14 DAY TRIAL // Sony is apparently considering adding the option for developers to put their games out in Early Access for gamers on PlayStation platforms.
After seeing that people are willing to not only test a game for free, but to actually pay a hefty premium for the privilege of playing an unfinished, buggy version of a game they like, it appears that some of the big players are also considering joining the fad.
In a recent interview with Gamasutra, Sony VP of publishing Adam Boyes has shared his mind about the subject matter, speaking about some of the internal discussions at Sony, regarding the possibility of putting games that are not yet finished up for sale, mentioning that there are some things that need to be clarified before the company is able to do move forward with the feature.
“Honestly, we're working through that right now. We're figuring out what's okay. We obviously have our tech requirement checklist that people have to adhere to. So we're internally discussing, what does that list look like for this? What are the caveats? Stuff like this,” Boyes says.
Boyes explains that the company doesn’t want for people to purchase pre-release versions of games and get disappointed in the process, which is why Sony is currently concerned with the proper way to communicate with its consumers.
“It’s still a project that a lot of minds are considering. No details yet, but it’s something on the top of my mind every day,” Boyes shares.
For now, it is too early to tell whether or not those internal discussions will materialize into Early Access coming to PlayStation platforms any time soon, but the important thing is that the people in charge of making that decision are trying to see how the feature fits in with the rest of the puzzle.
This is a tricky subject indeed, as PC gamers tend to be a bit more involved in the entire serious gaming concept, as evidenced by the lack of Endless Space and Civilization V on consoles.
The more casual nature of consoles might not translate into Early Access that smoothly, especially when it comes to bigger names that would normally not have to use Early Access as a means to cut testing costs.
The key, obviously, would be to find a way to eliminate any confusion when it comes to what consumers should expect. From a user experience point of view, some ground rules should be put into place in order to make sure that the system offers some sort of consistency when it comes to the quality of the products making use of the feature.