The developers of Returnal, Housemarque, announced that they will be focusing on single-player premium games, which was met with a lot of appreciation from the fans. Hence, Housemarque recently unveiled that they literally will not be touching the service-oriented trend, which has since become a mass of compliments from their loyal fanbase.
What makes it so important? Well, it had never felt so refreshing to hear an apple of traditional story-driven experiences from Housemarque into a world where every big publisher was awestruck by the live-service model-a term coined for designing games in a manner that they held player attention for a few months or even years. Their recent hit, Returnal, was magnificent and cruel in its roguelike fashion, teaching in sobering terms that single-player can still sweep industry talks. Now, with Saros hiding behind code, they’re holding forth to what they do best.
It cannot be far-fetched to call it a euphoric online experience. Social media was a full-blown attack from fans chanting “Thank you @Housemarque” and “Single-player forever” in jubilation of their decision to turn away from trends. One jokester commented, “Their 600 fans will be pleased,” but let’s not kid ourselves; the cult following for Returnal goes way beyond that. Other comments went on to point out how rarely one finds a developer to back 100% blindly; an announcer even went, “I’d buy their game without seeing a review,” and that surely must be an endorsement for Housemarque!
With that said, commentators of the contrary see skepticism. They say a question arises: Can Housemarque make it by foregoing the live-service scheme, especially with Returnal allegedly not selling well? However, with Sony backing the studio-now, even purchasing Housemarque in 2021-those considerations should instill confidence in its direction. And referring to all the recent flops that have lived-service stamped all over them (I’m looking at you, Suicide Squad), a finely crafted one-and-done experience just might be the least bad option.
There has been no account about service versus single-player, but the stance of Housemarque only spurs the debate. Some, like @MikeMumbelz, said live-service can work if done right; Helldiners 2 is probably the best example. However, most of them seem relieved to see a studio standing up against it. “Sony has enough of those in the works,” another user added, sarcastically.
So what of the days ahead? Saros is rumored to be another science-fiction venture that might serve as a spiritual successor to Returnal. Though they are few regarding the actual details, one thing is for sure: Housemarque is staying put. Within a very crowded game landscape full of battle passes and microtransactions, an oath to purified and really, really single-player is like an act of rebellion, and, for that, we support the initiative.
So, if you’re sick of grinding in a game that has, in a sense, morphed into a second job, keep an eye out for Housemarque. The company wants to say that premium, story-driven games are here to stay and that it’s a win for the industry’s community. So, uh, when is Saros coming out?
