Mister Jack Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 This is something I've been wondering for the last day or two. Most people who are really into gaming follows news and announcements and tend to know well in advance which games they already intend to buy or not buy. But I played the Ni No Kuni demo recently, a game I thought was interesting but hadn't given much thought beyond that, and now I'm planning to pick it up. I realized that this is a pretty rare occurrence for me. Demos have almost always been just "previews" for me of games I was probably going to buy anyway, but for once a demo was actually something that changed my mind. How often does this happen to you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxicitizen Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 (edited) I usually stay informed so I know ahead of time whether I'm interested in a game enough to buy it day 1. The only times a demo changed my mind were usually when they revealed the game to be a huge piece of crap. Examples would include Resident Evil 6 and, uh, I forget the name, japanese Gears of War set in a tower that reconfigures itself... Edited January 23, 2013 by FLD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Vanquish? I know it's happened to me, but I also know it's a lot less common than convincing me NOT to buy a game. Normally when it happens it's because the media available makes the game look like some generic entry in the genre, but then the demo shows me that it's actually quite good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mister Jack Posted January 23, 2013 Author Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Oh yeah, Resident Evil 6 changed my mind for the worse, too. But that happens to me a lot more often than a demo influencing my opinion in a positive way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madbassman39 Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 I used to be subscribed as a kid to the Official Playstation Magazine, which came with demo discs every month. If it hadn't been for these demos I would not have picked up Oddworld: Abe's Exodus, Crash Bandicoot, 2Xtreme, Twisted Metal 2, and Spyro. All PS1 era games. PS2 era I stopped using demos as I was told by my parents that I would need to pay for my magazine subscriptions. I had a few, and got Sly Cooper because of a demo disc, but nothing else really. PS3/360 games I have bought a few games because of the demos. Castle Crushers, Shank, Uncharted, Infamous, Burnout Paradise, and a few other games. I'm pretty big on try before you buy, so I am constantly downloading demo's and checking out the games. I don't think they are necessary to sell games, but if your game hasn't grabbed my attention or seems to have some bad press surrounding it (Army of Two, really enjoyed the demo people seem to hate it though) I probably wont buy it without trying it first. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxicitizen Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Vanquish? What? No! Vanquish is amazing! Let me see what Google brings up. Ah, here we go. Quantum Theory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Interesting topic! I'd have to give it some thought, but off the top of my head, I don't think a demo has convinced me to buy a game in a long time. In a few cases, I've been steered away from a game after playing the demo but in many instances it's more of a 'buy it when it's cheaper' reaction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercurial Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Burnout Paradise is probably the only game I bought because of the demo. Played that demo so much. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Heh, I bought Burnout Paradise in spite of the demo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 I didn't buy Burnout Paradise because FUCK BURNOUT PARADISE! Ruined my favorite racing series. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercurial Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Racing? Shit I was just there to smash cars with other cars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hot Heart Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Haha, everytime. Here we go again... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faiblesse Des Sens Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 I'm the type to get more interested because of a demo. I generally know about games so it's a matter of seeing what they're really like. Most of the times demos are hollow shells of the real game where they stick you in some shitty tutorial level and don't let you change difficulty so I don't think I've ever been downright swayed by a demo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CorgiShinobi Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Demos for me are typically, "Yes, I get to play part of the game now!" I seldom use demos as an actual basis on whether to be interested or not. A demo that turned me away from a game: Resident Evil 6 A demo that turned me towards a game: Metal Gear Rising: Revengance. (Seriously, it might lack a proper tutorial, but it's pure Platinum Games quality!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 I think the last game I bought because of a demo was Flower. I haven't ever played the copy of Flower I ended up buying. There's plenty of games I've bought after "demoing" though. Not sure if they'd count. There's als White Knight Chronicles, had WKC2 on rental, bought WKC on sale. Might end up with FFXIII-2 some point too from similar circumstances. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toxicitizen Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 A demo that turned me towards a game: Metal Gear Rising: Revengance. (Seriously, it might lack a proper tutorial, but it's pure Platinum Games quality!) Oooh, is that publicly available now? Need to give it a try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted January 23, 2013 Report Share Posted January 23, 2013 Racing? Shit I was just there to smash cars with other cars. I know, and they took out all the good smashing in Paradise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mal Posted January 24, 2013 Report Share Posted January 24, 2013 Caldun x2 got me recently. I might have gotten the name wrong... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vecha Posted January 24, 2013 Report Share Posted January 24, 2013 Dragon's Dogma. Two Worlds(found it fun after I played the demo on XBL, despite all the hate. Most of the time, I play a demo to get more hyped. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted January 24, 2013 Report Share Posted January 24, 2013 More common for me is that I play a demo, decide it's highly meh and that I'm not getting the game, then later end up picking it up after hearing how great it is. Shadow Complex comes to mind. I don't know if it's because the demo tends to be the beginning of the game and start out slow, or what. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanb Posted February 11, 2013 Report Share Posted February 11, 2013 http://www.pcgamesn.com/article/jesse-schell-releasing-demo-harms-your-game-sales Apparently releasing a demo is bad for your sales figures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMightyEthan Posted February 12, 2013 Report Share Posted February 12, 2013 A thought just occurred: how does that chart deal with betas-that-are-really-demos? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thursday Next Posted February 13, 2013 Report Share Posted February 13, 2013 Yup, never played a demo and been convinced to buy a game. Vanquish demo was good, but eventually just picked it up via PS+ for free. The only time a demo might sell me on a game is when a new console launches. At that point I have time to play more things due to a lack of full titles, and little idea of how a game will actually play due to changes in handling saves, online, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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