This isn’t the first time we’ve been asked to pay for a demo. Gran Turismo 4 and Gran Turismo 5 saw Prologue releases, stop-gaps to tide fans over until the final product is completed. In a way, that’s also the intended purpose of the Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes release. We’re being given the game so that we can satisfy our appetite for Solid Snake. The major difference, though, is the perceived lack of replayability.
Gran Turismo is a racing game, meaning players will race the same tracks and cars all day every day. There’s no “single player campaign” to play, beat, and shelf the game forever. Chances are that you’ll be playing the Prologue games for quite some time before moving on. On the surface, the same cannot be said regarding Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes. There’s a story to follow and then (presumably) credits will roll. You’ve beaten the campaign in two hours, congratulat—
Oh, you didn’t do the side quests? You can check those out for a few more hours of gameplay. Time’s up though you’ve just spent $40 on a dem—
Your friend is talking about a situation in Ground Zeroes that you didn’t encounter? Man, I bet you’d really like to check that out too. You almost forgot that this is an open-world stealth game, forgoing the traditional “on-rails” experience from the past. Before long, you’ve spent ten hours into the game, seeing everything that’s possible, taking every route imaginable, leaving no stone unturned. That “rotten value” you once heard of isn’t so bad anymore and you’re glad you decided to pick up a copy of Ground Zeroes, because you now know that the length of a game is only as long (or short) as you want it to be.
On the other hand, however…
You could be spending $40 for a demo because people think you were too impatient to wait for the completed title. Sure, you might get hours and hours’ worth of enjoyment out of the game, but maybe you don’t have the money to spend. You had just enough money in your budget for one Metal Gear Solid experience. Now you have to miss out on one of those experiences.
It’s easy to point at the price tag of Metal Gear Solid: Ground Zeroes, listen to the claims of play time, and proclaim it an “overpriced demo.” For some, this might actually be the case. But remember: the length of a game is only as long (or short) as you want it to be. In addition, the value of a game (or demo) is also as much as you want it to me. We’re still a ways off from Metal Gear Solid V. If you’re really afraid of missing out on Ground Zeroes because of the price tag, I’m sure it’ll be in a discount bin sometime in the future.
