Google Stadia is taking a different approach to the way players demo games. The game streaming platform will be testing an achievement-based demo system, allowing people to preview games for an unlimited amount of time until they unlock certain achievements.
According to a report from Game Developer, Stadia will test the achievement-based game trial system in Control and Sniper Elite 4 next week. However, it has given only 50% of players the ability to demo games until they unlock an achievement, while the other 50% are still playing demos with time constraints. The test was given to a limited number of people so that Stadia could examine the effects of demoing games under a different trial length metric.
Here’s how the test will work: The test players demoing Sniper Elite 4, for example, will play it until they unlock the “Beginning of the End” achievement, which can be obtained at the end of the first mission within an hour, according to Rebellion North head Arden Aspinall. He says that players accessing Sniper Elite 4 under the achievement-based game trial system will give them the full experience of the game and the scope of the Sniper Elite series before they decide to buy it.
“The cool thing about this trial is that it will enable people who have never played a Sniper Elite game before the opportunity to jump in and see what the game and the series is all about,” Aspinall said. “If some of these gamers then convert to full-on Sniper Elite players and fans then that is fantastic, but at least we are offering as many people as possible the chance to get some time with the game.”
Karan Arora, Stadia’s senior product manager, said that the inspiration for the achievement-based game trial system came from the fact that developers have been placing “meaningful achievements” in their games. Even though game achievements have been present since the Xbox 360 and PS3 era, he said that those achievements greatly demonstrate what gaming is about.
“Giving development teams an effective opportunity to hone in on those impactful, memorable moments with new players is an exciting experiment for us, especially when it takes zero effort for the developer to switch on,” Arora said.
The achievement-based game trials can be accessed with or without a Google Stadia account. If you complete any of the demos, your progress will be saved so you won’t have to start from square one.
