Doom 3 demo comes out weeks later?

I don't have a link for this rumor and since it's 1:20 AM, I'm not going to look for one. But I've heard that the demo won't be available until a while after the full release, if ever. In my opinion, this is not a good sign. If the game were a graphics shell with mundane gameplay (and this is still very possible), the developers might feel that releasing the demo first (or at all) would hurt their sales. Are they afraid to let the gamers try before they buy?

WID is the only date they've said in the three recent interviews they've had recently.

You mean this rumor?

Todd's .plan said:

We will release the demo as soon as it's done...

And they've said it in (I'm pretty sure) three different interviews that were conducted since the game went gold.

AndrewB said:

I don't have a link for this rumor and since it's 1:20 AM, I'm not going to look for one. But I've heard that the demo won't be available until a while after the full release, if ever. In my opinion, this is not a good sign. If the game were a graphics shell with mundane gameplay (and this is still very possible), the developers might feel that releasing the demo first (or at all) would hurt their sales. Are they afraid to let the gamers try before they buy?

I think it's more a case of finalising the game code before doing a demo.

That, and to add to it, I believe I read that during their crunch time, they didn't want to focus at all on anything but the actual game.

AndrewB said:

Are they afraid to let the gamers try before they buy?

Dont be so negative. I think the game will be FANTASTIC. But hey! none of us played it. I think they focussed first on getting it done. And now they are focussing on what the demo will include (MP/SP) what levels will give a good indication of the game etc.

IMO They're getting the full game out first because they know people are hungry for it and so they wanna satisfy the hardcore fans first. People who need a demo to see if they wanna play it can wait. ;)

Yeah I agree with the responses, making a demo takes time, theyre still working

To back that up even FURTHER -- remember, code release was literally like, 45 minutes before Todd's .plan update. When they announced it was done, it was JUST THEN done.

Well maybe they could just release a shareware version. And while they're at it they could also change the graphics engine to the original, and keep all the original monsters and weapons too. That'd be pretty cool...

I know you're not a fan of D3, but wouldn't common sense tell you that they have already spent a huge amount of time making the game, and want to get it out as soon as possible, instead of taking the additional time to make a demo first and then release it in late august or maybee september?

IMO They're getting the full game out first because they know people are hungry for it and so they wanna satisfy the hardcore fans first. People who need a demo to see if they wanna play it can wait. ;)

Amen!

Yea who wants a demo, everyones gonna pick the game up right away, not wait for the demo to come out except the hl2 fanboys even though they will just warez the full game. Assholes.

How can you get pissed at ID for releasing the demo after the game? I mean how many game companies don't do this nowadays. Get pissed at the trend, don't think ID is trying to cheat you.

And yeah, the trend does kinda suck. Plus once you get a demo it is so small that its hard to make a judgement on the game. One reason I like consoles is the ablity to rent things before you buy it, saved alot of money that way.

It's reminds me of the Half-Life oem. For those who don't remember, a small portion (large compared to most demos though) of the half life single player was leaked to the internet from a hardware bundle oem. Valve made a big stink about the leak and I think some people in the hardware industry got in hot water for it. But the fact is, before I played the oem Half-life was just a mildly intersting looking game from a no name company, after I played it Half-Life was at the top of my must buy list. I fondly think of the Half-Life oem as the last of the "shareware" games. :)

A demo being released after a game is nothing be angry about, but it is something to be concerned about. Who wants the sequel to their favorite game to be a disappointment? Spending $60+ on a game only to be bored by it is not a good feeling.

It's silly to say "everyones gonna pick up the game right away anyway." Maybe for someone who hangs out in this forum 2 hours a day, it seems that way. But there is a world outside the Doom 3 forum. How are we supposed to judge if the game is good enough to buy?

Well, you make a good point... but some games don't even have demos. Have you seen the recent 20 min movie AndrewB? There a part in it that kind of reminds from of you from Todd H.

Um... then wait until the demo comes out and play it. You won't die if you put off playing it.

Finishing the project is more important than getting a demo out.

Scuba Steve said:

Finishing the project is more important than getting a demo out.

Yep. My point.

Fair enough, but if the demo is REALLY delayed for some odd reason, then that's not okay, and more than just a little concerning.

By the way, most games don't have demos because if they did, people would see how much they suck and they wouldn't buy the full version. The Doom 3 demo may vanish out of existence, maybe not because the game sucks, but because it would satisfy too many gamers' curiosity about the graphics, which is its only real selling point.

AndrewB said:

By the way, most games don't have demos because if they did, people would see how much they suck and they wouldn't buy the full version.

Where can I get the Duke Nuken Forever demo? ; P

Scabbed Angel said:

Where can I get the Duke Nuken Forever demo? ; P

Sorry, I don't get it.

I think andrewb is right! ID software, Microsoft and the Borg are secretly coordinating with each other trying to find the perfect way to F**K over diehard doom fanatics.

It’s now up to Will Smith and his hilarious nerdy white cohorts to infiltrate Ids corporate pig compound and retrieve the demo to distribute freely across the land.

FEATURES
-Will smith a snappy black cop with street smarts

-Three epic episodes “knee deep in the cred” “the shores of entropy” and take the fight to the ultimate level in “thy bani consumed”

-Fight your way through a vast arena of mazes and terrifying creatures such is “Larry the coffee guy” and the ultimate evil of “MECHA ROMERO.”

-Go head to head with up to 4 other pessimistic dimwits over LAN.

-Hours of fun and endless game play

“Dope” – were the sanest place is behind the cash register
"Dope" - simply the best game of all time
"Dope" - a masterpiece of unfiltered teenage angst and pessimistic guesswork

heh

Mecha Romero -- nice. That's all I've got to say about it.