Are betas really betas or just jumped up demos and marketing tools?
I thought in most cases they were to test out the multiplayer aspects and make sure the servers could handle the strain? Or to make sure the game was working properly. I wouldn’t be concerned that they’re demos or marketing tools, I’d be more concerned that they’re relying on you to bug/glitch test their games. I can understand people thinking that a beta is a just a jumped up demo, but I see it more of a demo for the developers. It’s an almost built copy of a game that needs field testing with the masses of gamers so they can find connection issues, bugs/glitches, balancing different character classes, weapons, vehicles etc. The different stages of betas could probably be classed as different things, the Alpha stage is without doubt a full on bug hunt and to a lesser extent the closed betas. I think once a title hits the closed beta stage then more of the marketing aspect starts to emerge. Open beta is more or less full blown marketing, but that’s not to suggest it’s not invaluable –
