Bungie Weekly Update 4/18/14 (Destiny)

by Schooly D, TSD Gaming Condo, TX, Monday, April 21, 2014, 14:49 (3868 days ago) @ yakaman

Technically the summer starts on June 21, though I wouldn't mind an advanced week or so. You know... for science.

Dammit. Hold on a second...

<...re-calibrates expectations...>

Alright, how about late June then? Although, how long will the beta be, I wonder? I was thinking months long, but I guess that doesn't make much sense.

Maybe 3-4 weeks, like all of July? Then, tweaks through August before release September 9.

The TSD Chronolology Crew has already done the heavy lifting and made the definitive guesstimate on this issue here.

I'd like to revise the prediction, though, and place more emphasis on the BF4-style "beta" I mention in the last paragraph. That is, a beta that is a small portion of a 99% finished game and amounts to what is basically a network test a couple of weeks prior to full release.

Bungie were already way behind schedule when they pushed the release date back to 9/9, and I don't think things have much improved. Especially with Marty's departure and their rumored lack of preparation to fill the hole, they need all the time they can get -- I don't think it's feasible for them to produce a solid-enough public beta months ahead of release. Keep in mind that even though betas are advertised as unfinished products, there's still a lot of work involved in wrapping things up and QAing stuff to present a product that doesn't embarrass you. That's work they would rather spend on development.