One thing that consistently bothers me is the lack of continuity and technological integration in today's gaming world. A perfect example of this is how Sony still has no cross-game voice chat for their Playstation 3 console, how not all Xbox 360 games support LAN functionality, and so on. What I do not understand is why such things are these are so difficult to implement. Obviously, many companies are able to pull off such features as voice chat, LAN, and other things with no problems whatsoever. Microsoft, for example, offers voice chat for almost, if not every single game available on the Xbox 360 console. However, they too are lacking in some ways, such as the aforementioned lack of LAN support, or even worse- the lack of split screen multiplayer these days. Of course, many big-sellers like Halo and Call of Duty, which are always party-favorites, are going to include splitscreen. However, not all games do. Killzone 2 for example has no splitscreen function whatsoever. This is a major oversight in my opinion.
My general philosophy is: if you're going to do something, do it right. These days, things aren't really being done right. Some games and services have some features, while other games and services have other features. It would be nice to have the comfort of knowing that when I pick up a new game, I will know that it has X, Y, and Z features without even reading the back of the box. Unfortunately, this lack of technological continuity doesn't bother me because it forces me to read the back of the box, but because I hate feeling as though some games offer advanced options like LAN and achievements, whereas others don't- and that makes me think, "Why doesn't this game have these features? It would be so great if it did...What a shame". That isn't a good feeling at all.
This is something that bothers me greatly about Sony's Playstation 3. Is it a good system? Yes, as I illustrated in my previous console wars post in this blog, the PS3 is a perfectly acceptable console with a lot of features- however, it also has a lot of shortcomings, not the least of which is its lack of continuity in online services. In a game like Warhawk for example, what I consider to be one of the best games on the system, I can play music while playing a video game, I can voice chat, and I can even have my friends come over for some 4-player splitscreen. Unfortunately, with a game like Killzone 2, not all of these features are available, and this is the same story for many games out there.
All of this makes me think: should I stay or should I go? Rather, should I keep playing video games online? Or should I seclude myself into a completely single-player experience? When I do so, I am cutting down on the many over-par and needless, half-finished feature sets that consoles like the Playstation 3 provide. In a sense, I am cutting off the fat.
Were I to make such a switch, things would not be so terrible however. Games like Perfect Dark Zero, Banjo-Kazooie: Nuts and Bolts, Battlefield: Bad Company 2, and more, all offer respectable offline gameplay modes which offer a lot of enjoyment in their own right, especially when one does not have to worry about paying for Xbox Live, keeping up with the online space, DLC, and all that. Sure, it's a stripped down experience, one with far less options, but in some ways, it's also a much leaner and cleaner experience overall.
Does this mean I will stop playing online however? Probably not. While I do dream of being able to cut myself off from the semi-disgraceful online space which has been carved out by companies like Sony, I am still somewhat of an online junkie, and I enjoy quite thoroughly the ability to play games like Perfect Dark Zero, Warhawk, Gears of War, and Battlefield online. So, while I probably never will leave the online gaming realm, it's definitely some food for thought.
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