Bring Back Splitscreen

When I think of gamers, what comes to mind is not a pretty picture. Gamers are a group of people that are foul mouthed, inane, insensitive, hateful, sexist, elitist, uninformed, vulgar, angry, pretentious, mean, apathetic trolls who don't care about anybody but themselves. When did it come to this? When I think of gamers back in the day, we were all friends. We would go to each others houses and play video games together. We would exchange cheatcodes, and learn from one another about different techniques in our favorite video games. What changed?

Well, the internet and online multiplayer happened.

Ever since its introduction, the realm of online multiplayer has been a hostile one. I remember when I first jumped on Xbox Live with Halo 2, and the horrible things that I would hear from kids who should not have been using the language that they were using. I mean, there's nothing wrong with trash talk, but there's no call for such hateful speech. The nature of competitive games is a hateful one: I beat you, so that means I'm better. This gets in the way of us gamers recognizing that we're all gathering in the same place because we love the same game, and instead of gushing over it and being passionate about this game, instead we throw caustic comments at one another because we don't like the way the other person is playing. Gamers speak with prejudice and inconsideration. They don't think that there's another person on the other end of that headset. They don't think that maybe it could actually hurt someone's feelings with all of this hate. If gamers were able to play in the same room together, I guarantee it would be a different situation.

There have been studies conducted that just fifteen minutes of playing the game Rock Band with another person can form a stronger bond between two people. That's because they're working together, and they're playing in the same room together. In my experience, my friendships have gotten stronger from playing competitive games together. Super Smash Bros., Mario Kart, Mario Party, Soulcalibur, and various other competitive multiplayer games have help make lasting memories for me. Those nights are the best! When all of my friends come over to play video games, and we just have fun. That's what those games are about. When playing online, you have to have a lot of patience, and the will to stay in it, even though you may lose time and time again. When you play with friends, it's different. Your opponent is right there, and you feel that connection with them because of their presence.

Video games these days don't have splitscreen anymore, or at least it isn't a priority for them. I don't know why. Well, I have a guess.

By making games a single player experience, with online only multiplayer, it forces gamers to buy more copies, because they can't play together. Yet, this method of multiplayer design constricts the community of players. Because of that anonymity between other gamers, friendships are difficult to make. Even if the other player was friendly and cooperative, the chances of playing together again are rather slim (for me at least). I know that games like The Division can't really be expected to have splitscreen, but imagine if it did. Imagine going through the streets of Manhattan with your best friend, and kicking butt together. That's fun. When you play online, it's more of a hassle than anything else. It involves scheduling, and coordinating, and hoping that you'll be able to end up on the same server. Sure, you have to set up a date with a friend to come over and play games together, but that's a lot easier. And there's also a high chance of pizza!

So, are the developers at fault for separating gamers? Yes, but in a small way. Gamers are also the ones who push other gamers out. Gamers are the ones who spit out hate. Gamers are the ones who don't care about anything but achieving victory in a video game, and are unconscious of the things that they say to one another.

Gamers! Unite as a group of people who enjoy video games together. Be kind to one another, even if the other player isn't as skilled as you are. Be encouraging, and always be willing to help. Help to cultivate a community that is friendly and accepting of one another and those who are new. Online multiplayer gives us as gamers to meet people from around the world, and form strong bonds of friendships. Do not look upon these people as their digital avatars, but as real people with feelings.