The MMO shooter Destiny 2 will not get a proper beta but a kind of marketing demo. Bungie apparently plans to rely on the banana principle. What is behind it?
It is already a silly situation: Games like Destiny 2 have so much that can go wrong – but they are hardly tested.
Destiny 2 is made up of countless parts, interlocking gameplay systems, and landscapes. It is clear: The more complicated a system, the greater the chance that something can go wrong.
Therefore: When Destiny 2 is released, it will be buggy. There is no doubt about that.
Bugs and errors marked the launch of Destiny 1
The first part had plenty of problems and errors:
- Gameplay systems just didn’t work – the loot system was so bad that players shot at mobs coming out of a cave for hours.
- In the strikes there were “safe spots” from which players could safely kill bosses without them shooting back. A term for these “exploits” became widespread: cheese spots.
- Even raid bosses or certain raid sections could be easily defeated with tricks. A common insider joke among players is that no one remembers how to do the bridge or templar “properly”, they always skipped past them.
- Some weapons were way too strong. When the first player got their hands on the Vex Mythoclast, they ran around with it like they were a Greek god.
And it’s not like this is a specific problem of Destiny. The Division had even more difficulties.
- A “backpack bug” locked players out of The Division for weeks.
- The fundamental progression system was so weak that it had to be completely overhauled after half a year – a huge effort.
Extended closed beta phases years before release
For games that reach such a scale, problems are simply inevitable. Internal tests from QA teams can be as thorough and good as possible – again and again, history has proven: Internal QA tests are simply not enough. Players find ways to uncover and exploit errors in the system that the publisher and its employees have not thought of.
The conventional solution would be to hold extensive beta phases. Players would be allowed into the game as early as possible in development. They test it, give feedback to the developers – and they adapt their game.
In South Korea, games are developed this way: Long before release, 2 or 3 years before the launch, the gates open for two-week beta phases – the developers then evaluate the feedback, close the gates, and continue development.
However: In South Korea, there is no “proper launch” for these games later on. They are all free-to-play games that transition into an open beta. A “hype” for the release is not nearly as important as for Destiny 2.
Banana principle
In the West, it works differently: There are no beta phases during the development of blockbuster games. They mainly rely on internal tests by QA teams.
The manufacturers’ policy seems to be to rely on the banana principle: The product ripens with the customer.
The fact that these ultra-expensive and complex games completely forgo betas through players and struggle with countless problems after the release is something most players do not understand.
By name, there are still betas, but these are actually just demos that are released shortly before launch to get players excited about the game. It is assumed: In Destiny 2, players will be served a fraction of the game that has been polished to a high shine. How the players’ feedback turns out will ultimately have no influence on the release version.
In Ghost Recon Wildlands, fans cried out after experiencing such a demo beta: For heaven’s sake, take your time, polish the game further. But by then, it was already too late. The wheels were already turning: What happens in a beta hardly changes the product.
Advantages and disadvantages of the banana principle in Destiny 2
If we look at this banana principle, it has benefits and drawbacks for a game.
Advantage:
- The game is “fresh” at release, people do not know it yet
- The game will have a strong hype and sell well
- there will probably only be positive news in advance – the only source of information is the developer itself: PR news dominates the weeks before release, the developer controls reporting when there are no betas
Disadvantage:
- Players will likely encounter errors early on and the quality of the gaming experience will drop – after the release
- Outside the “polished zone” is uncharted territory – gameplay systems that gain importance only in the long term – may work or go totally wrong
- Negative news may come right after the release that could dampen sales – after the release the developer has no more control over the news
- developers will have to invest a lot of time in fixing errors under the pressure of a live game – in the time when “new content” should actually come, errors will be patched
Developers are increasingly realizing the disadvantages of the “banana principle”. Especially “The Division” should serve as a cautionary tale.
However: The obvious alternative has not proven to be really “great”: Let everyone into the beta.
Inviting to open beta phases diminishes the appeal of the new, players get tired of games before release. The actual launch is then just a footnote because everyone has already seen it. You can’t blame publishers for avoiding this scenario.
Betas with strictly regulated access are probably the solution
Blizzard did it right with Overwatch: There was indeed a long beta phase, but it was rigorously limited. Many cursed for months, that they couldn’t get into the damn beta of this stupid Overwatch.
The advantage: This heightened the desire for Overwatch even more. The longing grew to finally play Overwatch. Because the access was so regulated over months, Overwatch could be polished “under the eyes of the players” and the longing remained.
But sure: In “Overwatch” there were no spoiler problems. The game has no story campaign.
Better buggy or better know everything in advance?
If there were a such beta in Destiny 2, even if it was strictly regulated: Leaks would not be far away. Quickly, the feeling would spread: “I already know how it ends.”
Despite watermarks on screenshots and NDA – for a million-dollar project like Destiny 2, the content of the beta would probably be known to everyone quickly. A nightmare for Bungie: The hype would be at risk.
How would you solve that? Extensive beta phases for everyone? Marketing demos like now? Strictly limited access? Let us know your opinion.
More information about Destiny 2’s beta can be found here:
Destiny 2 Beta – everything about start, registration, access, and codes
