No Demo for Skyrim

[Andy Chalk]

No Demo for Skyrim

This may not come as an Earth-shattering surprise but Bethesda says there will be no demo for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim [http://www.amazon.com/Elder-Scrolls-V-Skyrim-Pc/dp/B004HYIAPM/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1310657085&sr=8-3], the next chapter in its epic open-world RPG series.

A good demo is a tricky thing. You need to whet the appetite but leave them wanting more; it has to represent the entirety of the game without giving away the store. Above all else, it must not underwhelm. That's a tough formula at the best of times and when it comes to huge, open-world games like those of the Elder Scrolls series, it's just about impossible. So Bethesda isn't even going to try.

"We won't be doing a demo," Producer Craig Lafferty told Gameplanet [http://www.gameplanet.co.nz/xbox/games/165080/videos/137463.20110711.The-Elder-Scrolls-V-Skyrim-interview-with-Bethesdas-Craig-Lafferty/]. "A game of this size and complexity, it's really hard to do a demo that represents the game. It'd be a gigantic demo as well, so we won't be doing a demo."

It's been awhile since the last Elder Scrolls demo: 15 years, in fact, when Bethesda released a single-dungeon teaser for the great Daggerfall [http://www.amazon.com/Elder-Scrolls-Chapter-II-Daggerfall-pc/dp/B000BP3E0M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310657134&sr=8-1]. It showed off the game's dungeoneering capabilities reasonably well but gave no hint about the depth, complexity or sheer size of the real deal. In other words, it was more or less a waste of time and effort that could have been better spent on the game itself. So, no demo? No problem.

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim comes out on November 11, 2011, for the PC, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.


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[DracoSuave]

Not surprising. There's no real 'this level must be demo'd' aspect to any Bethesda RPG. They didn't do demos for those either.

 

[Richardplex]

RPGs aren't the best games to demo really, so it's not really surprising, or a problem.

 

[haruvister]

Y'know, I reckon I might still buy it.

RPGs are entirely unsuitable for demos, anyway, as their immediacy is the last of their appeals.

 

[Brutal Peanut]

I wasn't really expecting Skyrim to have one, to be honest.

 

[HapexIndustries]

Seriously, I don't even understand why this is a story. If it's been 15 years since the last demo, who would expect one now?

 

[Temah]

They rationalise it well enough, besides they won't really need one to draw in customers, the hype'll do that fine.

 

[Baralak]

Y'know, I reckon I might still buy it.

RPGs are entirely unsuitable for demos, anyway, as their immediacy is the last of their appeals.

I don't knnow, Final Fantasy VIII's demo is what got me to try the series, and other RPGs out way back when.


Still, a massive open world game like Skyrim is, indeed, unsuitable for a demo.

 

[Frank_Sinatra_]

I honestly didn't expect them to demo this game because of the size like he said. Plus how the heck would you demo this game? Only let you progress a few levels and traverse 1/16 of the map?

 

[SamuelT]

They perhaps could've put the tutorial in as a level. Still, Skyrim doesn't really need a demo. It's an Elder Scrolls game, and everyone knows how those play.

 

[Duskflamer]

It might be nice to be able to get our hands on some sort of tech demo, just a room with some basic weapons and spells available to see the combat stuff they've been talking about first-hand, but that wouldn't really be representative of the game at all, it would have extremely limited use.

 

[SomebodyNowhere]

No demo on a game that will most likely melt your PC is a bad idea. They should at least release some kind of benchmark or something so that people know what they're getting themselves into and if their rig should be able to handle it(system requirement specs just don't quite cut it when it comes to judging the actual games).

 

[Fappy]

Demos seem to be a relic on a bygone era at this point anyway. Usually demos for RPGs underwhelm consumers, so this is a smart move.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

Wasn't expecting one, to be honest.

Kinda think the tutorial would be a decent demo, though.

 

[Alphakirby]

Yeah,and a few weeks later there will be an announcement about how much Skyrim is being pirated. These things seem to coincide, pirating and the lack of a demo I mean.

 

[Bobzer77]

No demo on a game that will most likely melt your PC is a bad idea. They should at least release some kind of benchmark or something so that people know what they're getting themselves into and if their rig should be able to handle it(system requirement specs just don't quite cut it when it comes to judging the actual games).

This will likely have Skyrim day one (or sooner).

http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/cyri/

Or you could read the system requirements...

 

[Headsprouter]

Good, great! I never expected or wanted one, and don't see it possible that it could be done well.

 

[Arcticflame]

Yeah,and a few weeks later there will be an announcement about how much Skyrim is being pirated. These things seem to coincide, pirating and the lack of a demo I mean.

I dunno, I'm not a strident anti-pirating activist or anything, but it seems to me that the only thing pirating coincides with is a game being close to release date.

 

[Andy Chalk]

Demos are quite possible for RPGs that are more scripted and linear. The demo for Ultima Underworld, for instance, offered the complete first floor of the dungeon, including exits to the second level, at which point it ended. It was fantastic, and it got me incredibly psyched for the game.

Bethesda could put out a demo for this thing and it'd be fine. It wouldn't show off the huge, wide-open exploration opportunities of the real game but a mid-sized dungeon would show off its capabilities, give PC gamers a chance to see how it runs on their systems (an important part of any demo) and get us wound up for 11/11/11. I don't think it's a "can't" situation so much as simply "can't be bothered," but at the same time we all know by now what we're in for with an Elder Scrolls game, so I really don't see it as a very important issue either way.