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PS5 Players Spend Much More Time Playing Single Player Games Than Multiplayer Ones, Leaked Documents Suggest

ReBurn

Gold Member
Are You Sure About That John Cena GIF by MOODMAN




Denial?
The top 3 games of 2023 in each country weren't single player games, they were games with micro transactions and huge online components. Not one cinematic Sony single player masterpiece topped the most popular list anywhere last year. So yes, I'm confident that online multiplayer games making more money is why Jim Ryan wanted to invest more money there than in single player over the next few years.
 

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
I came here to say that Men_in_Boxes Men_in_Boxes doesn't believe it but I'm too late.

Oh stop this. I am the 2nd most mature member of the almighty NeoGAF. I can and do readjust my position when presented with new information. A sign of true intelligence.

I just have to come to grips with what I'm looking at. That chart looks incredibly sus, but I can admit when I'm wrong.

(That said, does it really change my overall position?)
 

//DEVIL//

Member
Yes because we refuse to pay for shitty online service. Shove ur plus games up ur ass. We don't even own them you cheap fucks
 

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
The push for GAAS, and Multiplayer games would certainly give a revenue boost, but it's a short sighted endeavour.
If more then 50% of your player based is playing solo games they aren't going to gravitate towards GAAS & MP if you cut off the supply they'll go elsewhere.
This wouldn't have ended well especially when others are already dominating that space and I assume some saw that and that's why they're scrapping the idea now
 

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
If more then 50% of your player based is playing solo games they aren't going to gravitate towards GAAS & MP if you cut off the supply they'll go elsewhere.
This is why PlayStation is looking to court the multiplayer gamer over the single player gamer. Multiplayer gamers are exponentially more loyal and high value. Single player gamers are constantly looking elsewhere to get their fix because they burn through games so fast.
 

EverydayBeast

ChatGPT 0.1
One of the things Sony started was online multiplayer with socom back on ps2, look at their exclusive multiplayer games today. There isn’t any. Multiplayer shooters was important to PS3.
 

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
This is why PlayStation is looking to court the multiplayer gamer over the single player gamer. Multiplayer gamers are exponentially more loyal and high value. Single player gamers are constantly looking elsewhere to get their fix because they burn through games so fast.
On the contrary, a fanbase to single player series are exceptionally loyal & dedicated for decades as long a you don't deliver a bad game.
A multiplayer gamer will drop you the moment something new is out regardless
 

EDMIX

Writes a lot, says very little
SP games are the only type of games I play......my best moments in gaming is in SP games.

I would say 99% of my gaming time is on single player games lol

I went from playing many MP IP along with single player. TF2, Destiny, COD, BF, Rainbow Six etc

Over time past COD4, we dropped COD IP, TF2 never put out a sequel and now BF is the only MP IP I play lol

I'm willing to add a second, but I'm also ok with just having 1 MP IP play per generation too. Its hard enough keeping up with all the single player releases, imaging having to keep up updates, hot fixes and TTK changes for multiple MP titles.

icegif-675.gif
 
Doesn’t make sense. Free to play game would generate far less revenue for same amount of time played compared to a $70 game.

I guess whoever made this chart is only one who can make it make sense.
 

Klayzer

Member
On the contrary, a fanbase to single player series are exceptionally loyal & dedicated for decades as long a you don't deliver a bad game.
A multiplayer gamer will drop you the moment something new is out regardless
All you have see for that fact is Nintendo. Majority single-player gamers, buys more games as well.
 
But Jimmy wanted to push GAAS? Why?
Singleplayer game - Hour 1: 69.99 spent by consumer on initial purchase. Hour 10: 0.00 spent by consumer. Hour 30: 0.00 spent by consumer. Hour 50: 0.00 spent by consumer. Hour 70: 14.99 spent on bite-sized DLC content Hour 90: 0.00 spent by consumer Hour 110: 0.00 spent by consumer, Game 100% completion.

Multiplayer game - Hour 1: ~0.00 up to 69.99 spent by consumer on initial purchase. Hour 10: 14.99 spent on starter pack. Hour 30: 9.99 spent on consumable Hour 50: 19.99 spent to access locked content Hour 70: 14.99 spent on more consumables Hour 90: 19.99 spent on special guest franchise character/skin Hour 110: 14.99 spent on new 5-star character added to the game with best stats. Hour 130: 9.99 spent on skin for new character.
 

Killjoy-NL

Banned
You can spend 1000 hours playing 5 single player games and 210hrs playing a single multiplayer game. In fact this would be pretty normal. People gravitate towards a very small handful of popular multiplayer games but play a lot of shorter singleplayer games.
That's why GaaS is important for a steady stream of revenue.
The problem is that you first need to get a hit.
 

phil_t98

#SonyToo
But isn’t the most played games Fortnite,call of duty and fifa on ps5?

They are all online games or is this just talking about Sony in house games?
 

xrnzaaas

Member
I'm happy that Sony seems to be starting to backtrack on their huge gaas plans before the whole thing even had a proper start. Sure there are multiple online games and IPs that are very successful financially (and continue to be), but joining that group is very difficult. Sometimes you can make a really good game, but it just fails to attract the attention of players used to playing something else. Many people have limited time and they'd rather stick with what they know than spend xx hours getting familiar with something completely new. It's also an even bigger gamble if the game's f2p, because the whole revenue depends on people not only wanting to play it, but also wanting to spend money on in-game items & passes.
And yeah, you can always try making a smaller game, but Sony made it clear they're interested in big money from AAA (& AAAA ;)) titles.
 

Godot25

Banned
But Jimmy wanted to push GAAS? Why?
It's not that hard to understand why.

Insomniac is expected to have 1,7 billion in revenue from Spider-Man Remastered, Spider-Man 2, Spider-Man Miles Morales, Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart, Wolverine and Venom.
Apex Legends brought 2 billion in revenue in 3 years (last report from EA was in 2022). And alongside that Respawn was able to also make Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order which also make clusterfuck of money.

There is just no contest in terms of potential revenue. If you hit big in live service business, you have 5+ years of pretty huge revenue stream from one game.
Problem is, that "hitting big" in live service is easier said than done.
 
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Famipan

Member
I went from only playing SP to now only play F2P Sky:COTL on PS5. I haven’t spend a penny on it yet and it’s free online without need for Plus. It’s basically a larger Journey game and the game feels like something closer to Journey, Ico, Gravity Rush and music instruments simulator.

It’s criminally low in popularity on the F2P rankings so I suggest giving it a try if you think F2P is only BR shooters and Rocket League. It can be played solo as well.
 
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Hugare

Member
This is why PlayStation is looking to court the multiplayer gamer over the single player gamer. Multiplayer gamers are exponentially more loyal and high value. Single player gamers are constantly looking elsewhere to get their fix because they burn through games so fast.
Multiplayer gamers are more loyal? 90% of then are kids that chase the current fad and wont even remember what they were playing 2 months ago

Nintendo fans are loyal, and their games are mostly singleplayer. Sony fans are loyal, making franchises huge for decades (GOW, Gran Turismo) and some others big in a short span of time (Horizon, TLOU, Uncharted).

They "look elsewhere" while they wait for the next entry of their favorite franchise to come out. Everyone knows that a new Mario or Zelda game will sell like hotcakes even before they are announced.
 
Oh stop this. I am the 2nd most mature member of the almighty NeoGAF. I can and do readjust my position when presented with new information. A sign of true intelligence.

I just have to come to grips with what I'm looking at. That chart looks incredibly sus, but I can admit when I'm wrong.

(That said, does it really change my overall position?)
Who's the most mature???!!!
 
One of the things Sony started was online multiplayer with socom back on ps2, look at their exclusive multiplayer games today. There isn’t any. Multiplayer shooters was important to PS3.
They aren't releasing many single player games nowadays either. They are too busy doing PC ports and those 20 GAAS games being developed (or canceled, same thing).
 
Okay lots of data here. Sorry @ Men_in_Boxes Men_in_Boxes I think these figures are bang on.

Firstly this independent survey eerily backs up Sony's Data. 57% of gamers prefer single player games


You dismissed this before does this data from Sony Change your opinion?

Secondly here's a more in-depth look at a Snap Shot from Steam an Hour ago.

25,445,865 total players

There are 28 Free to Play games in the Top 100 with a Total Player count of 2,653,373. You can only get data about which games are free to play and which aren't up to the top 100.

So Top 28 Free to Play games is 10.4% of Steam Total Player Base. If we assume Steam Player base is similar to Sony's then presumably there's another 10% outside the Top 100 lets say 5,300,000 total players.

This is where it's gets interesting the further down the charts you go the less Free to Play games appear. There's 100% in the top 5, 50% in the Top 10, 42% in the top 50 and only 28% in the top 100. Presumably they get spread out more even more the further they go down and they are all fighting for that measly 10% of the player base.

This is where things really don't look good... The Top 5 Free to play games have 1,947,904 players of that 2,653,373 player base! Or put another way 73% of all Free to Play games in the top 100 and 36% of all Free to Play games if we assume 20%.

Isn't this likely what is Happening on PlayStation as well? Didn't it just get announced that Fortnite had more players this Christmas than GTA, Call of Duty, Genshin and FiFa combined?

Sorry bro it seems the Big Boys are getting bigger and drowning out the rest of the competition. Your gonna have to come up with something pretty damn spectacular to convince me otherwise.
 
Honestly I think I'am being Hugely Generous giving you 20% of the steam total player base. Steam's probably not at 20% because it's missing some Monster's i.e. Fortnite, Genshin and Rocket League.

1 to 5, 1,947,904, players
1 to 16 2,197,288 players
1 to 50 2,531,985 players
1 to 100 2,653,373 players

I can't see those trends leading to over 5 million players.
 

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
Multiplayer gamers are more loyal? 90% of then are kids that chase the current fad and wont even remember what they were playing 2 months ago

Nintendo fans are loyal, and their games are mostly singleplayer. Sony fans are loyal, making franchises huge for decades (GOW, Gran Turismo) and some others big in a short span of time (Horizon, TLOU, Uncharted).

They "look elsewhere" while they wait for the next entry of their favorite franchise to come out. Everyone knows that a new Mario or Zelda game will sell like hotcakes even before they are announced.

True poppycock.

Nintendo is an oddball edgecase because they target families, children, and Disney kidults with their blue ocean strategy.

Single player gamers who play on PC, PlayStation, and/or XBox are constantly looking for their next fix after dumping 30 hours into the most recent SP game. You only need to look at how quickly gamers turn on these companies the moment there's a percieved drought.

Case in point: There are 2 - 4 interesting GAAS titles releasing in 2024 and I feel like a kid in a candy store. I, a GAAS gamer, only need one of those titles to hit for the year to be a success. Single player gamers require lengthy lists of games for a year to be considered exciting/successful.

GAAS cultivates loyalty because the effects of droughts don't exist there. GAAS games provide hundreds, if not thousands, of high value hours with their players. There are no dry spells because their "one game" is their focus for an extended amount of time.

PlayStation must court the loyal gamer now that they're dwarfed in terms of game production. They can no longer trade blows with XBox in the field of big AAA 30 hour games.

The artful mincer The artful mincer , I cede your point. I am a humble man who can admit when he is wrong. I am happy to be so. However, what does this change? My overall position (ie GAAS is the future, GAAS is an undersaturated market) is unaffected.
 

simpatico

Member
How does this comport with the thread on the front page about Fortnite being played more than all other big games combined?
 

mdkirby

Gold Member
This should not be surprising. There's a pretty narrow window in a persons life when they can dedicate tons of time into online gaming. They are life eaters. The often incredibly toxic online communities are also unwelcoming to female players. If you're older and are afforded the time to play by a spouse its also far more acceptable to have a single player narrative game on the tele than you sitting next to them whilst screaming down a mic playing the same shooty shooty levels over and over. These factors, plus increasingly mature gamers (who grew up with games) being much more representative than in the past generations pretty much ensure single player games on aggregate will take the lionshare of player time. Tastes change as we get older, but drop off in online gaming is also because it becomes a bloody nightmare to get a group of friends together all at the same time when people have lives/work/kids.

Multiplayer mostly has:
Primarily Males aged 12-23

Single player has:
All genders, all ages, (tho I expect mostly trending 15+)

Most populations are ageing populations, with pretty poor birthrates.

anyhow, just my 2 cents 🤷‍♂️
 
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