No Demo for Skyrim

[Cowabungaa]

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.

Even for open world games it can work out just fine. They managed just fine with Just Cause 2, so I have to agree that it's less inability to make one and more unwilling to make one.

But the least they could do is make some sort of benchmarking tool. It's a cutting edge game, and we all know what Bethesda is like. Don't leave your PC fans in the dark! I want to know whether I should pre-order it for my PC or my PS3.

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

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

Or you could read the system requirements...

Which is only a very broad and mostly useless tool. It's really not that accurate. For example, according to SRL my old computer could not run Far Cry 2 on it's minimal settings. I ran it flawlessy on High settings. At the same time GTA4 should run perfectly fine on my new rig, yet it still struggles when I max everything out.

It's a nice tool if you just doubt whether your PC will meet the recommended or minimal specs because it's not that good of a machine, but it's rather useless when it comes to things like optimisation and bugs, the latter being of particular interest when Bethesda's involved.

 

[Plazmatic]

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

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.


Permalink

I dont recall oblivion having a demo either, but w/e

 

[Hollock]

Oblivion is the demo.

 

[JUMBO PALACE]

No surprise there. We all know the game is going to be great anyway.

 

[hellblazer445]

You hit the nail right on the head.

 

[ogrebushi]

I wasnt expecting but was kind of hoping for a demo if nothing more than to iron out the bugs and be able to put aside money for any changes i still need to do to my mostly upgraded computer.
Lets face it this is a bethseda game its going to be so buggy glitchy and crashy on a chunk of us PC gamers out there... i mean it took me time screwing around to get oblivion to work on my new computer without crash to desktops etc. (not to mention having to screw around with oldblivion back when it was released)
Lesson learned on oblivion im most def not getting this release day and being their beta testers

 

[USSR]

..we can't just get the fucking E3 demo?

Take us through a dungeon?

Come on.

 

[Canid117]

Normally "No Demo" is a no buy for me but sometimes I can understand. This is one of those times. Sadly I am still not going to get it on day one because my PC isn't powerful enough and if you aren't playing it on PC you are playing it wrong.

 

[eNTi]

they had me at "burlap like material for the map in pre orders". other than that, reloaded releases pretty good demos these days.

 

[Wintermoot]

they never did Demo,s in the past so why should they do one now?

 

[Lt. Vinciti]

This.

This is not news!

You saw it when you weeped to yourself during the E3 showing of it!

Seriously: This is not suprising!

 

[Epona]

they never did Demo,s in the past so why should they do one now?

Yes they have, they did one for Daggerfall and I guess they didn't like how it turned out so they haven't done one since. Seems like they could have learned to make a better demo rather than scrapping demos altogether but it's becoming common to scrap things rather than improve them.

 

[1337mokro]

With the recent near paranoia that publishers and developers show about releasing a proper Demo of their games it is not a surprise. Bethesda's games especially seeing as those are released barely functional.

The funny thing is that this actually encourages the Pirates they so hate because now people are going to "demo" the game by pirating it.

 

[00slash00]

pfft, this game doesnt need demos or even reviews for people to buy it. every reviewer in the country could give this game a 30/100 and that would still do very little to diffuse the hype

 

[8bitlove2a03]

Did anyone even actually expect this game to have a demo? People who know anything about this series realize that anything short of a two hour demo wouldn't even begin to show the depth of the game.

 

[kouriichi]

I would pay 60$ for the alpha build, and then another 60 when the game came out, if i could have it now.

 

[Fursnake]

Hoped for, but never really expected a demo. Still preordering it.

 

[Nurb]

Well looks like gamers will have to

2) Bethesda games are some of the buggiest in the industry. We need more demos, not less especially from companies who put out buggy games that their community has to write patches for.

Yeah, Skyrim is going to be full of bugs. With any luck the majority of them won't break the gameplay.

Caveat Emptor. No demo, no benchmark and no return policy.

More like "Caveat Venditor", (Seller Beware)

They'll have to accept that with no demo, benchmark or return policy, gamers will try it out by other means. Developers won't even believe the studies that games with demos sell more units.

 

[Epona]

Did anyone even actually expect this game to have a demo? People who know anything about this series realize that anything short of a two hour demo wouldn't even begin to show the depth of the game.

That isn't the only purpose of a demo, it isn't even the most important purpose because you can rent the full game on console to do that. No, the most important reason why the PC version should have a demo (or atleast a benchmark) is to let people know if their PC can run it well before they spend $60 on a non refundable item.

The game industry sure has quite the advantage, they can sell their products blind and the consumer has no recourse.

 

[Epona]

Well looks like gamers will have to

2) Bethesda games are some of the buggiest in the industry. We need more demos, not less especially from companies who put out buggy games that their community has to write patches for.

Yeah, Skyrim is going to be full of bugs. With any luck the majority of them won't break the gameplay.

Caveat Emptor. No demo, no benchmark and no return policy.

More like "Caveat Venditor", (Seller Beware)

They'll have to accept that with no demo, benchmark or return policy, gamers will try it out by other means. Developers won't even believe the studies that games with demos sell more units.

Developers are getting lazy with demos because the feedback they get from the gaming community is:

- "I would pay 60$ for the alpha build, and then another 60 when the game came out, if i could have it now."
- "Hoped for, but never really expected a demo. Still preordering it."

...and similar.