There used to be a time when I could go home and load up my cartridge and get away from all annoying people. Games were my solitary sanctum, my own private retreat. There used to be a time when I didn't have to worry about who would invite me to a "party" as soon as I started up my console. People enervate me, and I use games to replenish my energy. Yes, I am introvert and a lone wolf. I seek solitude, and I just want to be left alone a majority of the time while i'm on the 360.

I was absolutely heart-broken when I heard that Resident Evil 5 would feature co-op for the very first time. I was worried that narrative and characterization had been sacrificed for a slight boost in sale. Not just a slight but most companies believe that sales increase significantly if there is some matter of tacked-on multiplayer feature. Most developers now incorporate the dreadful co-op mode as a standard of this current zeitgeist. I was so infuriated with RE5, I never played a single chapter in co-op. Instead, I endured the entire game on professional difficulty despite some frustrating stuttering from the ostensibly deficient AI



Don't get me wrong, Sheva was, overall, a well-designed character but the core focus was clearly on co-op which many people noted was just "more fun." Well I had plenty of fun on my own, and I could play the game on MY conditions. It's my proudest achievement I've ever unlocked next to Mile High Club

Ding!



I've also completely refused to play Borderlands in co-op despite the more robust 4-player setting. I've been tempted to try it now that I'm actually done with the game and I've seen everything I want to see. What worries me about co-op is the fact that I might get rushed to please my party, and I won't have a chance to properly see and explore everything. I suppose that is the cost of so called "fun." Fun to me is in diametrically oppositional domain. I enjoyed the single-player campaign despite some clear frustrations. For example, your second-wind bar depletes FASTER in single-player than mp. WTF?



Not today guys, I've got a headache...again.

One guy on my f-list told me he only buys games with co-op or multiplayer. I guess I am a reactionary, I strongly oppose certain change within the gaming industry. This co-op thing is really bothering me. Anyway

Ding!



There is no denying the co-op paradigm is here to stay only because it makes sense from a business perspective. I wonder how aggressively it will change in a couple of years. How about MAG boosting 250 players in a single match?



Ding!