While the question of preference between story-centric single-player games and fast-paced and unpredictable multiplayer games is an old one, a new survey indicates that more players in the US, UK and Japan prefer single-player titles. The survey by analytics firm Ampere Analysis (via VideoGamesChronicle), involved 34,428 players across 22 markets including US, UK, Japan, China, Thailand, Germany, Sweden and Netherlands, among others.
According to the survey, 58 percent of players polled in the UK said they prefer single-player games. The US had 65 percent with the same preference, while Japan had 63 percent. Germany and Thailand both also had a preference for single-player games, with 60 percent and 62 percent of players surveyed respectively saying so.
Multiplayer gaming had its own set of fans, however, especially in markets like China and Sweden, where only 47 percent and 49 percent respectively voting for single-player games.
Generally speaking, Ampere’s senior research manager Louise Wooldrige believes that this data points to the fact that there is still a major market for single-player games. While multiplayer games might be at an advantage thanks how they tend to offer “ongoing engagement and monetisation”, single-player games are able to appeal to a broad audience.
“This data reaffirms that single-player games are absolutely still viable – and sought-after – in the live service-dominated landscape,” said Wooldridge. “The market favours multiplayer games for their ongoing engagement and monetisation, but cracking a finely balanced formula for single-player games can leverage this broad audience appeal. Although most gamers prefer this content to multiplayer experiences, the friendship circle still plays a significant role in game discovery and uptake.”
It is worth noting when looking at average market trends that, while many of the most successful games out there, like Fortnite, tend to be multiplayer-only, many others tend to also offer single-player experiences. This also includes yearly releases from long-running franchises like Call of Duty, Battlefield, and even sports titles like Madden NFL and EA Sports FC. There are also titles like Minecraft which also tend to offer strong multiplayer experiences while also not leaving behind the single-player aspect.
In fact, another interesting thing to note is that Sony has essentially built the PlayStation brand off the backs of its various single-player franchises. While various PlayStation consoles have also featured plenty of multiplayer titles, some of the biggest releases since the PS3 days have been Naughty Dog’s single-player outings like the Uncharted and The Last of Us games, and the PS4 generation also saw a revitalisation of single-player experiences thanks to the release of God of War and Horizon Zero Dawn.
There have also been quite a few developers outside of Sony’s first-party studios that focus purely on single-player games, with the biggest one being CD Projekt RED – a studio known for The Witcher franchise as well as Cyberpunk 2077. Studio co-CEO Michał Nowakowski has spoken about his belief that “cutting-edge single-player games rooted in strong franchises and immersive narratives” will continue to be popular. In the meantime, the studio is continuing work on sequels to both of its major franchises – The Witcher 4 and Cyberpunk 2.
