No no... You want this. There is no "We"
I rather love how it is right no.
I rather love how it is right no.
I mean, we all forget that CDPR are about role playing games and cyberpunk is a TT RPG property. In order to move closer to that experience it needs to move the needle in that direction. A single player campaign of course will exist, but all the fans of cyberpunk TT RPG come from a group, DM'd experience, so its a natural place to grow into. All this push back from folks about moving in that direction is really un warranted because this is the origin of the property and style of game to begin with - not a tacked on idea out of left field. There's no reason why cyberpunk can't be everything like many RPG games of the past (single player campaign, level builder, private servers, quest builder) and let the true nature of cyberpunk RPG come into existence. It would be incredible!
Even Witcher 1 had level builder you could make your own adventures.
You're aware that games which offer the "closest" experience from TTRPG are cRPG, right?
A ton of video games have been inspired by TTRPG, that does not mean they have to devolve back to it. What makes these types of video games exceptional even beyond their TTRPG ancestors IS that it is a single player experience that allows for play that cannot be done otherwise. I hoped that the Fallout 76 fiasco will not fall on deaf ears at CDPR:
- Broken immersion. Players rarely behave like believable wasteland survivors. You'll see people jumping constantly, wearing mismatched outfits, dancing, firing weapons for fun, or using internet slang over voice chat. This makes it difficult to feel like you're in a serious post-apocalyptic world.
- The "chosen one" problem. Fallout stories usually revolve around your character being the hero. In multiplayer, there are hundreds of "sole survivors" or "vault dwellers," making the narrative feel less personal and believable.
- Weaker storytelling. Long conversations with NPCs, moral dilemmas, and emotional scenes don't work as well when friends are waiting or random players are running around nearby.
- Less meaningful choices. Single-player Fallout often lets you permanently change the world by destroying factions, saving towns, or killing important characters. In a shared online world, these choices usually can't permanently affect everyone else.
- Limited consequences. NPCs and locations often have to reset so every player can experience the same content. This makes your actions feel less impactful.
- Balancing over realism. Weapons, armor, and perks are often adjusted for player-versus-player fairness rather than what makes sense in the Fallout universe. Some iconic weapons may be weakened simply because they're too strong against other players.
- Grinding replaces exploration. Multiplayer games often encourage repeatedly farming enemies or events to earn better gear instead of naturally exploring the world.
- Live-service mechanics. Daily quests, weekly challenges, seasonal events, and limited-time rewards can replace carefully crafted quests as the main reason to log in.
- World persistence issues. You can't permanently clear areas, establish lasting settlements, or dramatically reshape the world because it must remain available for everyone.
- Player griefing. Even with safeguards, some players enjoy disrupting others through blocking objectives, luring enemies, exploiting mechanics, or generally being a nuisance.
- Economy problems. Player trading can lead to inflation, duplicated items, exploits, or certain equipment becoming either worthless or impossibly expensive.
- Technical limitations. Networking means NPC AI, physics, and scripted events are often simplified compared to what can be done in an offline game.
- Difficulty scaling. Enemies are often designed to accommodate players of different levels, which can make combat feel less carefully balanced.
- Loss of solitude. One of Fallout's strengths is wandering through abandoned ruins, feeling isolated and uncertain. Seeing another player sprint through the area can instantly remove that atmosphere.
- Lore inconsistencies. Developers sometimes have to bend established lore to justify respawning enemies, repeatable bosses, or multiple players completing the same story events.
- Always-online dependence. If servers are unavailable or eventually shut down, parts—or all—of the game may become inaccessible.
- Mods become difficult or impossible. One of the biggest strengths of Fallout games like Fallout: New Vegas and Fallout 4 is their extensive modding community. Multiplayer games generally cannot support the same freedom because every player must share compatible game files. On line and "anti cheat" comes with extreme restrictions to that.
Last edited:
I have a lot of these same sentiments when it comes to MMO-style RPGs. Not just the lack of "role-playing" that can exist for things based on TTRPGs, but also the lack of player investment in immersion and the tremendous amount of player agency invested in ways of breaking that immersion.
Not an RPG, per say, but Dune: Awakenings really suffered from this. Such big maps to explore and some fun to be had with the mission structure...all completely wiped out when you log into your server after a few weeks to see that it's filled to the brim with some of the most ridiculously un-immersive constructions taking up every square inch of build-able space. FPS tanks, and you can't fly 1 mile into the Deep Desert without getting blown out of the sky by griefers.
I bring it up, because the team is implementing the perfect strategy -- private servers. Granted, the host will need a pretty powerful PC or will need to pay for a rentable server that can run the game well, but you'll finally be able to just play alone or with a group of friends that are all on the same page about the type of experience they want. More games should offer that as an option.
Not an RPG, per say, but Dune: Awakenings really suffered from this. Such big maps to explore and some fun to be had with the mission structure...all completely wiped out when you log into your server after a few weeks to see that it's filled to the brim with some of the most ridiculously un-immersive constructions taking up every square inch of build-able space. FPS tanks, and you can't fly 1 mile into the Deep Desert without getting blown out of the sky by griefers.
I bring it up, because the team is implementing the perfect strategy -- private servers. Granted, the host will need a pretty powerful PC or will need to pay for a rentable server that can run the game well, but you'll finally be able to just play alone or with a group of friends that are all on the same page about the type of experience they want. More games should offer that as an option.
I think there is pushback due to some assertions, described as fact, that are just opinions. Personnally, I have nothing against a limited multiplayer scope and the possibility that CDPR create tools for private servers, modding and multiplayer. At the condition this doesn't sacriface too much of the singleplayer experience. With a little luck, theses tools can even help the game and DLC development.
As many here, I think the MMO style is nearly contrary to the TTRPG. But Neverwinter style of private servers, that can interesting.
I'm sure CDPR is having a lot if internal discussion whether or not to include MP, its inclusion would skyrocket complexity and cost.