Local Multiplayer Option Coming to Telltale: Introducing, Crowd Play!
kenjisalk
Telltale Alumni
Hey everyone! We're thrilled to share with you an exciting new in-game feature coming to Telltale. Starting with Batman - The Telltale Series, you'll be able to choose your story with others, turning each Telltale series into a multiplayer interactive narrative experience called 'Crowd Play'!
What is Crowd Play?
Crowd Play allows people who can see your screen to be part of the story using their own mobile device or PC! By having your friends or family join a Crowd Play session, everyone gets to vote on choices made in the game. See how your choices and feelings differ from each other and compare results!
What devices can I use to participate?
Crowd Play works on almost any device that has a web browser! While phones are the optimum choice, you can connect from tablets, laptops and desktop computers too.
How do I activate Crowd Play?
Before you start playing, select the Crowd Play option from the bottom of the screen in the Episodes menu. In order to host a Crowd Play, you will need to setup a Telltale Online account.
Which platforms can I host from?
Currently, Crowd Play can be hosted from all console (Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3) devices, as well as PC/Mac. Crowd Play is currently not available to host from mobile/iOS/Android based versions of our games, but players can still join games hosted from console/PC/Mac by using the browsers on their mobile devices without needing to own the game.
How do others join my Crowd Play session?
It’s simple hop in at any time! Once Crowd Play mode is active, a unique Game Code will be displayed on your screen, along with a web address. By visiting the web address and typing in the displayed game code, your friends and family can join your game. You will always be able to see the Game Code at the top right corner of the screen during play, in case someone else wants to join or missed the code on the initial screen.
Can I use Crowd Play as part of my live stream?
While there is some potential for streamers to use Crowd Play, common network latency issues may prevent the best experience. Until latency becomes less of an issue, the use of Crowd Play with live streaming services such as Twitch, or YouTube Live is not recommended.
Who controls all of the decisions? The player, or the crowd?
There are two modes of use. One mode that enables the lead player to override the crowd’s decisions at their own will; and a crowd control mode where the audience will always overtake the decisions of the player by following the majority choices. Having both options allows for different dynamics when playing as a group, so we definitely recommend experimenting with your friends.
What happens if there's a tie over a choice?
If there is a tie among Crowd Play participants over a choice in the game, the Host's selection will determine the result.
How many players can join in?
The most important point is that Crowd Play is a local multiplayer experience. It’s designed for everyone to be watching the same screen, at the same time, in the same room and works best with 4-12 people. Technically, it can support thousands of players, but they still need to be watching the same screen at the same time. This is mind blowing in a theater full of fans, but we don’t expect you can fit 2000 of your closest friends in your living room so we've designed everything for smaller groups. For now, leave the larger groups to us, and stay tuned for more details on special events for Crowd Plays of larger sizes!
Crowd Play is not a feature intended for use over streaming services. There is latency introduced by services such as Twitch. This means that everyone isn't seeing that game at the exact same time, which means that everyone doesn’t see the choices at the same time. So, the group can’t make a choice together at the same time. We are working closely with all the streaming services to address this problem, but it certainly won’t be ideal for streaming out of the box. For now, everyone needs to be in the same room, watching the same screen.
We’ve made Crowd Play an event that you can host at your home, for your family and friends. Perhaps you will make a weekly game night a little extra special. Or perhaps you can Crowd Play with a significant other who thinks playing stories together is cool. We sincerely hope that families, young and old, will be Crowd Playing together, inspiring conversations about why they made the choices they made, and bringing everyone closer together.
Be sure to let us know what you think of the feature as it premieres in Batman - The Telltale Series and continuing forward with future titles!
Comments
I truly thought that this was an extremely innovative and positive step for Telltale games. Often I have heard people complain about not being able to play with friends, and while I disagree that such sacrifices should be made in a story focused narrative game, I see this as not only a very creative way to solve the issue, but one that allows adaptability to customer feedback without sacrificing parts of the game for non-multiplayer customers.
Good job, and looking forward to seeing this used in more Telltale games!
I hope there will be an update to some older games to introduce this, probably not though..
It totally should, though. I'd love to replay TWD or TWAU with my friends who haven't played it yet. Make it happen, Telltale!
Damn, yall are coming up with some great stuff!