For those who haven't really followed it, Bioware has said that DA:I multiplayer will be set up in a way that may remind of Mass Effect 3 (not the exact quote, but I can't find the original and the requotes give me the feeling they've been tampered with (without ill intent in general, yet making them untrustable)). Not much details have been given about it yet (I reckon Bioware is still busy with discussing the last parts of the how and what while at least setting up the necessary infrastructure so when the discussion is done it can be quickly assembled).
For the sake of this in-depth look I'm going to assume that the general idea of comparing to ME3 is meant on style and way the fights are set up, not on how the MP vs SP is being handled. Otherwise, the proverb about the donkey and the stone might get applied...
Thus now following an comparison of the possible main options that Bioware likely has... (there could be more, but in that case it falls out of the scope of my imagination of what is both potentially profitable for Bioware as well as satisfying for all the players)
1) Donkey and the stone - aka, using war assets or something with an comparable name
Taking the way ME3 handled MP integration in single player is the name of the game. Some players liked it, some didn't. For the sake of the thread I'm not going to give estimates here, since I reckon even Bioware and EA with all their data cannot give even an rough estimate of the who's who in this case. Hell, even if the NSA would have saved all up from that time I doubt they could give that estimate :innocent:
This option comes down to the general idea that the most endings are available through playing the single player campaign, but not all except for using outside resources (iPad app, multiplayer, etc) or an import state that about just a very, very small percent of the playerbase had even the files for. It's less-then-subtly pushing players to multiplayer.
Worst part of this is/was that the 'Readiness rating' which affects/affected single player degrades over time, so if you want/wanted to keep your readiness rating up, you're forced to keep on playing multiplayer.
Clarifying note: in the end Bioware (after a lot of heated discussions here on the forums and a lot of complaints, besides the outcry over the mess that the endings were) solved it by lowering the requirement for the 'Shephard breathing' ending of the Destruction option, making multiplayer non-required for those who wished to have access to all possible endings. Stil, it was a few solid months after the release of ME3 itself, having damaged Bioware's rep in the meanwhile.
2) Multiplayer etc with impacting rewards in single player, without the severe impact of things like a readiness rating and the like.
In this option you get money drops, equipment drops and/or access to more forces depending on your status. While it isn't an unsubtle as option 1), it still makes for unbalance in game pacing and game fun. Major advantage here is that while some players still will complain, it is at least an reasonable way to approach it: people can actually choose to play multiplayer or not. Those who do play then knowingly do so that it is just a bonus and not the main portion of the game nor an necessicity, making the need for the packs for resources in MP more reasonable (since those where the main component after the release of ME3 that Bioware earned money on I assume).
Disadvantage here is the need for balancing the game: because of the extra resources people can get, the devs will need to balance the single player out accordingly for the possibility, making it necessary to invest extra time and resources for it which could have gone to other means.
3) Multiplayer etc with cosmetic rewards in single player
In this option you get drops which are what it says they are - cosmetic. No idea what they might be, but I'll leave that open for creative thinkers (and the devs
)An advantage here is that extra balancing is unnecessary, while you still get (minor) rewards for playing the multiplayer. An very subtle nudge without any real potential to create offense with die-hard single player players.
Disadvantage here might be that the nudge can be too subtle, having too few people play multiplayer as a result, creating empty servers in the long run and maybe making the game unprofitable for Bioware/EA.
4) Multiplayer without single player impact
As it says, in this case multiplayer is completely seperate from single player. Die-hard single player players will rejoice likely with this one, but it has really several drawbacks for an expensive game like this (and invested franchise) that I can guarantee that you'll take back those cheers in those times. I'm partially sad to say this, but multiplayer is likely to stay in games.
Advantage here is ... well... you notice no impact whatshoever of multiplayer on singleplayer. Making crosschecking the game assets unnecessary, saving *some* time and money.
Disadvantage: multiplayer will guaranteed to have just a small part of the players. While it offends noone, there are no rewards to be had for playing it besides the MP progression, lacking any nudge to just even take a peek at multiplayer for a lot of people. Thus making the risk greater for a net loss on the game.
Conclusion
From personal perspective, my personal preference would be choice 3.
However, as a professional I'd encourage option 2, or better yet, an mix of option 2 and 3. Why? It creates an gentle mix of rewards with some subtle and some more substantial encouragements to play multiplayer. Option 4 is a no-go because of the risks associated financially with it, while option 1 has proven to create that much controversy and necessary afterwards fixing that it is just unreasonable to try it again - unless you're an masochist that is.
Last notes
I originally planned to make this a lot longer, but it's past 10 PM here and my brains are starting to get sleepy.
I'll stay online for the next 15 minutes or so to answer any eventual questions left. Maybe tomorrow I'll expand upon this depending on questions asked etc. Who knows.
With regards,
TUHD
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