Four Player Split Screen Mainfesto I
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for four people to dissolve, chainsaw, or rocket one another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the Over Shield and the Quad Damage powerup, and the separate and equal four quadrants of a screen to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the decapitation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of ending each other's supply of lives. — That to secure these rights, games were created for Men (and Women), deriving their just powers from the consent of the gamers, — That whenever any Form of Display becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Games, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Carnage and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Gaming Customs long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Developers and games, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Gamers; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Development. The history of the present State of Multiplayer is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these Gamers. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
We all remember the thrill of GoldenEye 007, and it's sales records demonstrate the necessity of kick-ass multiplayer gameplay. This game released on the N64, a vastly inferior console to the PS1, and it sold 8 million copies, just short of the 8.6 of FF VII.
With the growth of online gaming, consoles are trying to take a page from the PC book and limit the number of players on a system to one. There's no excuse for this. Consoles are in the living room, and have been a gathering point for gamers for (hardware) generations. There is no excuse for just allowing one, or even just two people to play on a system at a time.
The primary objective of this blog is to act as a check and balance of multiplayer politics. I'm going to shine the harsh light of justice on those that are lacking, and let you know what sort of game you're really getting for your money.
The Four Player Declaration has been signed.
