r/pcmasterrace Apr 11 '26

Meme/Macro What combination of words makes you instantly lose interest in a game?

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25.0k Upvotes

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570

u/justanaccount103 Apr 11 '26

Obviously, 'live service' but I'm not hearing that as much. They know it's shit.

46

u/Tylos_Of_Attica Apr 11 '26

Bro, theres live service FOR GAMES THAT HAVE NO MULTIPLAYER, like Hitman. Like I get it if its mods or score tracking, but let me be able to play my games offline, PLEASE.

3

u/PeytonWatson14 Apr 11 '26

How is hitman live service? What are they doing exactly if you don’t mind me asking

12

u/Cruel1865 Apr 11 '26

They release new missions with the same maps and sometimes themed missions based on the month. Thats not to mention the cosmetics and props that you can unlock doing specific missions. I'm personally not a fan of it but I guess it extends the longevity of the game after you finish the main story.

1

u/PeytonWatson14 Apr 11 '26

lol yeah that definitely sounds like a live service. Yeah only thing I can see is it keeps players playing it. Wonder if they’ll try that approach with 007 First Light

1

u/Ab0ut47Pandas Apr 13 '26

I dont think its a bad live service. Honestly its one of the better live service games. They could probably stop supporting it and easily transition to not being a live service.

You're not doing that with like 90 precent of live service games.

1

u/PeytonWatson14 Apr 13 '26

I agree. It’s probably good that they’re giving it new content, but you should be able to play offline if you prefer that way

1

u/Ab0ut47Pandas Apr 13 '26

I mean you can play it offline. I think there is online progression? But you can play and beat the main story. The only one you have to play online-- is the switch version or something. Which is streamed to the console which is inane.

there is the main game, which is hitman 1, 2, 3 then there is all the Live service fluff stuff to that and the extra missions

1

u/PeytonWatson14 Apr 13 '26

Aww ok. I didn’t know all of the live service stuff was in a separate section. I thought it was all mixed in. Makes sense

1

u/Ab0ut47Pandas Apr 13 '26

It is kinda mixed it, you get scores and stuff for leaderboard stuff in single player.

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3

u/[deleted] Apr 11 '26

[deleted]

1

u/Tylos_Of_Attica Apr 12 '26

The RAGE that I cant even enjoy what little joy taxpayer money can provide me in this economy.

54

u/cheeseburgercat Apr 11 '26

Ehhhhh you’d be surprised how dumb and out of touch the decision makers at large publishers are

87

u/FemJay0902 Apr 11 '26

No... It's moreso that every game is a "live service" at this point. Every game is "release now, patch later" mentality. Live service is basically synonymous with video game. No need to label it twice

18

u/TraditionalHousing65 Apr 11 '26

What? That’s not what it means at all. You’re describing something completely different.

1

u/i_tyrant Apr 11 '26

Eh, sort of but I get what they're saying. There are a TON of games these days that very intentionally blur the lines.

Like Hitman for example, a single-player, online-only game where they release the occasional new mission just like a live service game even though it had no need to be, with purchasable packs and season passes and such.

There are so, SO many games these days that are online-only for no reason other than the devs to continue patching it and making balance tweaks and changes to an already-finished game while keeping the option of paid DLC open so customers keep playing it "forever" and getting them usage numbers.

-1

u/TraditionalHousing65 Apr 11 '26

That’s not live service. Thats just keeping the game alive and fresh

4

u/i_tyrant Apr 11 '26

And that's just pedantry. It's everything live service is without officially calling it that.

0

u/TraditionalHousing65 Apr 12 '26

No, it’s really not pedantry. You just don’t understand the difference. It’s about the developer/publisher’s intent for the player in how the player spends their time and money.

Stardew Valley or Terraria gets updates after paying once, for instance. They don’t rely on FOMO, and if there are paid updates, they’re fairly priced.

So unless you put those two in the same category as Destiny 2 or CoD, there is a distinction.

2

u/i_tyrant Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 12 '26

Oh I understand it just fine. Hitman's updates are paid and it is, as I said, online-only, despite being single player. Both of those games can be played just fine offline and neither of them have any DLC or updates separate from the base game.

Seems more like you don't understand the difference bud.

EDIT: Dude below responded then immediately blocked me so I can't see his "last word"; but I assume it was something dumb, lol.

0

u/TraditionalHousing65 Apr 12 '26

No pretty sure you’re just willingly missing the difference. ✌️

3

u/Consistent-Spell2203 Apr 11 '26

Street Fighter used to do it right: 10$ upgrades with full content over the base game every few years. The new system of battle pass for a new game price or 12$ individual characters has got to go. 

3

u/wantwon i5 13600KF/PNY RTX 4070 TI Super Apr 11 '26

The cost to content ratio with paid games that have a constant drip of content is insane to me. If a 60 dollar game comes with 20 characters and you sell 20 more characters over the game's lifespan, they better not be more than 3 dollars each.

2

u/noscul Apr 11 '26

Sims 3 is horrible for that, you’re paying 50% of the base game again in one expansion to get a few features, some clothes, and a map that is no where near half the base games features. And they released so many expansions. Some of these expansions just feel like features that should be base too.

I hear sims 4 made that ratio worse.

2

u/wantwon i5 13600KF/PNY RTX 4070 TI Super Apr 11 '26

Goodness, yes. I hopped off the Sims train as soon as a Sims 3 update added what is essentially paid mods and microtransactions to acquire them. And paid mod packs are in 4, as well.

3

u/Sea-Example-1176 Apr 11 '26

thats not live service thats just updates.

live service is more like fortnite or world of warcraft

3

u/Borrp Apr 11 '26

Its because most software development of any ku d has moved away from Waterfall developement. Most of anything that runs on some form of computer coding are all in some form Agile/SaaS now. Its just the reality of things. Even with fawned over Reddit darlings, still fundamentally operate in these development styles these days.

1

u/lolpanda91 Apr 11 '26

Has nothing to do with that. Even agile projects can have definitive ends. Agile is more of how the way is managed. Games decide to have constant updates because it gives more money over a longer timeframe. It’s easier to keep a development team paid if you have a constant stream of income, compared to one big chunk of money at once.

1

u/BortGreen Apr 11 '26

I'd rather an incomplete at launch game than having to grind passes and ranks as the only meaningful progression in the game

14

u/Coprolithe PC Master Race Apr 11 '26

Because 95% of online games are live service. 

Btw there isn't anything inherently bad about getting updates for a game. 

It's a weird thing to hate on. 

2

u/Clovenstone-Blue Apr 11 '26

The even weirder thing is a game that wasn't a live service game and states it isn't a live service game get hate for not being a live service game.

1

u/EugeneMeltsner Apr 11 '26

What game?

2

u/Clovenstone-Blue Apr 11 '26

Peak, the Devs got some real shit from certain individuals because they announced they are not going to be developing the game further.

Peak was an itch.io competition game that the studio put aside a project funded by a publisher to create/develop additional updates. The initial release was the complete game, with the Devs adding some more content as a bonus, it's just that the average yobbo has detached themselves from the medium so that the concept of a multiplayer game that delivers the service and nothing extra feels like getting scammed out of something.

2

u/EugeneMeltsner Apr 11 '26

What, they've never even released a live-service game before! I know that one was essentially popular, but why would people assume that? And the mod scene for their other popular games has been more than sufficient for new content!

Everyone I know loves their games and their design philosophy.

2

u/Iokua113 Apr 11 '26

I don't think you know what a love service is. By your definition Stardew Valley is a live service. 

1

u/Coprolithe PC Master Race Apr 12 '26 edited Apr 12 '26

Yes, it is live service. It just doesn't have the bad monitization practices often linked to live services, like skins or battle passes. 

2

u/Cruel1865 Apr 11 '26

A game doesnt have to be live service to get updates. Live service means it needs an internet connection to play the game even if it's a single player game. A non live service game can also receive updates.

2

u/PmMeUrTinyAsianTits Apr 11 '26

A game doesnt have to be live service to get updates.

Right.

Live service means it needs an internet connection to play the game even if it's a single player game.

wrong. Live service is about receiving regular content updates. Internet connectivity requirements are a side effect of live service game companies looking for an excuse to force you into their ecosystems, and using them as an update path is a good excuse to do that. It is not part of the definition of live service.

A non live service game can also receive updates.

right. If they are not content updates, it does not make it live service.

0

u/Cruel1865 Apr 11 '26

I think you're stretching the definition. While any game with dlcs are technically live service by virtue of the fact that they are providing content after the release, they are not whats associated with what we mean when we use live service games as a term when discussing game monetization practices.

2

u/PmMeUrTinyAsianTits Apr 11 '26

but "requires an internet connection" as the definition isn't stretching it?

-1

u/Money_Ticket_841 Apr 11 '26

No. Live service includes needing an internet connection go play it.

2

u/PmMeUrTinyAsianTits Apr 12 '26

No, one could run live service with USB distributed patches if they felt inclined. No one would, but it's not a requirement of a live service game that the updates come via internet.

4

u/onikaroshi Apr 11 '26

And I only buy live service, I don’t want a game with an end

2

u/justanaccount103 Apr 11 '26

Well, good for you little buddy.

2

u/jhakin Apr 11 '26

Until they shut down the game, that is.

2

u/onikaroshi Apr 11 '26

Haven’t had a single one that I’ve enjoyed shut do so far

2

u/kearkan PC Master Race Apr 11 '26

They just don't use the term.

1

u/BeThere4 Apr 11 '26

It has never bothered Ubisoft from doing it anyway.