Bioware Crossing Multiplayer Into Mass Effect 3

On Kotaku, Michael McWhertor had the biggest scoop in videogame news yesterday when he went over the details of Bioware's plans to add multiplayer to Mass Effect 3. Bioware has stated that they are adding 4 player co-op to the game and that the results of it will directly influence your single player experience. You do not play as Commander Shepard or any know characters, but instead create your own unique soldier from the ground up. You can pick a race (Humans, Turians, Krogans, and Asari are confirmed as options) and unique abilities, then form up to take down positions and capture territories from the enemy.

A unique class based co-op mode sounds pretty awesome, but why does Mass Effect 3 need it? As someone who has played through Mass Effect 1 and 2 more than once, I'm thoroughly happy with what I have: an engaging single player experience with deep, story driven choices that compile into a narrative entirely unique to me. It's a role-playing game at heart, creating a connection to my character through moral choices that define whether I'm the noble soldier ready to lay down my life for Earth or the dick who'd throw the nearest person under the bus to save his skin. When you add multiplayer to something like this, it seems out of place. Team and objective orientated gameplay is the polar opposite of it's audience and adding 4 player co-op with it's cover focused mechanics seem like it's trying to copy Gears of War. Why can't it be enjoyed as merely a great single player game?

Personally, I think it has to deal with the evolution of games and growth of expectations by demanding fans. 20 years ago we were happy to play through titles like Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past by ourselves, now we want that experience, competitive multiplayer, and the kitchen sink from current games. Great single player games are being watered down by wasting development time to make the now "mandatory" multiplayer aspect of their game. Just recently, great single player titles Bioshock and Dead Space had multiplayer added to their sequels and both titles suffered in overall quality compared to their original. We need to just sit back and remember that not everything is meant to be played in team deathmatch. We can't keep trying to blur the lines between the quality of an rpg like Mass Effect and a shooter like Gears of War, we'll eventually lose the battle as quality declines trying to appease both audiences and publishers planned release dates. What do you think? Are single player games quality being hurt by the demand of multiplayer? Do you like Mass Effect adding multiplayer? Sound off below!!!