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[PaulExcellent]

What if the sea faring aspect is actually a multi-player battle field with everyone is fighting on the open seas for treasure, etc? I'd be down for that, the ship battles were probably the only good thing to come out of AC3. To play against real people instead of crappy AI would be great.

OK.
Let's stop right here, and say that this would be wonderful.
I love this idea, and hope that it will be implemented.
Let's work with this angle. Because it would make the game super sweet.

 

[BrokenEchelon]

Again, Ubiosft? Really?

 

[Aquamarine]

I thought superannuation was a trusted source?

He's a common source for rumors so yes, as long as this is labeled "RUMOR," the source isn't the issue here.

 

[Pand]

A lot of people will find a way to justify this (first to themselves, then to others) if it becomes the new standard, which is a shame. I really hope not too many other publishers and developers follow suit.

 

[jmizzal]

Watch Dogs was already confirmed as playable offline if I remember correctly, I'll search for a link...

Yea I remember seeing that in one of the interviews after they showed it off again, it might just be the new xbox versions of those games will have it since they both will be on that.

 

[MoonsaultSlayer]

What if the sea faring aspect is actually a multi-player battle field with everyone is fighting on the open seas for treasure, etc? I'd be down for that, the ship battles were probably the only good thing to come out of AC3. To play against real people instead of crappy AI would be great.

But why does it have to be required?

 

[CassidyIzABeast]

Battlefield 4 is going to be apart of that list as well?

http://youtu.be/U8HVQXkeU8U?t=2m32s

There's a notification that one of your buds beat a score record on the prologue mission. A challenge invite pops up later on in the video as well.

With BF3 being online-only on PC and EA being EA, I could see BF4 requiring a connection.

 

[Queen of Hunting]

ive been saying this for ages. devs and publishers have wanted anti piracy for ages. this could honestly bite sony in their arse for third party devs if they dont go always on (if ms are actually doing that )

why would they knowinly release a game on another console when the other is doing exactly what they want (block piracy by being always on). the ps4 could turn into the wii u (no cod, no battlefield, and many other high profile games)

 

[Saty]

Well, Watch Dogs was always up for that possibility:

Kotaku: I seem to remember that you guys talked about asynchronous multiplayer design at E3. Is that what we saw at the end of the demo, where the camera was being hacked?

Morin: Yeah, that's a nice observation. Not everybody picked that up. Watch Dogs is all about hyperconnectivity. To me, that has to mean all the time and anywhere. So yes, other people are out there all the time, when you don't expect it. Whether you're playing single-player or multiplayer, it's happening. You're saying asynchronous but it's much more real-time than that…

http://kotaku.com/5986057/hey-watch...-first-instance-of-ps4-multiplayer-last-night

 

[UrbanRats]

As already stated, it's very META for Watch Dogs, may i suggest, Ubisoft, to do a Midnight launch of ACIV on Pirate Bay, to be just as META?

#fuckyou.

I don't see why they would go back to this idiocy, after removing it from their latest titles, hopefully it's bullshit.

 

[DryvBy]

Well, fine Ubi. You don't want to give me a product I want? My preorders are cancelled.

ive been saying this for ages. devs and publishers have wanted anti piracy for ages. this could honestly bite sony in their arse for third party devs if they dont go always on (if ms are actually doing that )

why would they knowinly release a game on another console when the other is doing exactly what they want (block piracy by being always on). the ps4 could turn into the wii u (no cod, no battlefield, and many other high profile games)

I highly doubt piracy on consoles are a huge deal. I think more people care about their gamer profiles these days. Achievements and Trophies are, regardless if a few don't like them, probably the best thing against piracy. Dat gamer score is too tough to crack.

 

[Grief.exe]

Battlefield 4 is going to be apart of that list as well?

http://youtu.be/U8HVQXkeU8U?t=2m32s

There's a notification that one of your buds beat a score record on the prologue mission. A challenge invite pops up later on in the video as well.

With BF3 being online-only on PC and EA being EA, I could see BF4 requiring a connection.

I tried to play BF3 offline one time and it kept telling me that I was playing an unofficial copy.

It needed me to connect to EA servers to verify my key.

 

[Tamanon]

Doesn't make sense with Ubisoft coming out against the practice....unless they mean only on the X720?

Or perhaps developing for that platform means they can't change it for the PS4 version.

 

[Spinluck]

I'll pass.

Wasn't getting ACIV anyway, lol.

 

[PaulExcellent]

But why does it have to be required?

It would definitely add to the game, that's for sure.

 

[robertsan21]

its shit like this that makes you hope that these consoles are hacked quickly so you can play them the way you want to play them.

Always online, such a stupid crap.

there will be a way to play these games offline once the hackers and pirates take over, When companies do these things they get what they deserve.

 

[damaph]

OK, Watch_Dogs makes a LOT of sense. Come on, now.
It's almost the point of the game.
I approve, and will purchase Day 1.

AssCreed?
Not so much.
This is the pirate one, right?
So... No.

Can someone explain why always online makes sense for Watch Dogs? I thought it was a single player open world game?

 

[statham]

So sony leaves it to the publishers and MS is system wide?

 

[Palette Swap]

It's nice that these people make sure the cracked PC versions remain the superior product.

Ubi haven't lost any of their pro-piracy edge I see.

 

[Aquamarine]

Doesn't make sense with Ubisoft coming out against the practice....unless they mean only on the X720?

Or perhaps developing for that platform means they can't change it for the PS4 version.

That's the unfortunate reality we face if Durango is truly an always-online platform...(and why people are so angry at Microsoft)...developers might start designing games fundamentally with an always-online-connected world in mind.

So even if PS4 allows offline games, if the games themselves aren't built for singleplayer, it's a moot advantage. :-(

 

[Napalm_Frank]

Luckily I'm not that interested in them but yeah, if we are soon hearing for more games to use this then I think it is pretty clear it is to get parity with Durango or something.

Well at least some guys are clearly against this like with Witcher 3.

 

[Tamanon]

That's the unfortunate reality we face if Durango is truly an always-online platform...(and why people are so angry at Microsoft)...developers might start designing games fundamentally with multiplayer in mind.

So even if PS4 allows offline games, if the games themselves aren't built for singleplayer, it's a moot advantage. :-(

This sounds like it doesn't even have anything to do with multiplayer, which is sketchy.

 

[SJRB]

Pretty sure Watch_Dogs was confirmed for offline play not too long ago.

As for Assassin's Creed - that makes no sense whatsoever to have it always-online.

 

[Bob White]

Won't buy them if true. Simple as that.

 

[Espada]

Nice, more anti-consumer DRM masquerading as a pivotal feature. This situation is getting ridiculous, and it only seems to be getting worse.

 

[Barakov]

ACIV makes no sense on this front. I can see why Watch Dogs would do this. I just particularly don't like it. I was looking forward to both of these, but if this turns out to be true I might just skip both of them.

 

[UrbanRats]

I was going to get ACIV on a sale anyway, this basically seals it, if true.

Also if Watch Dogs is anything like the Souls games, those have an Offline mode, too.

 

[SniperHunter]

I tried to play BF3 offline one time and it kept telling me that I was playing an unofficial copy.

It needed me to connect to EA servers to verify my key.

you can play the single player in offline mode

 

[MoonsaultSlayer]

It would definitely add to the game, that's for sure.

Well it could be a feature, not a requirement. I don't want my game unplayable 3 months after it releases when they pull the plug on its servers to fund the marketing for AC5: The New One.

 

[Sibylus]

I didn´t have the impression at all. It looked more like a standard open world single player game to me.

... I don't understand how you came away with that impression, every demonstration I watched ended with another player explicitly inside the game watching the other one go about their business.

 

[StrongArmSteady]

oh man! social connectivity is becoming the new name for DRM.

"come on guyz! we designed this game social interactivity in mind, was cant do this offline!"

 

[Dysun]

Awesome.

The future is so cool.

If my internet works fine, and Xbox live servers are fine, and the launch hammered Publisher X servers are fine I can play my game!

 

[Miles Quaritch]

OK.
Let's stop right here, and say that this would be wonderful.
I love this idea, and hope that it will be implemented.
Let's work with this angle. Because it would make the game super sweet.

Indeed it would.

But why does it have to be required?

There'd be no separate multiplayer mode. You'd be playing single player on land, but as soon as you board your ship and enter the open seas, you enter a persistent battle field where everyone is fighting for treasure, boarding ships to steal treasure, etc.

Essentially a persistent battle arena whenever you sail onto the open seas. You're not taken into a load screen, you don't have to load a separate mode. It could work, but it all depends on how capable Ubi are of pulling it off.

 

[AHA-Lambda]

As if people needed yet another reason to avoid Assassin's Creed and it's doppelganger.

Fixed that for you

 

[AndrewDean84xX]

Not a big deal to this gamer:

<---------------------------------

 

[Nokagi]

I'm about 90% sure this won't happen with Watch Dogs. 100% sure with ACIV.

 

[Espada]

oh man! social connectivity is becoming the new name for DRM.

"come on guyz! we designed this game social interactivity in mind, was cant do this offline!"

Yeah, that's what makes this garbage even worse. They hide it behind social interactivity "features" and deflect like CRAZY when someone points out it's actually an anti-piracy, anti-consumer measure.

Rather than create tools to improve development efficiency, lower shareholder expectations and sales targets, or rein in their budgets they'd rather shove a giant piece of DRM up consumer asses.

 

[MoonsaultSlayer]

Indeed it would.



There'd be no separate multiplayer mode. You'd be playing single player on land, but as soon as you board your ship and enter the open seas, you enter a persistent battle field where everyone is fighting for treasure, boarding ships to steal treasure, etc.

Essentially a persistent battle arena whenever you sail onto the open seas. You're not taken into a load screen, you don't have to load a separate mode. It could work, but it all depends on how capable Ubi are of pulling it off.

And when I want to sail the seas solo against AI? And when they cut the servers and I still have a sailing itch?

 

[AgentChris]

Watch_Dogs was developed around the whole always connected idea. I'm still curious how the online SP will work.

 

[UrbanRats]

I'm about 90% sure this won't happen with Watch Dogs. 100% sure with ACIV.

What makes you 100% sure?

 

[Iced_Eagle]

Pretty sure Watch_Dogs was confirmed for offline play not too long ago.

As for Assassin's Creed - that makes no sense whatsoever to have it always-online.

If you have a source, post it. I don't recall that. They said Watch Dogs core gameplay is designed around being connected ("Hyperconnectivity" is the phrase they used when they revealed).

I don't doubt that there are reasons why they would want their game to be online all the time. It's just that they need to do a damn good job explaining it to people. At the same time, how could you explain something like cloud computing to people and have them understand? Most people will brush it off and say that it's not needed, irregardless of what it does.

 

[Erasus]

No, not really.

But it does if its some singlt + multi thing like Dark Souls but more integral to the game

 

[th4tguy]

This does raise an interesting point - even if sony doesn't implement a system wide always-on system, individual publishers could just do it anyway. You might not have to be online for sony games but if you want to play ubisoft, activision, or EA games - you might have to be.

This problem isn't going away.

I thought Sony already confirmed this..... It was my understanding that Sony wouldn't force it, but they would allow the publishers to set their own terms, whereas MS was just going to make it system mandatory.

 

[Steiner_Zi]

If this is true, I WILL NOT BUY EITHER OF THEM. I WILL NOT BUY ANY GAME WITH ALWAYS-ONLINE!

 

[sangreal]

yes, they've always presented it as forced multiplayer but I remember them saying in an interview at some point that there will be an option to avoid that

Just to follow up, I made a quick transcription of the interview I was talking about (GT post-ps4 show)

Q: At e3 last year, you guys hinted that there was some kind of connectivity online. Sort of someone else watching you or friends. How is that all going to work with the various different parts?

A: So connectivity is definitely important to us. and there are two ways that will work. And we are not saying everything yet, but I think I can make things a lot clearer today. In both demos we showed of watchdogs, we teased that there are other players involved while you are playing what seems to be single player. Basically what we are trying to do is start blending the line between offline and online; between multiplayer and singleplayer. When you're playing an action-adventure game you want to do an epic adventure. The last thing you want to do is go into a lobby and play capture the flag when you're in multiplayer. The multiplayer will also be happening when you're playing singleplayer. You will cross paths

Q: So they're not two different modes?

A: There are fully multiplayer contexts, but we will have players crossing paths even in singleplayer. What we showed in the demo today is true out -- that player just doing free roaming in the city. There was another player had a contract to tail him -- to basically steal information from him -- and the whole time he was there. You know, you couldn't necessarily see him -- sometimes he was through cameras, sometimes he was phyiscall there, and at the end the first player saw him and basically countered him.

Q: So how do you avoid it being annoying if you just want to enjoy the story yourself. You know, I don't want someone chasing me, I just want to play the game?

A: So obviously we will give control to the player to manage that. But we've found ways of having players interact that don't lead to griefing. We want it to be a positive experience.

They don't really say whether or not you'll be able to play offline, but it is designed around being online

 

[neorej]

Indeed it would.



There'd be no separate multiplayer mode. You'd be playing single player on land, but as soon as you board your ship and enter the open seas, you enter a persistent battle field where everyone is fighting for treasure, boarding ships to steal treasure, etc.

Essentially a persistent battle arena whenever you sail onto the open seas. You're not taken into a load screen, you don't have to load a separate mode. It could work, but it all depends on how capable Ubi are of pulling it off.

Have you ever played Demon's Souls? Excellent integrated optional connectivity features.

 

[Wag]

Oh the irony. The whole theme of the Watch Dogs is about striking out against surveillance and the nanny state, and the game probably has required built in DRM...

 

[Iced_Eagle]

If this is true, I WILL NOT BUY EITHER OF THEM. I WILL NOT BUY ANY GAME WITH ALWAYS-ONLINE!

Your wallet is going to be happy.

No platform is immune from this either. Even the PC ports of some of these games will be online-only more than likely.

I still don't think it's going to be too big of an issue. It's definitely going to be an interesting year, that's for sure...

 

[PaulExcellent]

Can someone explain why always online makes sense for Watch Dogs? I thought it was a single player open world game?

Do you know what Watch_Dogs is?
Like, the game concept?
It is how the world is.
Always connected.
It makes so much sense it seems stupid for it not to have it.

 

[Miles Quaritch]

I'm about 90% sure this won't happen with Watch Dogs. 100% sure with ACIV.

Well,

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=47844438

The buzzword is hyper-connectivity.