Visceral Games has dropped competitive multiplayer in Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel. Looking to put all their energy into a better co-op experience, the multiplayer has been tossed in the trash along with the fist bumps and bro-hugs.
The previous entries in the series both featured competitive multiplayer, with a variety of modes from deathmatch to hostage release. Even on the competitive side of things, you were always paired with a wingman so as to stay true to the 'Army of Two' mantra.
Lead designer Julien Lamoureux told VG247 that they wanted to focus on what they were trying to do - co-op.
When we took a step back and looked at what we were trying to achieve, we just figured, ‘you know what? Let's just put our resources into what we're trying to do, which is a very intense co-op campaign experience.' We didn't want to stretch our resources between competitive multiplayer and co-op. Whenever you start a project you have a finite amount of resources, so it's up to you what you want to put in place. For us it was just a logic choice, and we doubled down with the quality of the campaign, versus competitive."
Sounds like a smart decision when it comes to a co-op focused game, and we're looking forward to teaming up in Army of Two: The Devil's Cartel next March. features 2 player co-op.