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Naughty Dog's standalone multiplayer game a "cinematic experience between players"

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
that's the part I find generally confusing. I haven't played any of the games you mentioned (ok, Day Z for 30 minutes, it was horrible), but any "serious" videogame storytelling instantly falls apart when combined with voicechat banter and people acting goofy on screen. I think it's more about those emergent epic gameplay moments worth clipping, rather than some kind of an innovative, narrative quality made to be experienced with others.

You're describing the same thing. Narrative and story doesn't simply have to be watching an NPC explain something or seeing a well acted cutscene with Troy Bakers voice.

Those emergent gameplay moments allow players to participate in the narrative rather than watch it unfold around them.

The next frontier of storytelling is setting up enough of those emergent moments to create a longer narrative arch for the player.

That's what Naughty Dog is almost certainly trying to do here.
 
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Ellery

Member
I love Naughty Dog, but for single player reasons and I am usually open minded, but I don't expect this to be my personal cup of team.
 

The_Mike

I cry about SonyGaf from my chair in Redmond, WA
5l42u6.jpg
 
But now their focus is on this MP game instead of the next offline campaign game.
......you do realize they have two teams right?

That's how they simultaneously developed Uncharted 3 and TLOU and their sequels.

If the MP component has been in development for a long while, chances are another team is already working on a new project and slowly (if not already) going into full development.

Its Naughty Dog in 2021, not 2008.
 

Kokoloko85

Member
Coop / PVE missions would be great Set in the TLOU universe.
I wonder how deep they go with it? Something like 7 days to die but set in the TLOU world with GTA coop like missions would be awesome

Then also have factions mode for those PVP lovers. I cant be bothered with death matches etc
 

Bartski

Gold Member
You're describing the same thing. Narrative and story doesn't simply have to be watching an NPC explain something or seeing a well acted cutscene with Troy Bakers voice.

Those emergent gameplay moments allow players to participate in the narrative rather than watch it unfold around them.

The next frontier of storytelling is setting up enough of those emergent moments to create a longer narrative arch for the player.

That's what Naughty Dog is almost certainly trying to do here.
ok, if so - how would such an emergent moment look like? One that would maintain the tone of a game world like TLOU, and become part of the narrative layer of the experience as a result of players interacting, rather than gameplay systems converging in a unique shared gameplay action moment, etc. Not trying to prove you wrong or anything, I don't play such games I'm genuinely curious. Maybe an example from other MP games as a sign of things to come could do the trick
 

Heisenberg007

Gold Journalism
Yes, please.

There are plenty of MP games that do the same thing. I'd rather see them do something different and fail instead of milking MP modes that have been already done to death. Let's see what Sony's premier studio brings to multiplayer games.

TLOU 2 Factions has immense potential. Give us a new shared online world mode where we can build our Jackson-type community, gather resources, breed horses, make weapons, arm the citizens, raid other players' settlements (PVP), clear infected zones (PVE), etc.
 

Hugare

Member
People getting triggered by the "cinematic" part, of course

Every Naughty Dog multiplayer mode was a banger: U2, U3, U4, TLOU. Each one was awesome.

So there's no reason to believe thatt hey will fuck things up this time. Chill.

They will probably put some cutscenes for each faction, or make some "cinematic" co-op modes like those missions in Uncharted 3

Regardless, I trust in ND to deliver
 

HTK

Banned
People getting triggered by the "cinematic" part, of course

Every Naughty Dog multiplayer mode was a banger: U2, U3, U4, TLOU. Each one was awesome.

So there's no reason to believe thatt hey will fuck things up this time. Chill.

They will probably put some cutscenes for each faction, or make some "cinematic" co-op modes like those missions in Uncharted 3

Regardless, I trust in ND to deliver

They also ruined every single multiplayer U2, U3, U4, and TLOU with DLC/Updates.
 
Cool. Will reserve judgement after i see the game. Enjoyed the original's MP. Hoping they have something interesting considering that they wanted to expand this into a standalone game

Who knows, might secretly impress the haters ✌️
 

CitizenZ

Banned
Naughty dog is way, way under rated for the MP aspect of their games. I mean no one really talks about them, but they always have offered a ton of fun in both series and always seem to be playable months after release(lots of people like it). Im sensing either they were not happy or saw potential since the MP for TLOU2 was to be out last year?
 

kyliethicc

Member
Yes, please.

There are plenty of MP games that do the same thing. I'd rather see them do something different and fail instead of milking MP modes that have been already done to death. Let's see what Sony's premier studio brings to multiplayer games.

TLOU 2 Factions has immense potential. Give us a new shared online world mode where we can build our Jackson-type community, gather resources, breed horses, make weapons, arm the citizens, raid other players' settlements (PVP), clear infected zones (PVE), etc.
I hope they make a PvPvE mode too. Team death match or free for all modes but with infected (AI) in the map too.

Lots of games have a 4v4 or 5v5 TDM. So throw in some runners/clickers/bloaters into the map as well for added chaos.
 

Bartski

Gold Member
if it could be any more obvious, Evan Wells low key confirms the standalone project in the works is indeed The Last of Us when asked about it by Gameinformer

Gameinformer: You basically put a bow on the Uncharted series, but you still have that The Last of Us multiplayer project in the works. Do you want to continue to work on the IP you’ve established or do you have a desire to create new properties at this point?

Evan Wells: I think the easy answer is: both. I think there’s excitement to develop new IP, but there is still a ton of love for Uncharted and The Last of Us, and I think you’ll see both kinds of projects from us in the future.

The interview went just live, goes into dealing with the criticism they got after the leaks, crunch, dedication to single player and more.

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Caio

Member
Naughty Dog games are built on single player not multiplayer but I would value the hell out of a naughty dog MP like UC2,3 and 4.
I loved U2 and U3 multiplayer co-op, I was addicted to it. I ranked 56 in the World, and sadly I had to stop after having too many discussions with my wife, who didn't underestand my passions. I could easy rank Top 10 with some extra time, the problem was I started playing MP too late, and I had to stop for the reasons above :D
I miss Uncharted co-op MP, I would love Uncharted back and MP coop like it was in number 3, just I won't be able to play like before :(
 

Yoboman

Member
Could mean co-op or it could mean large scale changing events in game that everybody experiences together like in Fortnite. Could even mean an open style game with a ton of NPCs and story missions like GTA

All of these sound like cool concepts so interesting to see what they do
 

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
ok, if so - how would such an emergent moment look like? One that would maintain the tone of a game world like TLOU, and become part of the narrative layer of the experience as a result of players interacting, rather than gameplay systems converging in a unique shared gameplay action moment, etc. Not trying to prove you wrong or anything, I don't play such games I'm genuinely curious. Maybe an example from other MP games as a sign of things to come could do the trick




This is a pretty crude example but it should illustrate how mechanics can incentivize player behavior.

The first 30 years of PvP has largely been John Wick vs John Wick esque characters in a dance club (small level). That may be fun, but it's not much of a story.

Games like Rust, DayZ, and the Battle Royale genre give us a glimpse of what a Lord of the Rings style PvP narrative could look like.
 
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Bartski

Gold Member



This is a pretty crude example but it should illustrate how mechanics can incentivize player behavior.

The first 30 years of PvP has largely been John Wick vs John Wick esque characters in a dance club (small level). That may be fun, but it's not much of a story.

Games like Rust, DayZ, and the Battle Royale genre give us a glimpse of what a Lord of the Rings style PvP narrative could look like.

Ok!

It is a crude example but does the job, I can see it now.

This could indeed be pretty great in AAA quality giving players proper incentive to "role play" characters with interesting, maybe conflicting objectives, not just to shoot each other on sight.

Provided that everyone has great audio, which is very rare now and a way to filter out kids listening to rap on voice chat whose sole purpose of being there is griefing. This is why I absolutely hated RDR2Online, but there is a huge potential to unlock there if someone manages to resolve all those issues.
 
PR bullshit. Even if it was true, after just 10 hours these cutscenes would be boring, and you don't play just 10 hours of a MP game.
 

ZywyPL

Banned
Cinematic multplayer, I think this would be the first of its kind. But whatever ND does with this "cinematic approach", I don't think it'll work in the long term, because people are really inpatient where it comes to MP and are quickly annoyed when they have to wait for actually playing the game, any pre/post-match lobby, animations, cinematics, interludes etc. piss people off if they take more than 10s, even 3s respawns seem like forever and you want to get back right away. And after just a few days once people get to see all the repeated animations over and over they wish they were never there and that they could jump immediately into the match. Sort of like being forced to watch all the companies logos before you can continue SP campaign instead of jumping right into it. So I don't know, I think that initially it'll actually be a huge deal and ND will be praised for innovation, but after a while the game will simply die because people don't go into MP for cinematic experience, leave that in SP mode, online is for running & gunning each other, it's been already proven to death.
 

Alebrije

Member
The funny is that now you need a Monetization manager to develop a game. When basically you just need to avoid any Pay per win mechanics ans just sell skins like crazy.

Instead of that job ND and any multiplayer company should hire a "Fair play manager" to avoid aim bots, cronus max devices, level hackers. Etc...I play regularly TLOU multiplayer and is funny/sad how people abuse of those tactics.
Kicking awaytthose players will be better for the community than any monetizing program.
 

Astral Dog

Member
Cinematic multplayer, I think this would be the first of its kind. But whatever ND does with this "cinematic approach", I don't think it'll work in the long term, because people are really inpatient where it comes to MP and are quickly annoyed when they have to wait for actually playing the game, any pre/post-match lobby, animations, cinematics, interludes etc. piss people off if they take more than 10s, even 3s respawns seem like forever and you want to get back right away. And after just a few days once people get to see all the repeated animations over and over they wish they were never there and that they could jump immediately into the match. Sort of like being forced to watch all the companies logos before you can continue SP campaign instead of jumping right into it. So I don't know, I think that initially it'll actually be a huge deal and ND will be praised for innovation, but after a while the game will simply die because people don't go into MP for cinematic experience, leave that in SP mode, online is for running & gunning each other, it's been already proven to death.
If there is one developer in the world who can make players sit for 30 minutes without pressing a button in a multiplayer game, it will be Naughty Dog
 

EverydayBeast

thinks Halo Infinite is a new graphical benchmark
Before I dive in

pool GIF


Uncharted 2,3,4’s mp we’re definitely rivals to games like Gears of War, Ghost Recon, Socom etc.

The potential of a naughty dog game being a hallmark multiplayer game is impossible today, can they take care of business against Pubg? The other giants Fortnight, Apex, and COD?

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I liked it, the movement felt like tempting science running with objectives and getting kills.

uncharted4mp-32.jpg


The game didn’t have battle royale, many go-too modes were team death match, there weren’t any game changers, but it showed the game was predicated on being an add on rather than a multiplayer game people can count on.

Cinematic multiplayer you could win hearts of gamers and raise a new flag on uncharted grounds.

The Best Mic Drop GIF by #MTNBrightSideGIFs
 

Drewpee

Banned
Naughty Dog is still "aggressively hiring" dev team members for its yet unannounced MP title everyone suspects will be the successor of TLOU Factions.

After confirming the title is indeed a standalone multiplayer game last June, in a series of tweets shared by team members on the project, the game is referred to in a way that will surely get some people triggered:
a "cinematic experience between players".




Vinit Agarwal was the lead on TLOU Factions, Uncharted 4 multiplayer, as well as previous ND MP modes and is rumored to be the Game Director on the project.

What that actually means we can only speculate before the game is officially revealed, hopefully during the TLOU Day (ex Outbreak Day) 26.09.

Safe to say tho such an expression seems to indicate a direction in line with the studio's previous project strengths, and a way to translate TLOU2's grounded gameplay into a multiplayer context, rather than chasing after multiplayer gaming trends set by PUBG or Fortnite.

Could the game contain single-player components covering Faction backstores?

The "monetization/economy" designer team for the project is also expanding.

Why do gamers play videgames for cinematic experiences? I've never understood the appeal.
 

Bartski

Gold Member

ANTHONY NEWMAN, GAME DIRECTOR - Fortnite.​

When I first started working on this multiplayer project, I had a very superficial opinion of Fortnite as something that was a mere toy for tweens, a passing fad that was only popular because of Drake. How wrong I was! Fortnite is truly inspiring, not just as a multiplayer game but as a game period. Epic takes incredible creative risks every season, coming up with new ways to totally transform the game, and they seem anything but short of new ideas. I've been especially impressed with the interactive "concert" events they created: a multiplayer, interactive, limited time musical event? Doesn't get much more innovative than that! Now if I could only learn to build...

oh-oh...
 

ANTHONY NEWMAN, GAME DIRECTOR - Fortnite.​



oh-oh...

I mean, Fortnite is king. I’ve seen Neil playing it as well. i wouldn’t be surprised if TLOU multiplayer ends up being a battle royal.

If you’re gonna steal from anyone steal from the best.
 
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kyliethicc

Member

ANTHONY NEWMAN, GAME DIRECTOR - Fortnite.​



oh-oh...

He also has said in the past that his favorite game of that year was No Man's Sky.

He also designed the melee combat in The Last of Us.

His personal preferences for games over time are not indicators of his future work.

Relax.
 

A.Romero

Member
I don't get why the negativity. There are a million classic MP games out there. Why hate something that is not even out? I mean, there is Halo, CoD, Battlefield and many other classic games with classic modes.

A while ago there were many threads complaining about the lack of innovation in the gaming space but this is the way to innovate: try things and take risks.

Come on guys, it's about time we come to terms with the fact that not every single game out there is made for our tastes. Younger people are joining in and they like different stuff just the same as when we were younger and the established gamers didn't like what we liked.
 

ksdixon

Member
So... I dont think we're gonna get that 4v4 team death match style game from Factions 2, unless maybe as its own mode perhaps.

We talking division style open world, base of operarions to upgrade; and we walk into "cinematic missions"?
 

kyliethicc

Member
So... I dont think we're gonna get that 4v4 team death match style game from Factions 2, unless maybe as its own mode perhaps.

We talking division style open world, base of operarions to upgrade; and we walk into "cinematic missions"?
There will be both PvP and PvE modes.

I'd bet it'll be a mix of Factions, Destiny, and Grand Theft Auto Online.
 
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