Starhawk

THE BUZZ: Sony has confirmed that Starhawk will feature two player split-screen multiplayer when it officially launches.

The game will allow for two players to sign into their PSN accounts on the same console and earn character experience. Sadly, player two will be unable to unlock gear or trophies due to these being stored on the PlayStation 3′s hard drive.

Sony explained that it did consider four-player split-screen but decided against it: ”We thought about it a lot and decided not to go this route; based on our data, not enough people ever used four-player splitscreen in Warhawk so we concentrated our efforts in other areas, such as making two-player just plain better.”

EGM’s TAKE: It’s amazing how gaming has changed. Ten years ago, if a game contained split-screen multiplayer nobody would have batted an eyelid, in fact there would have been uproar if a game launched without it. Now, with online multiplayer becoming king, a split-screen co-op mode is an unexpected extra. Still, there’s something more entertaining about a bunch of people being in the same room playing a game, rather than playing together in separate locations.