Five Reasons Why There Won't Be a Gears of War Demo Before Emergence Day

Razor05 · 08-08-2006, 10:50 PM

As per TeamXbox:

Five Reasons Why There Won't Be a Gears of War Demo Before Emergence Day
By: César A. Berardini - "Cesar"
August 8th, 2006

Last week, Microsoft Game Studios and Epic Games finally revealed the date of the much-anticipated Emergence Day. Along with the announcement of the release date for Gears of War, the publisher and the developer also revealed two interested facts. First, and to the surprise of many, it was announced that Gears of War will sell for the same price of third party titles, even if it is a game published by Microsoft Game Studios. This confirmation alone generated quite a hot discussion, which spawned across one editorial and a forum post here on TeamXbox.com.

Second, Mark Rein confirmed that there won’t be a Gears of War demo, at least not before Emergence Day. That also generated a lot of hot reactions, and, while some users understood Epic’s decision for not making a pre-release demo, others could not accept such bad news.

If for this reason that we decided to put together the reasons for which there won’t be a pre-release demo of Gears of War (these might also apply for future hot games like Halo 3). Here’s the whole truth and nothing but the truth:

#1 - Gears of War will sell like hotcakes with or without a demo

Gears of War, in both its standard and limited collector’s editions, will sell faster than hot doughnuts at Krispy Kreme when the glowing red sign turns on. So for that reason, the question is: Does Gears of War need a demo? No. Microsoft doesn’t need to convince any Xbox 360 owner that this game is the hottest holiday title, and those who could grab a demo from Xbox Live Marketplace already know about Gears of War and will buy it. The rest of the mortals will receive a tremendous dose of marketing as Emergence Day gets closer.

#2 - A demo could chop down hype

A demo is nothing more than one of the many marketing strategies publishers and developers use to promote a game. Neither Microsoft nor Epic needs a demo of Gears of War to promote the game, plus a playable demo always has a risky side. If the demo contains bugs or shows only a part of what makes the game cool, then instead of creating more hype, the demo could spread the word that the game is not what users were expecting from it. Ultimately, the purpose of a demo is to create hype and that’s something Gears of War have plenty of already and doesn’t need any more of.

#3 - Epic Games already did a demo

Epic already did a demo for Gears of War; actually two demos. One campaign demo that was shown by CliffyB at the E3 2006 conference and a multiplayer demo that was only playable behind closed doors. With just the campaign demo it was enough to propel hype for the game to the stratosphere so, why would Epic develop a second demo when the first one already did a great job?

You might be asking yourself, why can’t they release those same E3 2006 demos to the public? Well, the truth is that both demos had some bugs and didn’t have all the features that the final game will include. If you pay attention to the level demoed by CliffyB, you’ll see a Locust standing up after it was killed (see movie below) plus there was no Marcus Fenix, Dominic Santiago co-op multiplayer; one of the strongest features of Gears of War.

Then, regarding the multiplayer demo, I got to play it a couple of times and I remember how my Xbox 360 froze up during a match with my character, as well as an enemy, shaking their bodies like they were experiencing heavy convulsions. We had to reboot our 360 XeDKs and launch the game again.

You can afford those bugs in a work-in-progress code shown to the press six months before launch, but not in a public pre-release demo.

#4 - A demo demands additional resources

Making a demo demands a lot of resources, and only big publishers with lot of staff can afford to make a pre-release demo before a game launches. Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Activision, who are big publishers and developers at the same time, can afford to put a dedicated group to work on a demo while the main core staff continues the development of a game. Gears of War is a first-party title that Epic Games is developing for Microsoft Game Studios. This is the first time that Epic commits to a date instead of simply finishing a game “when it’s done”. Does Epic Games have more staff? Yes, they have, but the rest of Epic Games staffers are working on Unreal Tournament 2007, which has already been pushed back to 2007. That pretty much tells you it is impossible that Epic Games could make a pre-release demo of Gears War while meeting the Emergence Day dateline and continue working on Unreal Tournament 2007.

#5 - There are three trade events before Emergence Day

Like we explained above, a demo is just one of the many marketing strategies used to promote a game. From now till Emergence Day there will be three major gaming conventions across the world; the Leipzig Games Convention later this month, and in September, both the Tokyo Game Show and of course the Xbox 360-only X06 event in Barcelona. You can bet Gears of War will make an appearance in at least two of these shows, but as a guided demo. Those are the demonstrations publishers and developers love, the ones where a representative plays the demo and no one else can give it a try. So if there’s a known bug, they know how to avoid it. Anyways, it is highly probable that a deathmatch multiplayer demo will be available to the public.

These five reasons explain why you shouldn’t expect a Gears of War demo before Emergence Day. The truth hurts. Deal with it.

GLOW · 08-09-2006, 06:51 PM

Boooooooo!

Although it is true, IMO, that games are much more exciting if you haven't had the chance to play it before you bought it. I try not to even watch gameplay videos if I'm pretty certain I'll buy the game.

ViperVenom18 · 08-09-2006, 10:02 PM

Yeah I'm glad there won't be a demo for the game.

Razor05 · 08-09-2006, 11:45 PM

As much as I'd like to be able to play a cpl of levels in a demo...I'll wait for the real release. I'ts best all their manpower go into the finished product.

MrRadman11 · 08-11-2006, 01:03 PM

Yeah It's good not to have a demo for a game that everyone wants anyway.

Btw, Razor, why all the huge posts man? lol

Razor05 · 08-11-2006, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrRadman11

Yeah It's good not to have a demo for a game that everyone wants anyway.

Btw, Razor, why all the huge posts man? lol

Heh, well I have to say something worthwhile sometimes.

eHDMI · 08-13-2006, 08:54 AM

We'll, I'm just ready for the game to come out....it better be worth the hype

ViperVenom18 · 08-13-2006, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eHDMI

We'll, I'm just ready for the game to come out....it better be worth the hype

Yah no kidding... It will be the first game I've bought since freakin' GRAW.. It's about time man.

MrRadman11 · 08-13-2006, 04:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ViperVenom18

Yah no kidding... It will be the first game I've bought since freakin' GRAW.. It's about time man.

HUH? You only have 1 360 game?!!! What about Call of duty 2, Fight Night Round 3, Dead Rising, Oblivion, Project Gotham Racing 3, Prey, Tomb Raider Legend, Moto GP 06, Quake IV, and Battle for Middle Earth II!!!

AAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!! *Running around like a madman*

ViperVenom18 · 08-13-2006, 06:22 PM

Well I am not made out of money and am near broke after my hdtv and 360 purchase, lmao.. I only have GRAW and Burnout... and besides oblivion (which just isnt my type of game) all the others listed are not worth my 60 bucks imo

Razor05 · 08-18-2006, 06:57 PM

Ok this is translated from a Dutch Blog...

Quote:
I just came back from my visit to Epic, the legendary studio where I and ten other journalists had the world premiere. Some had played the game in multiplayer at the last e3, but we really had no clue on the single player. I have played the game all afternoon and I can say: this game is awesome. The stupid thing is, I can't say too much because for another 6 weeks when NDA lifts. [note: X06?]. I can tell you this though; Gears of War makes good on ALL the promises.

Two years ago Microsoft showed the game at e3, and a lot of times those first raving reactions to a game change over time to dissapointed ones. With Gears of War that is definitly not the case.
...
It is funny to see that this hype has made the guys at Epic really nervous.

I don't know who was more excited, the developers or the journalists, but the developers wrote down every little comment we made, so they could discuss those afterwards. I have done this job for over 8 years now, and I have never seen that happen before.
...
Just as interesting was my talk with CliffyB. He talked about his vision for the game and the vision of the development team, but also about the next gen console wars. At the end of the day GoW will play a role in that, with it launching on the day of the PS3 launch. The difference between the PS3 launchgames and GoW is big. Huge. Not that suprising since the 360 has been available for almost a year. But it is painfully clear that Sony made an error in judgement when they said they would launch a year after the 360. Like Cliffy said: 'Do you want to play next-gen now, or in a year.'

08-13-2006, 08:54 AM	#7
eHDMI Vizio 37 LCD Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 1,638	Gears of War We'll, I'm just ready for the game to come out....it better be worth the hype __________________ Discount HDTV Accessories HDFury

08-18-2006, 06:57 PM	#11
Razor05 HD = 65 beautiful inches Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 3,274	GOW living up to hype... Ok this is translated from a Dutch Blog... Quote: I just came back from my visit to Epic, the legendary studio where I and ten other journalists had the world premiere. Some had played the game in multiplayer at the last e3, but we really had no clue on the single player. I have played the game all afternoon and I can say: this game is awesome. The stupid thing is, I can't say too much because for another 6 weeks when NDA lifts. [note: X06?]. I can tell you this though; Gears of War makes good on ALL the promises. Two years ago Microsoft showed the game at e3, and a lot of times those first raving reactions to a game change over time to dissapointed ones. With Gears of War that is definitly not the case. ... It is funny to see that this hype has made the guys at Epic really nervous. I don't know who was more excited, the developers or the journalists, but the developers wrote down every little comment we made, so they could discuss those afterwards. I have done this job for over 8 years now, and I have never seen that happen before. ... Just as interesting was my talk with CliffyB. He talked about his vision for the game and the vision of the development team, but also about the next gen console wars. At the end of the day GoW will play a role in that, with it launching on the day of the PS3 launch. The difference between the PS3 launchgames and GoW is big. Huge. Not that suprising since the 360 has been available for almost a year. But it is painfully clear that Sony made an error in judgement when they said they would launch a year after the 360. Like Cliffy said: 'Do you want to play next-gen now, or in a year.' __________________ Panasonic TH-65PZ850U Sony KDL37XBR6 Panasonic TH-37PX50U Cambridge Audio Azur 640R & 740C Paradigm Studio 60's, 20's, CC-590 & Seismic 12 Panasonic DMP-BD35 Toshiba HD-XA2 & A35 Motorola VIP1200 Monster HTFS1000, PB2100 AA 1154a Xbox360 Prem(2) & Halo3 LE + HD-DVD GT: Razor59 Sony PS3 slim GT:Razor_59 Sony PSP

08-08-2006, 10:50 PM	#1
Razor05 HD = 65 beautiful inches Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 3,274	Five Reasons Why There Won't Be a Gears of War Demo Before Emergence Day As per TeamXbox: Five Reasons Why There Won't Be a Gears of War Demo Before Emergence Day By: César A. Berardini - "Cesar" August 8th, 2006 Last week, Microsoft Game Studios and Epic Games finally revealed the date of the much-anticipated Emergence Day. Along with the announcement of the release date for Gears of War, the publisher and the developer also revealed two interested facts. First, and to the surprise of many, it was announced that Gears of War will sell for the same price of third party titles, even if it is a game published by Microsoft Game Studios. This confirmation alone generated quite a hot discussion, which spawned across one editorial and a forum post here on TeamXbox.com. Second, Mark Rein confirmed that there won’t be a Gears of War demo, at least not before Emergence Day. That also generated a lot of hot reactions, and, while some users understood Epic’s decision for not making a pre-release demo, others could not accept such bad news. If for this reason that we decided to put together the reasons for which there won’t be a pre-release demo of Gears of War (these might also apply for future hot games like Halo 3). Here’s the whole truth and nothing but the truth: #1 - Gears of War will sell like hotcakes with or without a demo Gears of War, in both its standard and limited collector’s editions, will sell faster than hot doughnuts at Krispy Kreme when the glowing red sign turns on. So for that reason, the question is: Does Gears of War need a demo? No. Microsoft doesn’t need to convince any Xbox 360 owner that this game is the hottest holiday title, and those who could grab a demo from Xbox Live Marketplace already know about Gears of War and will buy it. The rest of the mortals will receive a tremendous dose of marketing as Emergence Day gets closer. #2 - A demo could chop down hype A demo is nothing more than one of the many marketing strategies publishers and developers use to promote a game. Neither Microsoft nor Epic needs a demo of Gears of War to promote the game, plus a playable demo always has a risky side. If the demo contains bugs or shows only a part of what makes the game cool, then instead of creating more hype, the demo could spread the word that the game is not what users were expecting from it. Ultimately, the purpose of a demo is to create hype and that’s something Gears of War have plenty of already and doesn’t need any more of. #3 - Epic Games already did a demo Epic already did a demo for Gears of War; actually two demos. One campaign demo that was shown by CliffyB at the E3 2006 conference and a multiplayer demo that was only playable behind closed doors. With just the campaign demo it was enough to propel hype for the game to the stratosphere so, why would Epic develop a second demo when the first one already did a great job? You might be asking yourself, why can’t they release those same E3 2006 demos to the public? Well, the truth is that both demos had some bugs and didn’t have all the features that the final game will include. If you pay attention to the level demoed by CliffyB, you’ll see a Locust standing up after it was killed (see movie below) plus there was no Marcus Fenix, Dominic Santiago co-op multiplayer; one of the strongest features of Gears of War. Then, regarding the multiplayer demo, I got to play it a couple of times and I remember how my Xbox 360 froze up during a match with my character, as well as an enemy, shaking their bodies like they were experiencing heavy convulsions. We had to reboot our 360 XeDKs and launch the game again. You can afford those bugs in a work-in-progress code shown to the press six months before launch, but not in a public pre-release demo. #4 - A demo demands additional resources Making a demo demands a lot of resources, and only big publishers with lot of staff can afford to make a pre-release demo before a game launches. Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, Activision, who are big publishers and developers at the same time, can afford to put a dedicated group to work on a demo while the main core staff continues the development of a game. Gears of War is a first-party title that Epic Games is developing for Microsoft Game Studios. This is the first time that Epic commits to a date instead of simply finishing a game “when it’s done”. Does Epic Games have more staff? Yes, they have, but the rest of Epic Games staffers are working on Unreal Tournament 2007, which has already been pushed back to 2007. That pretty much tells you it is impossible that Epic Games could make a pre-release demo of Gears War while meeting the Emergence Day dateline and continue working on Unreal Tournament 2007. #5 - There are three trade events before Emergence Day Like we explained above, a demo is just one of the many marketing strategies used to promote a game. From now till Emergence Day there will be three major gaming conventions across the world; the Leipzig Games Convention later this month, and in September, both the Tokyo Game Show and of course the Xbox 360-only X06 event in Barcelona. You can bet Gears of War will make an appearance in at least two of these shows, but as a guided demo. Those are the demonstrations publishers and developers love, the ones where a representative plays the demo and no one else can give it a try. So if there’s a known bug, they know how to avoid it. Anyways, it is highly probable that a deathmatch multiplayer demo will be available to the public. These five reasons explain why you shouldn’t expect a Gears of War demo before Emergence Day. The truth hurts. Deal with it. __________________ Panasonic TH-65PZ850U Sony KDL37XBR6 Panasonic TH-37PX50U Cambridge Audio Azur 640R & 740C Paradigm Studio 60's, 20's, CC-590 & Seismic 12 Panasonic DMP-BD35 Toshiba HD-XA2 & A35 Motorola VIP1200 Monster HTFS1000, PB2100 AA 1154a Xbox360 Prem(2) & Halo3 LE + HD-DVD GT: Razor59 Sony PS3 slim GT:Razor_59 Sony PSP

08-09-2006, 06:51 PM	#2
GLOW IN-THE-DARK Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 7,600	Boooooooo! Although it is true, IMO, that games are much more exciting if you haven't had the chance to play it before you bought it. I try not to even watch gameplay videos if I'm pretty certain I'll buy the game.

08-09-2006, 10:02 PM	#3
ViperVenom18 High Definition is the definition of life. Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 641	Yeah I'm glad there won't be a demo for the game.

08-09-2006, 11:45 PM	#4
Razor05 HD = 65 beautiful inches Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Canada Posts: 3,274	As much as I'd like to be able to play a cpl of levels in a demo...I'll wait for the real release. I'ts best all their manpower go into the finished product. __________________ Panasonic TH-65PZ850U Sony KDL37XBR6 Panasonic TH-37PX50U Cambridge Audio Azur 640R & 740C Paradigm Studio 60's, 20's, CC-590 & Seismic 12 Panasonic DMP-BD35 Toshiba HD-XA2 & A35 Motorola VIP1200 Monster HTFS1000, PB2100 AA 1154a Xbox360 Prem(2) & Halo3 LE + HD-DVD GT: Razor59 Sony PS3 slim GT:Razor_59 Sony PSP

08-11-2006, 01:03 PM	#5
MrRadman11 Hmmm... Join Date: Aug 2005 Age: 23 Posts: 473	Yeah It's good not to have a demo for a game that everyone wants anyway. Btw, Razor, why all the huge posts man? lol

08-13-2006, 06:22 PM	#10
ViperVenom18 High Definition is the definition of life. Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 641	Well I am not made out of money and am near broke after my hdtv and 360 purchase, lmao.. I only have GRAW and Burnout... and besides oblivion (which just isnt my type of game) all the others listed are not worth my 60 bucks imo