Regardless of their choice of internet forum or comments section, gamers don’t have to look far to see plenty of negativity around live service games. Disgust for FOMO activities and events, messy launches, concerns over longevity, and monetization are all contributing factors to the negative sentiment around this style of game. And with Sony’s failed live service push leading to devastating shutdowns like Bluepoint Games (a decision that I still find infuriating), the genre is less popular than ever before. But honestly, I’ve never bought into the live service hate… even if I am becoming wary of this kind of game for my own reasons.
I’ve always found it strange when players write off entire genres as lesser, or lump everything into the same basket, as it means they’re likely to miss out on some truly special experiences. I’ve had friends who view FPS games as shallow, missing out on brilliant titles like Wolfenstein: The New Colossus because of their dislike for the genre. Similarly, I know players who refuse to play multiplayer games and feel they’re naturally lesser than singleplayer titles, taking offense when titles like Overwatch won awards over their singleplayer favorites. This negativity and “better than thou” outlook is frustrating to be around, and by applying it to live service games, players are writing off quality experiences (and sometimes helping to kill them prematurely).
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Sure, there have been plenty of failures in the live-service genre, but there have also been some truly great releases such as Final Fantasy 14. Games like Fallout 76 have redeemed themselves through constant support, No Man’s Sky has evolved in a frankly unbelievable way, Destiny 2 has told some unforgettable stories through its expansions, and Overwatch has released numerous memorable heroes. On top of this, Helldivers 2 took the world by storm, and both Fortnite and Apex Legends are permanent fixtures of many gamers’ libraries. By pushing back against all live-service games, gamers are in danger of making it so experiences like those listed above don’t exist. It’s this attitude, and the repercussions of it, that has me feeling like I shouldn’t even bother getting invested in new live-service titles.
Gamers Deciding What Titles Live and Die is Exhausting
Concord Was a Heartbreaker
A clear example of gamers deciding there has “been too much” of a certain type of game, and bashing it into oblivion, is Concord. PlayStation’s short-lived hero shooter was met with tons of hate when it was revealed, with many bashing its choice of genre and Guardians of the Galaxy vibes right out the gate. For context, the MCU had released a few poorly received projects around that time, and the once-beloved Overwatch wasn’t in the best state, which reflected poorly on the hero shooter genre as a whole. So, before gamers even got to try the game, it was torn apart online, with grifters bashing its admittedly bland character models and $40 price point. Yet a majority of those who actually played Concord enjoyed what was there, from its gorgeous maps and satisfying combat loop to the plan for weekly cutscene drops to deepen the lore.
I was one of those players that instantly vibed with Concord. Its beta impressed me and convinced me to pick up the game alongside some friends. I’d seen the complaints online about its price tag, but I’d hoped they wouldn’t be enough to tank the game. Unfortunately, they were. Even if I found it absurd that some live-service games like Helldivers 2 were allowed to have a price tag, yet hero shooters had to be free-to-play, the internet had made up its mind. Before I could even get good with IT-Z and learn the ins and outs of all the maps, my friends and I were refunded for Concord, losing a game we could have played together for years. I couldn’t help but be annoyed, especially because, given the low player count for Concord, it was clear that a majority of those bashing the game hadn’t tried it themselves and had no interest in doing so. Concord’s studio Firewalk was shut down, leaving a talented studio of developers without work, all because the internet had decided some uninspired character models and an oh-so-offensive $40 price tag was too much to bear for some reason.
Highguard: A Potential Forever Game That Never Was
As disappointed as I was, I moved on, waiting for another fun multiplayer game to play with my group. When The Game Awards 2025 rolled around, and ended the show with Highguard — a decision that would cause drastic damage to the game — I thought I’d found that title. My co-workers were loving the game, too, and I was eager to join in on the fun when I had some free time. Yet just a day after I had finally downloaded it, hopeful to shoot some other players while riding a bear, Highguard’s shutdown date was announced. Not wanting to fall in love a game that was doomed to be unplayable in a matter of weeks, I deleted it from my hardrive before even playing it.
Again, I was disappointed by the internet. Yes, an unknown hero shooter being a showcloser at a big event is undoubtedly a bad move, but Geoff Keighley ultimately made that decision. From all accounts, Highguard was a solid game with tons of room to improve, and it seems like it was on track to do that with how quickly the developers implemented requested changes like a 5v5 mode. But nowadays, everything is “peak” or “trash,” with no room for games that are just good. So, the internet did its thing, and made fun of Highguard without actually bothering to try it for themselves. Perhaps these users were just joining in on the latest trend, or were parroting their favorite content creators to feel cool, but regardless, it led to another studio shutting down and a game some players may have loved dying months after it debuted.
Fit the 9 games into the grid.
Marathon is the Straw That Broke the Camel’s Back
Now more than ever, it feels like games live and die by their initial reveals. If a title dares to release in a genre that is out of vogue, the internet hivemind will say “we don’t want this,” bashing it at every turn from there on. Marathon, Bungie’s extraction shooter, is a clear example of this trend. Despite being in the 80s on Opencritic and being celebrated by actual critics, a hate campaign has led to Marathon review bombings, Twitch chats and forums being filled with blind hate, and a strange desire to see the game fail. Despite Marathon’s player count disappointing Sony and being something it’s striving to correct, the game is the most searched title on SteamDB for over 2 months in a row. The only potential explanation for this is that there is a large audience of pathetic gamers hoping to see the title fail, constantly checking its Steam player count and hoping that the end is near.
Marathon’s fans could also be adding to its Steam player count searches, as they could be paranoid about the game’s future and hoping that the numbers have picked up.
It’s no secret that I adore Marathon, even if I’ve had a few devastating run-ins with Rooks on Outpost that I’d rather forget. Seeing so many players bash the game despite not wanting to play it themselves makes me embarrassed to be a gamer, and it has me fearful for Marathon’s future. At the time of writing, Marathon is still alive, with Sony recently confirming that support will continue despite needing to take an impairment loss on Bungie. That’s good to hear, but after Concord and Highguard, and with so many seemingly desperate to say “I told you so,” I’m still fearful that every day I’m going to wake up to the announcement that the plug is being pulled on Marathon. Simply put, this anxiety just shouldn’t be a thing with a hobby that’s meant to be fun, and it’s made me nervous to support any new live service projects going forward. I just don’t want to get attached to something and see it taken away because of grifters who don’t even care about it to begin with.
Marathon Director Says Bungie Has 'Years-Long' Story Plans
In discussing Marathon's future, creative director Julia Nardin reveals that the studio has plans for the game's narrative for years to come.
I Love Several Live Service Games, But I Can’t Take the Heartache Anymore
Is it a bummer that I can’t keep up with every Season of every live service game I enjoy? Sure. But for me, the genre’s positives far outweigh the negatives, and I love having “forever games” like Overwatch and Marvel Rivals that I can keep coming back to time and time again to enjoy new content. I wish I had more time to properly keep up with Diablo 4, Battlefield 6, Destiny 2, and so on, but this need to pick and choose doesn’t have me wishing for the deaths of live service games. That behavior will always be strange to me, as “let people like things” is a tried and true way to approach entertainment. Or at least, it should be.
I wish Concord could have been a game I kept in my rotation for years and years, and though I want the same for Marathon, I’m not counting on it unless a huge comeback happens. Going forward, I’ll probably be playing less live service games, but make no mistake; it won’t be because “live service games are bad” or there are “too many extraction shooters/hero shooters/battle royales”. The former argument is reductionist, and the latter can apply to practically any genre — there are no shortage of soulslikes or open-world games, yet the internet is much more accepting of those than the handful of extraction shooters that exist. I’m really just tired of watching games that I like die, or fearing that the games I’m actively playing will stop being supported sooner than they were meant to be. So, from now on, unless I know that a live service game is a safe bet and has survived for several months without being hounded and memed into obscurity, I’m not going to let myself get invested. This shouldn’t be an approach I need to take, but with gamers as toxic and quick to judge as ever, it’s unfortunately just how it has to be.
