- The live service genre has become one of the most controversial in the industry.
- While many believe it is already over for the genre following many failures, I believe it still has great potential.
- Only if developers start to care about the player experience instead of being greedy, like in Helldivers 2, can they achieve great success.
The live service genre has become one of the hot topics in recent times, as almost every big publisher in the industry has released or developed a live service project.
While I was a big fan of the genre when titles like Fortnite and PUBG were released, as they offered so much quality content at a very reasonable cost, the developers’ greed ruined this genre.
Following the countless recent failures in the genre, such as Concord, Skull & Bones, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, and many others that couldn’t even be released, most fans believe the genre is already over.
However, I believe live service is still one of the stunning genres in the industry. It hasn’t been fully explored yet, but it will only be fun and remarkable when developers stop being greedy.
Why it matters: PlayStation has already seen a significant loss in the genre as the company has been counting big times on live service titles.
Recent Failures Have Disappointed Fans To The Next Level
This year has been the worst for the fans of the live service genre as most of the major titles released this year were significant flops, and titles like Helldivers 2, which nobody saw coming, won everyone’s hearts.
2024 started with the release of Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, which was in development for seven years and was developed by one of my favorite studios, Rocksteady Studios, developers behind the Batman trilogy.
However, the game was a major flop, as the team lacked the multiplayer experience. This also caused the studio to lay off employees, and Warner Bros. has also faced much loss because of this failure. Still, it wasn’t the only disappointing live service title released this year.
Ubisoft’s Skull and Bones was in development for around a decade and finally released this year. According to the stats, it saw a worse launch than Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League and joined the list of the worst releases of the year.
Concord has also become the latest industry failure. The title was shut down just two weeks after its launch, and PlayStation is already refunding the players who purchased it.
Many studios have also been closed or seen layoffs following a poor launch of a live service title they worked on. However, I believe they deserve it as most of them are only chasing money out of the genre without caring about the fans’ interest.
Helldivers 2 Proof That Not All Live Service Titles Are Bad
Despite many failures in the live service genre, particularly in 2024, there was one title that I didn’t see coming, which also became one of the biggest hits of the year: Helldivers 2, selling over 12 million copies in just three months after its launch.
The game director of Helldivers 2 has also discussed how publishers are only using the genre to generate money and are missing out on its massive potential, which I believe is one reason why Arrowhead Game Studio has seen tremendous success.
The game director has also claimed that live service games, which come with in-game purchases, shouldn’t cost $70 at launch as players are already going to spend money on the title.
When most of the publishers chase after the money, Helldivers 2 cares more about the players’ experience and was launched at a price of $40. It stands apart from the crowd and is a vital reminder that not every release in the genre is terrible.
Live Service Titles Can Still Be Remarkable
Though many of the fans are already tired of the genre and believe that the end is near, I’m looking for a better side of it, as I think the genre has not yet been fully explored, and it has great potential.
Suppose the developer starts caring more about the player experience. In that case, they will eventually earn money from it, which is their ultimate goal, but developing a title only with the intention of generating money isn’t a good idea at all.
Therefore, I believe if more publishers adopt releases like Rocket League, GTA Online, and Helldivers 2 as ideal, which offer quality content and don’t provide special perks for spending money on the title, the genre could make a solid comeback.
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[News Reporter]
Abiyan is on track to complete his Computer Science bachelor’s degree. His enthusiasm for writing and gaming motivates him to keep readers and gamers updated with the latest information from the industry. In his free time, Abiyan enjoys playing Dota 2 and Rocket League. Abiyan has also been cited in reputed websites such as Kitguru, Comicbook, GamingBible, Eurogamer and Gamingbolt.
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