

[Soundwave]

To never have played a multiplayer game over Live/PSN??

Might sound like a stupid question but it just dawned on me that in the 2 & 1/2 years I've owned my 360 I have never ever played a multiplayer game on Live...not a single one.

So am I the only sad sack on this here forum that's never expereinced the thrill of playing online against someone else??

I've regularly played online on the PC (Counterstrike/UT/Doom/COD etc.) but never on a console.

Thing is I've never really been that fussed about the whole Live experience I'm quit happy muddlying through games on my tod or with my bro in the flat.
So am I weird for not playing on live or are there others that still havent joined this supposed online revolution??

Neil

[Papercut]

I bought a 360 to play Geometry Wars, I think you're probably on your own there.

Turned out to be a waste of money until Space Giraffe came out, poor man's Robotron that Geometry Wars is.

[Soundwave]

I bought a 360 to play Geometry Wars, I think you're probably on your own there.

Turned out to be a waste of money until Space Giraffe came out, poor man's Robotron that Geometry Wars is.

Ah i think I've possibly worded that wrong I mean I've never played a multiplayer game using Live...like GoW/L4D/PGR4 etc.

I've bought games from Live Arcade (Ikaruga/Trigger Heart/SotN) but I've just never found the need to play multiplayer over the Live Network

Anyway I've re-worded the first post now

Neil

[egparadigm]

I have played over live. I played Halo 2 for a couple of months back in 2006. It really was excellent fun, although I mainly preferred to mess about with super bouncing than actual competitive play.

The problem I have with it is that is entirely open-ended. You can essentially spend as much time as you want playing and it will never reach a climax. As I have been working part-time over the last few years, it is all too tempting to just slump in front of TV. These days I limit myself to one hour of play and I just don't think that's feasible when playing online because there are no goals as such.

As you can probably guess I'm a little peeved about the way gaming has gone multi-player this generation.

[Soundwave]

Lol well to be honest thats how I feel.

I dont really care for the multiplayer apsect of games I've always been more than happy to play with myself (fnar fnar) on games like Resident Evil/Mario whatever/Zelda/Gran Tourismo etc. & I dont see why all of a sudden online is the biggest factor in games.

I'd much rather have a great single player game than an awesome multiplayer one...I havent bought Left 4 Dead yet because I wont play it online & I've heard the single player is a bit cack.

Neil

[Dirty Sanchez]

I play online far more than offline, two biggest factors being real intelligence > AI and the voice interaction(I can see that could be a detracting point given the real intelligence angle!).

I never play online on the PC anymore, too much hassle, too many cheaters. Console online is a level playing field to a large degree.

I wouldn't play so much if it was all solo.

[Papercut]

Ah, think I also half misunderstood

Multiplayer - PSN sees very little use, its just too random and difficult to organise games compared to Live.

I think the Live party system and Left 4 Dead have kind of saved online gaming for me recently, although before that I put an awful lot of time into cod4 (neither of which I expected to be that taken by, but wanted to have a look at).

Previous to that I enjoyed playing PSO, where the lobby system also worked really well.

Going way back, sticking around the same Quake and Counter Strike servers month after month was good fun, seeing the same players over and over.

By comparison, the sheer number of online console gamers kind of removes any sense of community outside of your friends list. Entirely agree about the open ended nature making online gaming feel sort of pointless too. Basing it around a finite number of people (friends list/party) gives it more meaning, as does co-op rather than simple deathmatch type play.

If you have a good social hub of some kind then it works a lot better, and keeps me coming back. Which would make you think I'd be hooked on Home, but I find that even worse that your bog standard PS3 list server stuff - just awful. The game matching is so clumsy and slow I honestly don't know why anyone would bother.

[Extra Terrestrial]

In this day and age, if you buy a game several months after it was released - usually when the game itself is cheaper - and you take part in an online game for the first time, you for the lack of a better word, get slaughtered.

That is what put me off online gaming; if you don't put the effort or time into a certain game or purchase it within the release window then chances are that you will fairly quickly ignore the online side of the particular chosen game.

Burnout Paradise and Skate 2 are cool though - the people/players on those two games seem to be more chilled out and don't take it all too seriously.

FPS are the worse though, the absolute worse.

Do what you like Soundwave mate!

[Champloo]

As you can probably guess I'm a little peeved about the way gaming has gone multi-player this generation.

Likewise, I'm more of a single player gamer. Very rarely play online.

When I do play multiplayer I prefer to play offline with mates, so it really is annoying when there's no offline multiplayer option.

[Charlie]

I try to divide my gaming time equally between single player and multiplayer. The benefits of single player gaming are being able to immerse yourself completely into a game and savour the unbroken and unspoilt atmosphere with no distractions or interruptions coming from down your earpiece. But there's something very special about playing good multiplayer games like Left 4 Dead, Gears 2, CoD4, Halo 3, Forza or PGR3 with a good bunch of people. The pressure, the laughs, the sense of being part of a unit, the relying on people, and having them rely on you - you can't get that from single player gaming.

[Soundwave]

In this day and age, if you buy a game several months after it was released - usually when the game itself is cheaper - and you take part in an online game for the first time, you for the lack of a better word, get slaughtered.

That is what put me off online gaming; if you don't put the effort or time into a certain game or purchase it within the release window then chances are that you will fairly quickly ignore the online side of the particular chosen game.

Burnout Paradise and Skate 2 are cool though - the people/players on those two games seem to be more chilled out and don't take it all too seriously.

FPS are the worse though, the absolute worse.

Do what you like Soundwave mate!

Yeah this is also another problem I very rarely buy games on launch day so by the time I do get round to playing them I would indeed get my backside handed to me on a plate.

I like gaming to be relaxed & fun & I do think I might find the online side a little too competative & I'd hate to feel that I'd be holding a Team back if I was playing & not upto their level of skill...especially in Team based games like L4D or CoD

I guess to me the whole online thing seems a little intimidating maybe??

[Charlie]

I'd say online gaming is only as intimidating and competetive as the people you play with. If you get a good bunch of people together then, win or lose, there's much fun to be had. I mean you will run into people who'll blame you for letting the team down, call your mother a whore and all the rest of it, but that can be quite fun too really, all depends on whether you take their words to heart. Or not.

[peeveen]

To be honest, although I've been on xbox live since I got my 360 at launch, I find multiplayer online gaming generally inferior to single player gaming, so going against the tide of opinion, I'd say you ain't missing much. Sure, there's the odd exception, but having been brought up on the concept of a videogame being a static man-vs-machine challenge, I still find the most fun is had playing in this way.

I suppose it's all about who you play alongside though, as I will admit that 99% of my online gaming is against/with random players, who will usually be cretins or ninjas who play from dawn till dusk. Trying to arrange games at specific times with like-minded friends is a nightmare, as there will always be someone who won't show up due to some domestic obligation, and it'll probably be me. I just want to sit down when I find that I have a minute, and play some games.

[TheForce]

I try to divide my gaming time equally between single player and multiplayer. The benefits of single player gaming are being able to immerse yourself completely into a game and savour the unbroken and unspoilt atmosphere with no distractions or interruptions coming from down your earpiece. But there's something very special about playing good multiplayer games like Left 4 Dead, Gears 2, CoD4, Halo 3, Forza or PGR3 with a good bunch of people. The pressure, the laughs, the sense of being part of a unit, the relying on people, and having them rely on you - you can't get that from single player gaming.

well said there Charlie, I couldn't agree more, that's exactly the same as how I experience it. I love playing SP games but I also can play hours and hours of Forza2, Gears2 (co-op and MP), DOA4, etc

ofcourse in the end it's very important that you play online with the right bunch of people.

[abigsmurf]

I tried Halo 2 for a bit on Live. Got tired of american teenagers screaming and swearing. Outside of MMOs I don't do multiplayer much