Originally posted by Kim _Kaphwan:
<strong>well if it's legit, will i get to keep the beta copy?</strong><hr></blockquote>
Usually it is done in one of two ways. One they give you access to a secure server. You download the game, play it, etc... when you encounter a bug there is a short form to fill out send to the development team. Usually, these game demos are only in the beta phase of the game, and there are at most two or three builds that are released to the public.
The second way is getting the CD in the mail, sometimes they ask for these CDs back, but that is more hassle then it is worth.
Just to let you know, I have set up External testing many times at my company, and basicly the reason it is done is for sanity checking of a product. They release a build that is pretty stable and close to release, then wait to see if there are any glaring issues reported. At the same time the team is working on a zero bug build and getting ready for GM testing. External Test is a good opertunity for weird configuration bugs to be caught.
When you sign up for an external test, if it is real, you will be asked to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA), if you are not asked to sign one of these, it is probably a scam. Also, public betas are usually limited and internally serialised, so if you pass it around the net it can be tracked back to a particular group of people (so, I wouldn't go uploading it if you ever want to beta test for the company again... hehe, I have had so many people post our shit).
Anyway participate in the public beta if you get a chance... usually if you find a show stopper bug that the company has not seen yet, or just a really good little one, you will get something nice (we give away a copy of the software and sometimes $50 as well... decent if you ask me).
Anyway, just sharing what I know,
-Nick
