I’m not particularly afraid about an expitation date from the DM/online play side
It’s actually inevitable.
Heck, I’d imagine when Arrowhead finally pulla the plug on HD1, they’ll likely update it so it works offline.
I’m pretty sure I can count on my fingers the number of games that have actually patched their online-only functionality to work offline. Off the top of my head, it’s just Knockout City, and I think maybe a Gran Turismo game somewhere along the line.
It is a possibility for sure, but HD1 is still going after 8 years, and because AH doesn’t host the gameplay servers, I reckon the server costs aren’t excessive.
L4D2 is 15 years also, and still going, and still played. I hope and trust HD2 will be up long time.
Left 4 Dead 2 has LAN, and it’s entirely peer to peer when online. “A long time” is still worse than forever. It would be a damn shame if your favorite movie made before you were born didn’t survive long enough for you to enjoy it. And the more expensive it is to build and operate a given live service game, the shorter its lifespan is. Games like Warhaven and Hyperscape didn’t even last a few years.
It’s Match Making isn’t peer to peer, and requires a connection, though. I’d reckon the playerbase to wither quickly without Valve servers and/or Steam friend list, even though technically possible, and a 3rd party could devise a system of finding players.
Valve offers ubiquitous matchmaking services as a part of Steam. They operate as long as Steam does. They’re funded by all the revenue that comes in every time anyone makes a purchase on Steam; these same services apply to third parties who choose to use them, too. Helldivers 2’s servers are run by some function of Arrowhead and Sony, and they shut down when Helldivers 2, in particular, stops making money, rendering the game inoperable.
It’s actually inevitable.
I’m pretty sure I can count on my fingers the number of games that have actually patched their online-only functionality to work offline. Off the top of my head, it’s just Knockout City, and I think maybe a Gran Turismo game somewhere along the line.
It is a possibility for sure, but HD1 is still going after 8 years, and because AH doesn’t host the gameplay servers, I reckon the server costs aren’t excessive.
L4D2 is 15 years also, and still going, and still played. I hope and trust HD2 will be up long time.
Left 4 Dead 2 has LAN, and it’s entirely peer to peer when online. “A long time” is still worse than forever. It would be a damn shame if your favorite movie made before you were born didn’t survive long enough for you to enjoy it. And the more expensive it is to build and operate a given live service game, the shorter its lifespan is. Games like Warhaven and Hyperscape didn’t even last a few years.
It’s Match Making isn’t peer to peer, and requires a connection, though. I’d reckon the playerbase to wither quickly without Valve servers and/or Steam friend list, even though technically possible, and a 3rd party could devise a system of finding players.
Valve offers ubiquitous matchmaking services as a part of Steam. They operate as long as Steam does. They’re funded by all the revenue that comes in every time anyone makes a purchase on Steam; these same services apply to third parties who choose to use them, too. Helldivers 2’s servers are run by some function of Arrowhead and Sony, and they shut down when Helldivers 2, in particular, stops making money, rendering the game inoperable.