Dastardly said:
... it's just it felt like all wind-up, and no punch. Maybe talk about ways in which multiplayer can work against replayability--for instance, because the player can't be assured that the next time through will be dependably fun, if they happen upon jackasses or cheaters in online play. Or about the myriad ways in which developers can properly incentivize replaying the game--some of which were mentioned above.
You raise a good issue. Follow through with that.
Hear, hear! Well spoken, Bruce!
Yet, I'll go a step farther. I think that Jim is making the wrong point here. Look, if you're going to tell the plain, honest, truth then go right for the Brass Ring. If you're going to put it on the line and say that Metacritic is NOT the problem, and Nintendo is FUCKING stupid (and I agree to both) then you shouldn't be afraid to make this statement either:
"Quit FUCKING up the single player campaign so that you can rush out a game with multiplayer content in time for the next product cycle. You stupid publishers are so greedy for whatever fleeting income that you imagine you may be gaining from online content, that you are creating a SUB-STANDARD - ah hell, lets just call it "shitty" - product. This is called sacrificing quality (and reputation) in the name of short term profit, which is patently stupid on its face."
There, that would be a Jim-worthy statement, and I think that it is the argument that he should have been making. [And I'll let you imagine the 'stupid face' at the end, there.]
Publishers (possibly developers too, you decide) have been straining for the perceived online revenue - and failing - at least since before Ubisoft promised (and failed) to provide ongoing MMO content that dovetailed with the release of URU.
Here's another example; remember Battlefield:Viet Nam? I sure don't. But I did play BF:1942 for a long, long time - but mostly online, because the single player "campaign" was basically a bunch of maps that were the same as used online, and the same AI bots that would be used online. Therefore I can't honestly say that there WAS a single player campaign, even though you could play offline. Although I grant you, there sure were a lot fewer armor campers offline... And BF2 was much the same way. I could play them both offline, but without a dedicated solo story, or goals, or anything, its just dull.
Now that most players have moved on other hot online titles, the Battlefield:1942, BF:V, and to some extent the BF2 servers are dead. [I would expect there is still a diehard BF2 online community] Who is going to buy a retail copy of BF:V now? What is the incentive? Lifeless single player with no story? Lifeless online servers - if there are any?
I can guarantee you one thing; people are still going to be buying retail copies of (single-player only!)
Bioshock for years to come. It will continue to sell, and it should sell because it is a great game. [Actually, I think it could have been better, but I've wasted too much space here, so go see my first Escapist post for that!] And the title doesn't involve ongoing overhead costs for the publisher; like server maintenance fees. That sounds like the better business proposition to me - but hey, I'm unemployed, what do I know?