Re: [GD-Design] demo vs complete game

[Mike W. <mi...@ge...>]

one game demo in particular that has struck me as an example of this 
type of feature limitation is the Midnight Club 2 demo (very cool).  The 
demo has a number of cars & types of races etc that you can play, but 
the demo doesn't save any info you set while playing.

if you want to tweak your in-game settings, change the color of your 
car, and other options (whether you want music playing or not, controls 
etc), you CAN, but the demo doesn't save it once you quit.

as well, the demo limits you to a set number of powerups you can achieve 
(nitro in this case).  i can see this being a major motivation for 
buying the full game.

actually most of the suggestions that have been brought up here were 
demonstrated in this demo - having non-skippable intro cinematics, 
limiting what the game saves between sessions, etc...but the demo still 
gives the player access to every major feature in the game - online 
play, different types of races, etc but only gives the player, 
effectively ONE of each type of gameplay style to sample - if you finish 
the one race & win, that's it, you don't pregress, etc...

not to mention the game itself IS the biggest draw to wanting to buy the 
game.  no annoying nag's, no blasting the user with 15 splashscreens on 
exiting the game, etc...

hasn't stopped me from playing the demo nonstop for a week, and i likely 
WILL buy the complete game as a result (need more nitro for my stupid 
car if i'm gonna win these races ;P )

anyways
mike w
www.gekidodesigns.com

Ben Hawes wrote:

>>PS So yes, the second and subsequent times are still as free as the first
>>one, but you have to do all of the setup and config work again. You sort of
>>expect to do that the first time, so the I guess the first time is still
>>effectively cheaper.
>>    
>>
>
>Ugh, no. Speaking from a user perspective, if a game did that to me on the demo, I'd decide a sadist like that didn't deserve my money :P
>This is going to be a personal taste issue in the end, I suspect, but any drastic limits on a demo put me off very quickly. It gives me the impression the developers don't deem me "worthy" to handle their game unless I pay them money...I know that seems melodramatic, but I hopefully it makes my point.
>
>Ideally, a demo should be a good game in its own right, A short game, devoid of some small niceties (like hi-scores, perhaps save games, depending on the game), but a "proper" game nonetheless.
>
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