When I tried to play Eye of Judgment, I was more or less moved. Its demo contains the full first chapter and a detailed experience of up to 2 to 4 hours. In this way, players can get an almost complete picture of the work. If you've been through the baptism of chapter payment, you'll probably feel the same way. If it is a different form of sales, it is likely to be transformed into a commodity with a clear price on the container.
The marketing strategy of "Thirteen Machine Defense Circle" is different, and the Vanilla Society splits the prologue at the beginning of the game and sells it separately, not only the overall content is only 3 hours, but the prologue save cannot be inherited into the subsequent main chapter. While there is general understanding of the studio's moves through previous word-of-mouth accumulation, this still confuses some players: How can your "demo version" charge money for the same publisher?
Although the "paid trial" is more like a new concept today, in the development of game trial, it is an original and traditional form of business. The reason why it is excluded from the mainstream environment can also be said to be the common result of the development of software and hardware, the transformation of market concepts, and the thrust of the times.
<h4>Origins share the game</h4>
Back in the 80s and 90s of the last century, piracy was a headache for all developers. In 1992, the Software Publishers Association (SPA) launched an anti-infringement campaign called Don't Copy That Floppy. They invited well-known writers and lawyers, as well as the "Neverwinter Nights" team, to record the initiative promotional video, and distributed the video tape to the school and the public by mail, which caused great social repercussions.
But while others are struggling with piracy, Scott Miller is busy counting the bills. In 1987, he stuffed his ASCII game Kingdom of Kroz to disk and distributed it as "shareware." The move sparked an unexpected success, and Miller went from being an employee of a computer company to the owner of Apogee (the predecessor of 3D Realms).
"Shareware," proposed by Bob Wallace, a core member of Microsoft, was just emerging at the time. In order to reduce the cost of distribution, directly to the end user of the product, developers will take copies of the game to the retailer, or frequently participate in public exhibitions, hoping to "send" their own works out. Since the main purpose is to promote the content, they are happy to see the copying behavior of users.
The shareware (game) is free in principle, and initially, developers will even stuff the full version into the disk, only occasionally pop-ups remind users: If you like, please tip us. But some retailers have taken the initiative to add packaging and instructions to shared games themselves, selling them to consumers at lower prices. And when players have paid once, they are naturally reluctant to tip again.
In order to be able to make money, there have been many variants of shareware. One such means is to "lock the functionality of the software" before paying. When it comes to the game, the creator turns to castrating the work, allowing the player to experience only the first 1 to 2 chapters. If you are interested in the full content, you will also have to order it through the contact address published by the author. Therefore, spending money to buy a demo version was not impossible in the 80s and 90s.
Scott Miller's Kingdom of Kroz is a castration, but he's not very ruthless, and the demo version of the game is largely complete, with some additional episodes to pay for. Due to the planning of the storyline, the paid version is more like an "extended version" with a branch line, which will not seriously affect the overall experience, and he also earned the first pot of gold through this way.
Developer Ambrosia is even more ingenious, adding a character to her series "Escape Velocity". When a free-to-play player goes deeper into the game to a certain extent, the character will shoot them down in a spaceship with a counter-ability value, symbolizing the end of the "trial period".
In short, there are various ways to limit player behavior, such as time-limited experience, split chapters, and value-added members. From another point of view, the monetization methods of F2P content today are the "old routines" that have survived from the era of shared games. While no upfront payment is required, at the end of the day, most of them will have an entry point to generate revenue.
Back to the topic, as the market for shared games grew larger, Apogee, which Miller ran, began to run other businesses. He keeps an eye on BBS and the retail market every day to find out if there are any cool-looking shared games. Due to his successful experience, Miller, who gradually mastered the doorway, would take the initiative to contact the authors and sign them up at a relatively low price to do the game's publishing work.
Todd Raplogle was one of the signatories, handing over his game Caves of Thor to Miller. After several collaborations, Reploger simply moved to Dallas, eventually working with Apogee on the famous Duke of Doom. Soon, id Software, Activision, and Epic Megagames (now Epic Games) followed suit, and an early batch of FPS games, Wehrmacht Headquarters 3D and Doom, also came out as shared games.
People's original idea of "game trial" actually stemmed from this old business model. It's important to note that shared games can't be completely equated with Demo, which can be made "full game" to some extent by paying for it, while Demo is relatively independent. However, for the convenience of understanding, they will be collectively referred to here as "demo versions".
<b>Next:Buy the game, send it to try it</b> out
<h4>Buy the game and send it to try it out</h4>
In contrast, older players may be more familiar with the logic of "buying games and sending them to trial". In addition to selling prologues separately, the Vanilla Society also adopted another form of sale, purchasing a cheap version of the "Dragon's Crown or Odin Realm", which will be accompanied by the "Thirteen Aircraft Defense Circle Prologue".
Some people say that it is "like a return to the PS1 era", and this is indeed the case. Before digital distribution was on the rise, demo versions of one game would often be sent along with another complete work.
Square Enix is familiar with this approach, including a demo of Final Fantasy 7 in Tobal No. 1, a demo of Final Fantasy VII, a demo of Final Fantasy XIII, or a demo of Final Fantasy XIV in recent years, and its demo version has also been stuffed into the box of Final Fantasy Zero HD.
In the eyes of game manufacturers, the same bundle trial play is a way to test the game in a controlled environment, and it is also an effective means of publicity. For example, Riot Fighter came with halo 3 multiplayer testing invitations, which boosted its own sales to some extent. The aforementioned Tobal No. 1 also sold well with the blessing of Final Fantasy VII.
Traditionally, large developers/publishers don't release unfinished games to the public. Prior examination of player feedback is usually achieved through internal testing under a confidentiality agreement. The aim is to prevent piracy while preventing competitors from making corresponding decisions. But the advent of shared games has gradually shaken up their conformist ideas.
Apogee's approach to the common model of "mix-and-match demo sales of complete works" has some inspiration. In the process of developing the kingdom of Kroz sequel, Miller fine-tuned the scope of the "right to use". If a series contains 3 games, then the first game can be completely free, and the next two games need to purchase a license to play, which is undoubtedly the prototype of the same bundle trial.
Another important source of "buying games and sending them to trials" may come from the form of shared games such as "Covermount". In addition to their counterpart retailers, some developers will go to magazines and give away game discs as gifts for books, and Thompson's The Adventures of the Twins in 1984 was published through the publication. By the mid-1990s, magazine discs were no longer accompanied by full-length gameplay, officially moving to shorter demos and demos.
The official magazines of Sega and PlayStation initially gave away some experience CDs of works, and "buying magazines and sending them to try them out" became the norm at that time. However, there are also many software publishers who believe that bundling games and magazines will reduce the value of these works. As a result, the "buy one get one free" sales model was quickly absorbed by major publishers, and after the magic reform, it was used in the sale of boxed games.
Domestic players should also be deeply touched by this, early online games, such as "King of Kings" is relying on magazines to distribute games, only in the era of the network is not developed to accumulate the first batch of users. Sometimes magazines also come with a few hours of point cards, or a day or two of game access, which is also a kind of trial.
<h4>Another form of play</h4>
With the development of digital platforms and network bandwidth, demo versions have gradually become downloadable content that pre-empts the game. But it's not just this obvious shift that the Internet has brought, its flexibility has enabled Early Access to become a commercial form. Consumers can purchase the game in advance during the project's α or β cycle and receive access to an "incomplete work". Developers use this money to continue to polish the game.
Early Access is widely used in the production of indie games, and it may be difficult for the indie developer's personal funds to support the project before a financier has been found. This means can recoup some costs for them in advance. Coupled with the prevalence of crowdfunding projects in the early years, game authors can also use this to form a long-term communication with test players and modify the content in time according to feedback and suggestions.
Minecraft is an early example of Early Access, a game that began preparations in 2009 and started as an amateur work by Markus Persson, starting out as a web version. However, due to the popularity of the free α version, Person subsequently opened a paid channel where players could pay 10 euros for continuous access to the game. The project collected a lot of money, and he immediately quit his job and formed the Mojang Studio.
But there are also many problems with this model, which shifts part of the risk from the development process to consumers. According to the Electronic Entertainment Design Research Center (EEDAR), as of 2014, only 25% of Early Access games on Steam have launched a full version. Considering that players involved in these projects may never be able to see the work completed, it can also be seen as another form of paid trial play.
Earth: 2066 promises many unattainable elements in the unfinished phase. When players buy the game and click the run button, they will find that the content of the work and the introduction of the product page are not at all right, which is full of a large number of ready-made mods and scenes, which are from the commercial engine store, and even because of programming errors, the game can not run.
Affected by this, Valve began to adjust the corresponding mechanism of the Steam platform and introduce stricter scrutiny. Not only did earth: 2066 be removed, but it also ordered developer Killing Day Studios to refund players. Valve's spokesperson then said that developers can promote and price the game more freely, but they must be honest in the process of marketing.
Although this form of "demo" has problems of one kind or another, from today's point of view, it has indeed contributed to many excellent works. Radical Fish, the developer of The Tale of the Distant Star, polished the game with three years of Early Access, culminating in a complete story, beautiful pixel art, and 50 hours of mainline content.
Some AAA vendors have also begun to follow suit in order to extend the development cycle of their products. For example, Dirt Rally's "Dust Rally" or Ubisoft's "Ghost Recon: Phantom", it provides more room to improve the work.
Early Access has also influenced the way first-party vendors view play, stemming from the whimsy of the PC platform and gradually spreading in the field of home consoles. Sony has been planning the corresponding system since 2014, and the sales method of Dungeon Guardian 2 on PSN has adopted a similar approach to the Steam platform.
Microsoft's strategy is slightly different, when purchasing Early Access games, the "Xbox Game Preview" system will provide a free trial version, allowing players to download "try to play". Games involved in the program include The Long Dark and the well-known Elite Dangerous.
The development of demos is closely related to the changes in communication media and the form of game sales. In the era dominated by physical games, large developers were able to use resource reserves to give away another game when selling works to promote and promote sales. And those "wild producers" who are two-handed and tight have also found another way to rely on the form of shared games to attract audiences and support their families.
In the era of digital distribution, manufacturers can present game clips almost at no cost, as long as they want. The advent of Early Access has further magnified its value, and the demo has become a channel for developers to communicate closely with players, and people suddenly find that they can even participate in the decision-making of the game. The positive feedback that comes with it not only consolidates the confidence of the authors, but also provides the possibility of raising resources.
The original meaning of the trial is still to lower the experience threshold of the work. But as video games have changed and transformed, they have provided inspiration for some of today's paid models and business strategies. Although we have no way of knowing how the future will change, no matter which side we go, the possibilities that are conceived and born in it are still worth exploring.