What's better: demos or gibs? Rock Paper Shotgun Support us Join our newsletter Visit our store Sign in / Create account If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy. What's better: demos or gibs? Vote now in our mission to help decide the single best thing Feature by Alice O'Connor Associate Editor Published on July 20, 2022 67 comments With your help, I'm on a mission to answer the biggest question: what's the best thing in video games? With a wholly sensical face-off between two things each week, we'll surely soon discover the absolute best thing. Last time, you decided that bullet time is better than sex cutscenes. I was alarmed by how close this result was. We continue with another question of bits, picking playing bits of a game or seeing bits of a body. What's better: demos or gibs? Demos What use is a good thing in a game if you don't know it has a good thing? So play the demo, yeah? If it has one, these days. I've been glad to see a minor revival through the Steam Next Fest as well as frequent free trial weekends of whole games, games too big to shave a sliver off. I have bought so many games after playing the demo. More than letting me know if I wanted to buy individual games, demos are what got me into games at all. The third game I played (after Podd and Solitaire) was a shareware copy of Doom 2, the first game that made me really curious about what wonders could be crammed inside computers. From there I tore through demo discs and shareware, being introduced to whole genres, discovering whole histories. Thanks, demos. Gibs The constituent components of the human body, video games teach us, are as follows: one (1) skull; two (2) spines; three (3) ribs; one (1) miscellaneous bone; two (2) hearts; four (4) nondescript chunks of flesh and organs. We know this from gibs, the little meaty chunks, bits, bones, and giblets which corpses explode into in some games. They are ridiculous, and they're great. I like when video games do daft things just because they can. I like when games get inspired by other games doing daft things, and repeat the daft things themselves. What could be dafter than people exploding into an unlikely grab bag of meat and bones? Other than cleaning up the viscera with your pals. But which is better I am too puerile to pick the correct option, though I can't quite bring myself to come out against the silly option. You'll have to decide this one. Pick your winner, vote in the poll below, make your case in the comments to convince others, then we'll reconvene next week to see which thing stands triumphant-and continue the great contest. To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings To see this content please enable targeting cookies. Manage cookie settings More Features What are we all playing this weekend? Well? Alice O'Connor an hour ago 21 You're probably better than me at One Many Nobody You go on without… uh, you? Sin Vega 17 hours ago Have You Played... Star Trek Online? Boldly going where no PC has gone before CJ Wheeler 17 hours ago 27 Supporter podcast - The Nate Files episode 13: dry bones Bad science is also FUN science! Alice Bell 18 hours ago Latest Articles What are we all playing this weekend? Well? Alice O'Connor an hour ago 21 Past Wordle answers Here's an archive of previous Wordle words Ollie Toms 2 hours ago 1 Wordle answer today (Saturday 15 October) Hints and the answer to today's Wordle word Rebecca Jones 9 hours ago Overwatch 2 hero tier list Which are the best heroes in Overwatch 2? Ollie Toms 16 hours ago Supporters Only You're probably better than me at One Many Nobody You go on without… uh, you? Sin Vega 17 hours ago Supporter podcast - The Nate Files episode 13: dry bones Bad science is also FUN science! Alice Bell 18 hours ago Japanese dating show Love Wagon has surprising parallels with Yakuza and Persona My new obsession Ed Thorn 2 days ago If you're hankering after Bayonetta 3, Valkyrie Elysium might be a good substitute It's not out on PC until next month, but the console demo has been a surprise charmer Katharine Castle 1 week ago 4 We've been talking, and we think that you should wear clothes Total coincidence, but we sell some clothes Buy RPS stuff here