Swen Vincke is tired of hearing that single-player games have no future. The massive success of Baldur’s Gate 3 proves otherwise—great games will always find an audience.

Much has been said about how Baldur’s Gate 3 impacted the RPG genre, Dungeons & Dragons, and Larian Studios itself. However, one key takeaway is often overlooked: a single-player RPG without multiplayer or social elements outperformed its competition. Swen Vincke believes the reason is simple: “they just have to be good games.”

It might seem obvious, but Vincke recently addressed claims on Twitter that single-player games are losing relevance. Reacting to yet another debate about their viability in the face of multiplayer and live-service models, the veteran developer stated: “It’s the same old debate all over again. It bothers me because it’s not true. It only discourages investment in them.”

The Industry Pushes Multiplayer, but Developers Resist

Vincke isn’t alone in defending single-player games. David Goldfarb, the creator of Battlefield: Bad Company and PayDay 2, jokingly responded: “Swen, can I bring you to all my meetings? I’m tired of having to fight for the same thing.” Many developers continue to resist publisher pressure to prioritize multiplayer and microtransaction-driven models.

Beyond Baldur’s Gate 3, other recent single-player titles have shown that the demand for solo experiences remains strong. STALKER 2 and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 have achieved success without relying on multiplayer elements, proving that quality matters more than format.

As Vincke put it, “Single-player games aren’t dead. Bad single-player games are dead. And guess what? Bad multiplayer games are dead too.” In a market flooded with online experiences, Larian Studios has proven that well-crafted single-player narratives still have a place.

Source: 3DJuegos