When those unfamiliar with our pastime think of ‘gaming’, the image that often surfaces in their minds is that of a lone individual staring at a flashing screen whilst pummelling buttons. Of course, back in the early days of arcades and Sinclair Spectrums that ‘s how, more often than not, games were played. However it wasn’t long before the creative forces shaping our interactive worlds were spending more and more time thinking beyond the one-man/one-machine dynamic.
In the intervening decades the multiplayer concept has developed in ways that our gaming forefathers could never have anticipated, providing us with many of the medium’s finest moments in the process. So let us now take a gentle stroll through history and consider some of the titles which, by means of their intrinsic excellence, taught us the value of sharing our virtuality.
I should just give the small caveat that most of the following games did not actually break new ground, but rather the developers were catching a lift on the coat tails of trailblazers. However, because these teams created software with a bit more polish than their inspiration, their efforts were more favourably received and consequently have had a greater impact on where gaming is today.
Pong – 2 Player (Arcade/Home)
I must admit to a sense of complete unworthiness as I write this initial section. Not only did Pong essentially trigger the birth of the entire video game industry, it also showed the world how much fun playing together could be. Whether you were challenging one of the drunken regulars in a seedy bar or going head-to-head with your Dad in the front room, Pong was multiplayer gold.
The gameplay was beautifully simple (it was basically just 2d table-tennis) and yet magically addictive. As the pace quickened, the excitement grew and the fear of making a mistake began to take a hold of lesser players. Once you had learnt how to really manipulate the “ball” and make best use of ricochets off the top/bottom screen edges, Pong became highly strategic. Outplaying a machine was fun in its own right, but surpassing another human being was unlike anything we‘d enjoyed before.
If you showed Pong’s minimalistic visuals and primitive mechanics to one of today’s graphic-obsessed gamers, the likelihood is they’d fail to understand how it ever became so popular. What these simpletons don’t realise is that had this classic piece of software not existed, today’s complex titles (from Mario Galaxy to Pro Evolution Soccer) may never have seen the light of day.
Sadly while some of the developers of contemporary multiplayers have made excellent use of how much more current consoles are capable of, others have mistakenly tried to hide sub-standard experiences behind fancy polygons and complex concepts. Perhaps if these teams spent an afternoon in the company of the splendidly straightforward Pong, their next offering might be remembered, with similar fondness, decades after its release.
Super Mario Kart – Split Screen (SNES)
Now before anyone reading this gets too irate, let me reassure you that I am not about to make the glaring error of telling you that SNES Mario Kart was the first game to divide its action with a thick horizontal line halfway down the screen. It certainly wasn’t. However in my opinion, this was one of the games that signalled the beginning of a change in emphasis by designers. The traditional view from game-makers was that the multiplayer mode was something of an afterthought; a treat for you and your friend once the delights of the single-player game had been savoured. Super Mario Kart showed us a glimpse of the possibility that in the future some titles would be based around people cooperating/competing through levels and tracks rather than an individual’s accomplishments.
The game included a deathmatch-esque Battle mode and the opportunity for tracks to be enjoyed in a head to head race, but it was the 2-player Grand Prix where the most pleasure was to be found. Here not only were players racing against six pesky AI characters, they were also trying to outwit each other. Obviously it could be approached in an ‘every man for himself’ manner, but there was also scope for working together (like a Formula 1 team should) to both outshine the computer characters.
Everything about Mario Kart was well though out. The range of characters on offer was balanced to cater for novices and veterans alike and the cunningly devised weapon system, that favoured those at the back of the field, ensured races were never over until the chequered flag.
The fact that the subsequent N64 sequel could only be described as a one-player turkey/multiplayer masterpiece is further evidence of what the original had begun. There was now a very definite branching off in the gaming road, with those titles on this new path being primarily about the collective experience.
Micro Machines 2: Turbo Tournament – J Cart (MegaDrive)
Let us now take a moment to salute those kind people at Codemasters for their pioneering efforts in the 16-bit era. While other developers were merely content to produce mediocre recreations of Outrun, the Warwickshire team had more lofty ambitions. The inclusion of two additional controller connections in the body of the actual MM2 cartridge was not only unexpectedly generous, but also wondrously innovative
The Micromachines gameplay worked pretty well when sampled alone but, with three companions, it was spectacularly intense. As you and your chums hurtled round bath-tubs and across snooker tables, the fear of being penalised for falling too far behind meant every second of each race was immensely pressurised. There was a wonderful sense of dread when you knew you were nearly off-screen, but the euphoria experienced if you pulled things round and drew back alongside the leader was equally potent.
Of course as we’ll discuss shortly, consoles themselves would provide the means for additional controllers in later generations, but it was a British firm that inspired such changes by raising the bar and showing just how much fun was possible for four people huddled round a TV.
Goldeneye – 4 player (Nintendo 64)
On the day Nintendo unveiled their answer to the PSOne and Saturn, there was a great deal of negative reaction against the decision to stick with cartridges. Rather than focussing on such incidentals, the cynics should have been concentrating on the Big N’s bountiful provision of four joypad ports on each machine.
While it certainly wasn’t the first title to offer a 4 player split-screen, Goldeneye deserves recognition for doing so with such finesse. The combination of a rich array of weapons, modes and levels with the naturally intuitive controls from the single-player meant deathmatch sessions on Rare‘s masterpiece often lasted through the night. Yes, having only a quarter of a TV at your disposal while navigating corridors and dodging gunfire was a challenge, but it also added to the tension of proceedings. Whether it was two against two in the Library or three of you desperately chasing a flag-carrier round the Facility, Goldeneye was a joyous experience.
Though later industry developments would allow further increases to the number of participants, the intensity of battling against three players in one room remains unsurpassed. Even all these years later those seeking to enjoy such intimacy in its purest form know that donning a tuxedo is a prerequisite.
Command and Conquer Red Alert – Link-Up Play (PSOne)
All of the titles I’ve highlighted so far have been based around several controllers plugged into one console, with the action displayed on one Television. But as I’m sure you know only too well, there is an alternative approach to multiplayer gaming: the network.
For years playing against a friend across a network was something only possible on a PC, but SONY saw fit to change all that. Clearly the cost of two TVs, 2 Playstations, 2 copies of the game and a link cable prevented the concept from really becoming mainstream, but it was still a brave idea from the industry newcomer and a precursor of things to come for consoles.
Over the course of the Playstation lifecycle there were several Link-up compatible games available, but the majority failed to make good use of the technology. For example during the racing games that utilised the setup, not knowing exactly where your opponent was made no significant difference to how things played out. Thankfully there were one or two exceptions, including Westwood’s fine Red Alert conversion.
As with other real time strategy games, Red Alert was essentially a chess match without the procrastination. Once you and your friend had set everything up (and made sure both player’s TVs couldn’t be seen by their opponent), it was time for battle. The tension of frantically building your base’s defences, in constant fear of being attacked was exhilarating. The game basically forced its players to become brilliant multitaskers; continually inspecting the parts of the battlefield they could see (for signs of enemy scouting dogs), while trying to explore foreign soil themselves and keep a watchful eye on their rival’s face to check if he was up to something. It was the mystery of the unknown which made it all so gripping.
Put simply, the Red Alert multiplayer demands inclusion in this article for being so refreshingly dissimilar to anything anybody had tasted on a console before. Yes it was a port of a PC game (and as such had some of the customary conversion problems), but, for me, it was a key stepping stone in where console multiplayer was headed.
ChuChu Rocket – 4 Player Online Gaming (Dreamcast)
If you listen to many of the self-proclaimed industry experts they’ll be only too glad to tell you how many mistakes Sega made with their last foray into the hardware marketplace. Yet I’ve always found it difficult to understand why the Dreamcast proved such a failure and convinced Sega to dedicate themselves solely to software development.
For me the Dreamcast had an awful lot going for it. Not only was it a significant technological leap from what had gone before (and stood up well compared to what followed), it also had a broad catalogue of excellent software (Crazy Taxi, Shenmue, Jet Set Radio, Power Stone…) and it was the first ever console to offer online gaming.
Yet what, in the long-term, could have been the Dreamcast’s greatest strength, actually proved a source of immense difficulty for its creators. Sega’s early marketing focussed too heavily on the “up to 6 billion players” promise; a slogan which was frankly absurd. Even overlooking the fact that a great number of the world’s population can’t obtain running water (let alone a TV/console/phone-line/game) it was unwise to focus public minds on capabilities that would require gradual refinement over months/years.
Anyway, enough of this history lesson. Despite their mistakes, we must applaud Sega for bringing the online gaming experience to consoles. Without them, Xbox Live and PSN would never have existed.
So now let us turn our attention to Chu Chu Rocket; both the first title to support 56k console 4-player goodness and also a game Sega saw fit to give its customers free of charge.
I can still remember the day I received my complimentary copy and stepped tentatively into the world of online gaming. The Chu Chu structure was straightforward (use arrows to direct mice away from your opponent’s rocket and towards your own) but, as with all good puzzle titles, you needed to be two mental steps ahead of the action to succeed. Throw in the possibility of tempo changes and rocket position moves and the resulting madness was fiendishly addictive.
On paper outwitting (or being humiliated by) random strangers shouldn’t really be so affecting, but each time you dialled up you were guaranteed an emotional rollercoaster of bliss and anguish. Admittedly the lag did put a slight damper on things, but at the same time it served to remind you just how ambitious Sega had been. To dwell on minor niggles though would be to miss the point; for introducing joypad holders to the joys of playing against someone on the other side of the world, Chu Chu Rocket is fully deserving of its position on this list.
Counter Strike – Online Gaming (PC)
Now you don’t need me to tell you that home computers introduced the world to online gaming a long time before Sega, Sony et al gave the kids a turn. Eccentric bespectacled men have been going on magical quests via phone-lines for decades. Some of you are probably wondering then why I haven’t already included an early PC online title on this list to paint a more accurate picture of how multiplayer gaming developed. My decision to save the humble PC till last was quite deliberate however.
The Half-Life mod Counter Strike was first available in 1999, the same year Chu Chu Rocket hit the Dreamcast. Anyone lucky enough to have played both games will understand how poignant the evolutionary difference between them was. CS is, in my opinion, online gaming at its most beautiful and in the intervening years I can’t say I’ve witnessed anything released that is significantly better.
It was a first person shooter based around two teams (Terrorists and Counter Terrorists) which, rather than having them respawn once they were killed, made players sit out the rest of the round. That twist completely changed how people approached the game and rewarded those with more patience and cunning. What made it all so great as an online game was the mix of styles you witnessed from your worldwide friends and foes. The best players knew when to crouch behind a crate and wait (with their finger on the trigger of a Desert Eagle) for an opponent to pass or when to scour the levels alongside their team-mates, in an attempt to flush out the enemy. Meanwhile the novice players were busy rushing about like headless chickens (as if they were playing Doom) and getting quite perturbed when they spent most of the round as a corpse. Oh and let’s not forget the incessant witty banter between the rival teams (humorous accusations of cheating and scoffing at newbies).
Everything about CS was well designed from the choice of weapons to the varied levels, each packed with nocks and crannies and secret passages. As a result it became incredibly popular and stood out from the countless other FPS games/mods offering online play. While admittedly online gaming had been available on the PC for years, by taking the quality up a level, Counter Strike was ultimately the game which saw the whole thing properly catch on. I even remember one of the officers referring to CS on The Bill and if that doesn’t make it mainstream then I don’t know what does.
Despite a complete lack of basic hand-eye coordination, Simon Cooper has been dabbling in Video Games for years. His obsession with gaming began almost two decades ago when a portly man, wearing a red suit, deposited a Sinclair Spectrum in the family living room. Ever since, Simon has been furiously hammering joysticks/keyboards in a futile attempt to get various collections of colourful pixels to obey his wishes.. with little success. "
One Comment
Gauntlet. Without it WOW have never existed.