Found this quotation link via Destructoid and Edge earlier this week regarding forced multiplayer in single player games:

If you're doing it just to check a box or because every other publisher says you've got to have multiplayer, then just drop it, don't bother, it's a waste of time, a giant distraction and it'll make for a worse overall game.

We want the best game possible. If that's a singleplayer game that's 15 to 20 hours, then make that! Don't waste your time on features that don't make the game better.

YES. PLEASE. Dear lord, no more forced multiplayer. I mean, I "enjoy" good multiplayer games as much as most average gamers but, if it's half-assed it's just a waste of time and money that detracts from the game as a whole. So, instead of having a solid singleplayer game or a solid multiplayer game, you now have neither. That sucks.

Very few companies are able to balance a good single player game with a solid multiplayer experience without fucking one or both aspects up badly. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood and Uncharted 2 are the only games that I can think of in recent memory that do a decent job (as little of the multiplayer as I have played). The Call of Duty series has a pretty decent singe player experience but honestly, it's $60 for a 4 hour campaign. You are, more or less, paying for the multi-player game.