I think the combination of the crude way we’re forced to interact with game environments (input devices like keyboards, mice and controllers) coupled with how those virtual environments are presented to us (a two dimensional ~50 degree plane) is the reason why violent games dominate in all genres, not only multiplayer FPS. Some form of fast paced combat or competitive game is most gratifying state we can produce within the limitations of the technology we use and how we interact with it. I think when VR takes off and head/hand (and later finger) tracking becomes the norm, the FPX genre (First Person Experience) will take off as a result because a whole new palate of subtle ways to interact with virtual environments will become available to us.

In modern gaming 2D gaming however (with roots stretching all the way back in the 70s/80s), crude directional movement is bound to keys (WASD) or a stick and look/aim to a mouse or a different stick. Nuanced control is possible but “clunky” and unappealing to the majority of people (think Arma or other simulations). Even if you want to do something like play a (simplified) guitar or fly/drive, you need to buy entirely different peripherals.

Unfortunately, with all these limitations, it’s hard to created significantly more nuanced experiences than this without abstracting further which is a large part of the reason (I believe) developers say “fuck it” and put walls of text, cutscenes, scripted events, animations or other contrivances that take control away from the player as a way to artificially shoehorn more meaningful interactions into games. Things like voice chat/directional voice help, but not enough to radically change gameplay.

I feel like the artistic side of gaming is scraping up against technological barriers and this is what underscores a lot of the frustration felt with the medium in online gaming communities. The only way we can have non-violent FPS games (FPX games) or nuanced experiences in general that don’t feel contrived or clunky and that don’t pivot on violence is to expand what is possible with input and immersion (and eventually AI and processing power). This is where I think VR comes in, not so much today’s VR but what we’ll most likely have 2-5 years down the road. Imagine being able to interact with a virtual world in a similar way you do the real one without having to funnel all of your intentions through abstract control surfaces. Boom! Instant proliferation of non-violent, first person games and social experiences.

That’s not to say shooting needs to go away (I love FPS), but I think its role will shrink in relation to everything else, even in competitive multiplayer. 

TL;DR VR or bust.