Gamers still want single-player campaigns

We all know how popular online multiplayer games are; who hasn't heard of Fortnite, Overwatch, and PUBG at this point? Just the other day I went down to Rehoboth and saw Fortnite hoodies for sale in one of the shops on the Boardwalk.

While a lot of gamers are really into online multiplayer games, there's still a large chunk of us who are not. Sure, many gamers play single-player games and still enjoy online multiplayer, but some people, like me, almost exclusively play single-player games.

The last multiplayer game I played was the amazing couch co-op game, A Way Out, which my husband and I really enjoyed. It was a fresh, new take on the multiplayer genre and something I'd love to see more of. Plus, seeing an EA game with no microtransactions was a breath of fresh air.

Remember last year when EA shut down Visceral Games and took my dream of an Uncharted-like single-player Star Wars game and turned it into a multiplayer game because "people don't like linear games today as much as they did five or 10 years ago"?

Honestly, I can see where they are coming from here; many people who play Fortnite Battle Royale and PUBG have never even played a good single-player game. A lot of them are casual gamers who are jumping on the bandwagon to play a game with their friends. Look, I get it.

But EA, there are a lot of us who are still craving linear single-player experiences; you just aren't looking hard enough.

Just look at some of the most critically acclaimed games in recent memory: God of War, Far Cry 5 (yes, I know it has multiplayer), Super Mario Odyssey, Celeste ... the list goes on, but you see what I mean.

Not to mention the highly anticipated single-player games like Detroit: Become Human (which will be out by the time you read this!), Death Stranding, Spider-Man, Days Gone, The Last of Us 2, and so many more. The popularity and critical acclaim of these games proves that many, many people still want games like this.

I bring all this up because I recently learned that Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will not have a single-player campaign. I know a lot of people who really enjoy COD's single-player campaigns.

I understand that canning the campaign in Black Ops 4 was a budgetary decision, but I think it's a mistake. In the end, multiplayer games are a fad; people play them for a while, and then the next big thing comes out and they move on.

Now, now...don't run to Twitter to crucify me before I get a chance to explain myself. All I mean is that most online multiplayer games don't have a lot of longevity; they have a strong player base at launch, then it dips when newer games come out, then they release some new map packs and other DLC that brings the player base up a little, and the cycle repeats.

Not to mention, old and inactive multiplayer servers get shut down after a while ... so if you need some multiplayer trophies or achievements, you have to make sure you get them before the servers are shut down. On the flip side, I can go back and play an excellent single-player game from 20 years and still enjoy it just as much as I did back then.

I respect multiplayer games and I think they definitely have their place in the market.

I don't respect multiplayer gaming practices present in games like Battlefront II, but that's a topic for another day. But I will always be an advocate for single-player games with fun gameplay and memorable campaigns I'll remember for a lifetime.

To me, single-player games just hold so much more value. Online multiplayer games are just not for me, and I hope gamers like me aren't forgotten about in the future.