My problem with multiplayer is that 1) it detracts from the single player game
Nope. Several people already mentioned Uncharted 2 as a perfect example of how wrong your statement is before you even said it, but I guess that's inconvenient to your desire to spew FUD and so it's easier to just pretend that no one mentioned it.
and/or 2) it affects how the game is designed, esp. for co-op. Look at something like Borderlands, where abilities are geared toward multiplayer. Skills and such can become fixated on co-op play. and
Maybe it's because Borderlands was by design, a First Person Shooter in the gameplay style of Diablo whose emphasis was multiplayer. Not exactly a good example to use to make your case.
3) it perpetuates multi-player.
What is this supposed to even mean.
As more multi-player games are made and extensions put on regularly single-player games, it will only snowball and grow. Eventually single-player games could be extinct if developers determine that only multi-player sells. The emphasis is already turning toward that.
Ahahaha. More FUD. Rest assured, single player gaming experiences aren't going anywhere. Having multi-player tacked on as an optional component hurts no one. The ability for other friends to perhaps control squad-mates in combat for Mass Effect 3 if anything, would be a fantastic optional feature.
There is no story in multi-player games. There is no artistic experience, and thus if multi-player wins out over single-player, video games will cease to be on the same level as books, film, and music.
Ahahaha. Seriously, wow. Story has been slowly but surely taking more of a role in MMORPGs, and ironically enough, the same company behind Mass Effect is developing The Old Republic, an MMORPG that will have such a heavy story focus that Bioware has numerous full time writers that have been penning material for over two years, all of which will be delivered through insane amounts of voice acting complete with cutscenes using the same presentation style and conversation trees that are present in Mass Effect, Dragon Age, and other Bioware products.
And as before, other players being able to control squad-mates in Mass Effect 3, or hell, Mass Effect 2 would be awesome. Same exact cinematic story experience, except with friends. Sounds like a winner to me.
They'll be more like board games. Scrabble might be fun and unique, but it's not a powerful experience.
You have no idea what you are talking about. Seriously, free your mind and open it up to possibilities.