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Sony discovers single-player preference
Sony compiled a report on their customers’ game playing habits and shared it with developers in 2019, and now it has appeared online.
Vice got their hands on the presentation, but can't share everything since it would reveal their source. The most interesting finding is that the majority of PlayStation 4 players prefer to play offline.
That flies in the face of EA's recent declaration that single-player experiences are headed for extinction, and explains why Sony is investing so heavily in single-player prestige games.
The research also shows what problems PlayStation 5's Activities feature was designed to solve, with gamers reporting the following concerns about playing games:
- "No idea how long I might need, don't play unless I have 2+ free hours"
- "Takes a lot of time to scan through long help videos when stuck"
- "How to engage socially without risk of spoilers"
- "Forgot what I was doing in this game last time, hard to get back in"
Solo play: So there you have it, proof that most time spent playing is offline, leading Sony to state that “single player is thriving”. This certainly explains why games like Marvel’s Spider-Man and Ghost of Tsuhsima have enjoyed such strong sales.