Puzzle Bobble Everybubble! "Limited-Time" Demo Arrives On Switch eShop

I couldn't get past the title screen because the demo checks whether you have an active NSO subscription. When I set the console to flight mode, it wouldn't allow me to proceed either.

What the hell were they thinking?!

Does the full version do this too?!

This was going to be a day one buy, but now I'm tempted not to grab it at all out of spite for placing such a ridiculous imposition upon a demo.

EDIT: The eShop page didn't make any mention of this requirement either. If the "special demo" merely offers a sampling of an online mode, then they should have made it a separate "app" (so to speak) that specified that fact in its product description as opposed to making this downloadable as a normal demo via the full game's eShop page as I was left completely in the dark when I downloaded this last night, and I suspect that a lot of other potential customers will be too.

But why is it limited-time?

Just got done with a few rounds. I could see the wife and I losing a lot of time to this, lol.

I was excited to try before realizing it was just NSO. What garbage.

@HammerGalladeBro Because they want you to buy the game. In puzzle games like this, the demo basically has the full gameplay.

Imo all games, in order to qualify to get onto the eshop, should have a demo available.

I bought this last night and I am having the best goddamn time with it. Proper nostalgia trip.

My only complaint is that so far I haven't found stages with the original background music in them yet.

So that’s why this isn’t on PS5… Was looking forward to this but if it’s NSO only, I think I’ll pass.

@Ironcore This! And preferably a demo that lets you carry over your data to the full game.

@HammerGalladeBro With the demo being Online, it crams all the demo users into a manageable timeframe, and means that, for the most part, there's likely going to be other online players to play against.

If it weren't a limited time, you might have a completely void of no players to play against, then a sudden influx around the holiday period when people have the free time to try it out.
By forcing everyone to play within a limited timeframe, it makes it a better experience. .. In theory, assuming the server can handle it

@sanderev : Hence why I thought the Puyo Puyo Tetris demos were so ridiculous. If all one is after is bog-standard Tetris (and/or Puyo Puyo), then it's essentially a free download, and for a lot of people, I imagine that the rest of the content isn't compelling enough to warrant a AU$60 purchase. Furthermore, PPT2 is perhaps one of the most superfluous (and "samey") sequels ever made (but I'm such a Tetris sucker that it didn't dissuade me, so perhaps I'm part of the problem ).

@Ironcore : I disagree to a point. I don't think ALL games need a demo. If subsequent instalments in a series are very similar to the previous one (and is available on the same hardware), then the older demo should give players a good enough idea about what to expect and to allow potential customers to gauge whether or not they will enjoy the full experience. For instance, the fact that most of the Picross games have their own unique demos is frankly ridiculous. Once you've played one, you've played them all, so to speak (and likewise of the Puyo Puyo Tetris demos I mentioned earlier).

Out-of-the-box/experimental games, I think, perhaps benefit the most from demos, at least from a consumer point of view, but developers also run the risk of turning off potential customers who, ironically, may have bought the game if they hadn't played the demo at all (and there has been several occasions where this has happened to me).

Producing demos also costs money in development time/resources, and this can be prohibitive for smaller publishers/developers, hence why they are relatively uncommon, especially with gaming development being a much more expensive endeavour than in the past (though they are much easier to distribute).

I also don't like demos that are overly long as I don't want to invest any more than 1-2 hours into a demo only to have to go through all of that content again. While it's nice for save data carry over to the full game, I actually prefer to play the game from scratch if I happen to buy the full version.

Love Puzzle Bobble so will surely get this! I enjoyed the previous Switch one too, I only bought it coz they are so cute, but it is really fun

I have to admit the demo is very limited indeed. I bought the full game and it is excellent. Looks gorgeous on the Oled Switch. It is the first really good new Puzzle Bobble game we got for a looong time.

Urgh, it's fun and all but why is the music so bland and generic compared to the old games? Not just from the demo but YouTube clips of the full game... Puzzle Bobble 2 in particular had an amazing soundtrack This orchestrated music doesn't fit in the slightest.

I know it might sound funny to some you but that's kind of a deal breaker to me and puts me off getting it. Music is a massive selling point of puzzle games like this to me.

@HammerGalladeBro there is a marketing called “false scarcity” it may be that? Gets people involved and engaged fast so they can brag to their share holders , plan a financial future model and generally make people think it’s special as it’s limited time only! Maybe.

@Ironcore @PinderSchloss @ibookboyuk
I'd personally love this too. So many games I've bought are ones I've been sold on thanks to demos, or game trials. I've become less reliant on them to sell me on games over time, but they're generally great. It does seem like at least one publisher has kind of gotten the memo, as aside from Planet of Lana (as far as I know), every Thunderful game gets a Steam demo (sometimes even prior to launch, as with SteamWorld Build and Dr. Fetus' Mean Meat Machine). I hope others follow their lead.