If there's a beta (Early Access), would you play it?

[Jellyfunk]

[DanBevis]

Not sure. I'm new to Steam and haven't tried any beta out [in general], but I feel it'd spoil some of the surprise. Plus the game could change a fair bit once it's actually released.

Also it'd [likely] be bug central...

[Jellyfunk]

Better to have bugs in the early access version than in the final game.

[dotEXE]

[Nightpaws]

If there were to be an Early Access Beta I would definitely consider it, though I would be much more likely to play and enjoy playing through Alpha, and Beta builds of the game to ensure it's up to scratch and get a peek in at the same time too.

Being able to contribute from that early on and suggest changes before things can't be changed further really makes me feel like my efforts have made a better game. Also, the proud feeling you get when you spot and report a game-breaking bug nobody else has noticed is really a great feeling

[Krvavi Abadas]

I'm pretty sure that it's incredibly likely there will be a beta considering there's going to be a Kickstarter. The only catch will be that it's most likely exclusive to Kickstarter and not publicly released (Though i know that a few Kickstarters, like A Hat In Time, had their betas/alphas publicly available for purchase after the Kickstarter ended. No idea if Playtonic will do the same.)

[dotEXE]

I think one of the Kickstarter goals/purposes they mentioned in the Rezzed talk was dedicated testing/QA so they didn't have to go the beta-tester EA route.

[supergardie]

I'm joining team "Nope". As tempting as it is, I agree with wanting to wait til the finished product is ready. I've never played a beta before, and I don't plan on it. I was tempted to try the Hat in Time alpha/beta, but made the same decision. I want to experience the finished thing without really knowing what to expect. I've also been avoiding videos of the beta for A Hat in Time for that very reason, and will likely do the same if there is a beta for Ukulele.

If there is a beta released, this forum is going to need to invest in spoiler tags.

[Taylor]

I would rather they just release the whole game with the promise to patch any game-breaking glitches after the first couple of months (if they are encountered). It would technically be the final game -- they're not adding more content. I'm not sure how likely this is for a multi-platform release though...

I think testing should be an exclusive group of people that release nothing to the public. Literally contract-bound if necessary. Perhaps they could get local people in their area to actually come to a place and play it in-house. Who knows. I just don't want it leaking online.

[Shoegayzer]

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[Krockhead]

I've never been one who wants to get early access for beta builds of games, and I don't think that would change for Ukulele. But it's weird. I'm extremely pumped for the game, and if I were to be offered a chance the play the game ahead of time, you bet your ass I'm jumping on that opportunity. However, that's only if it was just a short demo or something.

Extensively playing a beta would just ruin the experience for me. For one, I'd be playing a relatively significant portion of the game before I get the full experience, thus hampering it when that finally happens. Also, it's incomplete. Granted, demos are as well, but they're prepared specifically. Playing a beta would just get me to associating the game with that initial experience of playing an incomplete product.

That said, I understand that playing betas before the game is released is a lot of people's cup of tea, so I wouldn't mind if Playtonic gave those whose boats are floated by that kind of thing the chance as a Kickstarter reward or something.

[karashata]

Most of the games I've backed on Kickstarter I backed at a high enough tier to get beta access, I'd probably do the same here as well if such a tier was presented.

That said, I would prefer that any beta releases were limited in scope so as not to spoil the game too much, just enough content to tease the game and to have people testing the core mechanics and making sure the game plays and feels just right. If possible, I would hope they avoid spoiling any of the actual story in the beta builds and just have us running through one or two of the early levels with a minimal amount of context as to what's actually going on in the game as a whole.

[DreaminErryDay]

Probably not, I'm a patient guy. I'll wait to play the finished product.

[Aussie Legend]

I wouldn't personally.

[BetterThanYou]

when or if these versions come out, i would not look up a single thing about the game online. too much of a spoiler to play a game now and have to play it again with small extra bits later.

[Jellyfunk]

Early Access is essential for a small team, but they should block off story content until release.

[Enrel]

Eh, I'm not really that big into early access. It kind of kills the game for me. I did for Mighty No 9 and I feel so bad because it's not nearly the Megaman I was hoping and expecting it'd be.

[Exaskryz]

If there were an Early Access Beta, I might never play the game just out of principle. I'm very much against that stuff. It might be alright if you have a truly rookie devs and they are using it as a means of Beta Testing, but Playtonic's experience suggests to me that they have no need to publish a half-baked game. If any serious bugs come about after the game is released, they can release patches across all major platforms.

[GildasMagnus]

For me it depends on how popular the Project gets. If it's still very much unknown I'd play it to help put ideas and constructive criticism forward. If it gets enough publicity I'd rather not play it until actual release.
Edit: I'd be happy to play a tech demo of sorts to try out game mechanics, but not anything including any semblance of plot.

[GrayMagicΓ]

It's not really a spoiler. To me a spoiler is information gathered from a source besides the original format; an article talking about the ending of a movie, a game parodying the end of a book, or a let's play showing the end of a game. Playing a game that's meant to be just that- a game- isn't a spoiler, it's just an incomplete experience.