Craving a taste of Killzone 2 before it hits store shelves at the end of next month? Scoot on down to GameStopand put down at least $5 on a pre-order, because that’s the only way you’ll be getting access to the demo.
The whole idea of a demo is try-before-you-buy, not buy-before-you-buy, but GameStop wouldn’t have it any other way. The demo for Guerilla’s upcoming first-person shooter sequel for the PS3 won’t be available on the PlayStation Network for mass public consumption, but will be an exclusive pre-order bonus for GameStop costumers.
There won’t be an alternate form of demo available anywhere else, or at least not until after the game actually comes out. “The demo will be available on the PSN after the game ships, but only through GameStop until then,” a Sony rep told PS3 Fanboy. In that light, this is only truly bad news for the people who are really dying to play the game and can’t wait to try it – the people who, in all likelihood, probably have it pre-ordered already anyway.
Online pre-order costumers will receive an email with a demo access code on February 3rd, while in-store pre-orderers will get receive a “rave card” when they pre-order, as supplies last. In-store cards were available as of yesterday. The demo will most likely be released in February, after the access code emails are sent out to online pre-order customers.
As for the rest of the world, it sounds like PAL region gamers won’t have to deal with any of these shenanigans. An insider source told videogaming247 that it’s unlikely to happen in the UK, while Eurogamer reported that if the demo clears quality assurance in time, it’ll most likely be out and available for all before Killzone 2‘s official release date.
