Bungie announced a two-day extension for their Destiny 2 Beta, which seems to be a longstanding tradition among the video the video game industry. A “beta” is a near completed version of the game that developers usually release as a way of testing, fixing, and adjusting things in the game before it is full released to the public.
When a beta is released it will either be released as an open beta or a closed beta. An open beta is open to the public and free for everyone to play, and game developers often do this with multiplayer games as a way of testing how smooth the gameplay between players runs as well as how gamers react to specific modes put in the game. Closed betas are betas that are exclusively used by people granted with special access, usually this access gained through signing up online or preordering the game from the store.
Betas overall are good demos for players and good prototypes for the developers as well as a good way to make sure that gamers get the most out of the game that they play for. However, betas are usually stated to only last for a specific period of time but with most game developers this doesn’t seem to be true, betas have been unexpectedly extended past their projected end date multiple times, DragonBall Xenoverse 2, Friday the 13th, Halo Wars 2, Battlefield: Hardline, Doom, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare and many more have had betas that have been extended past their supposed end dates. The game developers usually claim that the extension is due to both positive feedback and fans asking for the extension, “Ubisoft: “Over the last few days, we’ve seen an incredible amount of excitement for the game… In order to allow everyone who has access to fully enjoy the Beta, we’re happy to announce we’re extending the duration by 24h for all players.” “343 Industries: “Yup!! Because so many folk have asked, we’re extending the HW2 beta to Wednesday! #HaloWars2.” These companies may extend their betas not only to please fans but also as a way to get more feedback on the games they are fully released as well as testing servers for the games as well (given the face that them are mostly online multiplayer games) extending the betas also helps market the game more. The extending of betas is a beneficial process to both game developers and gamers, even if some gamers are beginning to find the process too predictable. Happy gaming!
Featured Image via Flickr/BagoGames
