That's going to be the case with the upcoming demo for Killzone 2. As seen on Destructoid, it sounds like access to the game's demo will only be possible prior to the game's release if you pre-order the game from everyone's least favorite game retailer, GameStop. So in order to get the thing that's supposed to help you decide if the game is right for you or not... you need to swear your allegiance to a specific retailer and claim that you'll buy the game from them. How perfectly backwards. Apparently this is only applicable in the States, and Europe will get the demo properly as a regular PSN download. And it's been confirmed that the demo will become properly available down the road, after the game has been released.
So it's not a permanent screw job on the part of some wheeler/dealer looking to ensure Killzone gets a bit more face time at GameStop by giving them a primo exclusive item. But is taking that kind of risk with what's easily the company's biggest exclusive release since Metal Gear Solid 4 smart? I ain't no businessman, but if I were Sony, I'd be trying to get as many people as possible to play or see Killzone 2. I'd be practically forcing the demo to download onto consoles. I'd be including it with Blu-Ray movies. I'd be stuffing it into bags of cereal along with a note that says "WE THINK THIS MIGHT BE THE BEST GAME WE'VE RELEASED ON THE PS3 SO FAR AND HOPEFULLY YOU'LL AGREE AND IMMEDIATELY PRE-ORDER A COPY."
Maybe Sony just assumes that Killzone 2's success is pre-determined. Considering it's shipping into a largely empty release window, that's not too unbelievable. Of course, one could argue that the people who don't pre-order games might not be the type who rush out and buy a game on day one, so by the time word of the game's existence filters down to their casually gaming ears, said demo will already be widely available. For the rest of us, perhaps a European PSN account would come in handy next month.