Cooperative multiplayer is a big issue in the industry these days, especially with video games. How does it relate to Solar Echoes, though? Table-top RPG's are, by nature, supposed to be cooperative games, but are they truly? Even though friends sit around a table to play, when was the last time you felt that everyone was working as a team? I played RPG's at the table for years with a variety of gaming groups, but seldom remember instances where the other players and I actively coordinated together—most everyone did his/her own thing.
The problem, I believe, is that most games are built upon the
individual player feeling like a hero, so the result is that each player
is competing against his friends to be the most heroic—this
determination is usually ascribed to the one who dealt the most damage
to a foe. Multiplayer video games usually aren't any different. While
online video gaming often feels well-suited to competition, is the
tabletop experience threatened by the same perspective? Maybe it's just
me, but when I get together with friends on the weekend after a hard
work-week, I really don't feel a very competitive mood. For me, fun is
working as a team to accomplish game goals, feeling that my contribution
is relied-upon for the group's survival. If each player could feel that
way, wouldn't it be a better game experience for everyone?
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