The Friday Debate – Happy Trails

That ‘History of Videogames LittleBigPlanet 2 trailer’ was amazing. I love old-skool games;)

Killzone 3

clips of the game itself are all i want to see in a trailer. I like to know what it’s trying to sell me. So many ads these days have to say ‘not actual game footage’, usually nintendo ones to probably cover up the awful graphics in their systems games.

Metal Gear Solid 2 and Shadow of the Colossus.
I think I spent more time re-watching the trailers, waiting for release, then the actual time spent playing it..

The problem is that it only gets harder and harder to live up to expectations. I think GT5 was nearly spoiled by that (for me), although that game hasn’t left my PS3 since release

Just nostalgia’d hard with Pandemonium trailer, used to love playing that over and over :p, can just remember the giant skull from the level for some reason.

Anyway I’d agree with #3 Carnivius, I prefer to watch trailers that actually show real gameplay, if a trailer just shows some CGI that isn’t even showing what the game looks like or how it plays I’m not interested and will turn it off.

I love the Deus Ex: Human Revolution trailers from last year, and the recent Killzone 3 story trailer. They have great dramatic buildups, with some fantastic music aswell.

James can you do us a favor? Tell Ross there is quite a number of us waiting on Mass Effect 2 to be available to download and we would be most grateful to be able to play it tonight on its release day.

I think that to make a great trailer, it should have a great music, include a bit about what is the game about (gameplay) and it’s set pieces, but careful so it doesn’t reveal to much.

The Killzone 3 Story is a good trailer.

This Dead Space 2 trailer is also great. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=776fi2I8e6U

And I think this Splinter Cell Conviction trailer is truly brilliant.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ba0vkxZ3d2c

I think that these 3 trailers show how a trailer should be and what it should have.

Good music which ties with the overall theme of the game is essential for a good trailer. The latest Killzone 3 trailer, Heavy Rain Gamescom ’09 trailer and God of War 3 launch trailer are perfect examples.
I’d also say a link to past incarnations can serve spectacular results, in particular, the Bionic Commando trailer 1 (the only one in the PS Store). Any fan of the original was surely mesmerised… shame it didn’t have great success, possibly due to the lack of advertising (that one trailer was in the store more than a year before release).

A good trailer needs a really powerful soundtrack some amazing CGI and if its a good looking game some gameplay. Good example Heavy Rain, KZ3 justice trailer

I loved the infamous 2 trailers, they really set out the feel of the game with that new orleans song

hey sorry for posting this here, not sure who to contact … the trophies for Time Machine: Rogue Pilot are not synching with the server. i think the game just needs to be added to list of games that available to sync?

Off topic I know but I just wanted to add some thoughts on the rumour that there are plans to implement a serial key security system. My main reaction is please don’t. However if you do decide to do it in the end then please don’t make it a chore, get one of your innovative developers to come up with a fun way of entering them. Whether a game where you walk an avatar through a series of marked doors in a particular order or something else. Just don’t repeat the PC fiasco of entering a 16 digit number to install a game. I really hope this is just a rumour though.

Trailers are just marketing ploys and so they interest me NILL. info > advertising

@Robert-Ninja; Erm… what? That statement is really messed up in so many ways: ‘marketing ploys’? Really? What part of the presentation of trailers leads you to brand them as a ploy? In no manner are they being underhanded/devious, their purpose isn’t hidden whatsoever. I hope you just meant something else, just a poor choice of words!?
Other than that, ‘info>advertising’? What better info is there than actually seeing and hearing footage of the actual game? On top of that, every piece of info you read/hear about a game is a form of advertising. I’m assuming on this one, you simply mean you get ‘less’ info from a trailer (even which is dependant on perspective)!?

@Project2insanity

ploy
–noun
1.
a maneuver or stratagem, as in conversation, to gain the advantage.

Maybe there could have been better words to use but they’re not exactly invalid to my point, either. Advertisements are by their very nature devious. Trailers may or may not give enough information to the player about the game. Perhaps not the right information like a trailer with just cutscene or even those teaser ones. They’re there to appeal to the mass and mainstream and from this, I do not care for them – but video footage is good for a game it just doesn’t need to be media-processed for audience… Things feel ick after coming out from that process (imo)

['What better info is there than actually seeing and hearing footage of the actual game?']

Do not confuse video footage with… A trailer means it’s going to have to appeal to a large audience whether or not it represents the game accurately and trailers, especially for movies… have a very predictable format that turns out appealing to the (average) viewer. cont…

Trailers often make a game look better than it is even if it’s lame. I speak as a video game enthusiast so all I care about are interviews with producers directors and staff members of a game as well as tech examples to audience. Example, Harada-San has been putting out a lot of info on Tekken Tag 2 with… cont… videos showing the new tag system, talking to them and getting their opinions as well as answering many questions or on fan-radio shows (that are not mainstream and appeal to a small population of the market that advertising team take care of). I know more about that game now before its release than any of the marketing ever will let me know or cares to inform people. Trailers are not about informing, they’re about attracting and it just doesn’t work on me + I don’t care for it. I don’t need it all wrapped up with a soundtrack and short tv-applicable length. I’m interested in the games I want enough as it is, I’m not a causal gamer who buys this years ‘best’ games said by reviewers who are all bought and payed for to say whatever their sponsors want.

cont…
['On top of that, every piece of info you read/hear about a game is a form of advertising.']

No, it’s not. Granted, it all ties into market economics since they are technically products but conversation and information about such things is not directly advertising. Example, the specs for a ps3 system are not advertised ANYWHERE by SONY but I know what they are and they may or may not lead me to buy the console. I don’t think wikipedia is ‘advertising’ me info about hardware I look up but meh… getting kinda off topic heh.

Thanks for replying to me, Project2insanity – I love talking about this stuff and getting decent and challenging responses I think the ‘debate’ in the Friday debate is left out a lot XD

@Robert-Ninja; Agreed, the debate aspect really is needed more. Speaking of which…
I did say it’s all a ‘form’ of advertising and I sure can argue that but you’re right in saying that’s off-topic. What advertising is may be another debate altogether…
If trailers weren’t made to look great then there’d be little point of them. There’s no question their purpose is to advertise but in respect to their use to consumers, they can convey the whole atmosphere of a game within two or three minutes as opposed to one, such as you or me, searching and monitoring progress over weeks, months or even years.
The trailer’s usually the first glimpse of the game in motion to the public. Let’s say it looks like Hannah Montana (I know I’m stretching that example), I’d rather not spend any further time researching that as opposed to the other way round…

The other part I’d like to say is with respect to developer conferences. Developers don’t generally say bad things about their titles, the purpose being the same as trailers- to sell.
The audience opinion is a very strong part of your argument but I’d need to say I won’t take someone’s word that a game is good, we all must reserve judgement for ourselves in the end. A prime example for me is Bionic Commando (the 3D one). I feel that’s an absolutely marvellous game but almost anything written said it’s mediocre at best. The original trailer (at 2.5 minutes in length) showed me what to expect and I love it.
A last example is the God of War launch trailer. That’s a perfect demonstration of the game. Surely you don’t disagree with that?

I actually don’t remember that trailer and I also don’t really dig the GoW series all that much.

And anyway – sure people can get a kick out of trailers – I won’t argue that. The DMC4 trailers had some music in them and I love the DMC series a lot for it’s insanely good soundtracks of techno and hardcore rock + industrial so I would listen to the trailers over and over and began to like even the fighting and dialogue along with it. It’s very easy to like anything about a trailer for a game that you like and games in general but trailers in and of themselves interest me very little usually and I actually avoid them when I can. The last trailer I watched was for Dead Space 2 and only because someone wanted me to give my opinion on it in a forum.

But anyway, my disposition leaves me dislike trailers in general and so I don’t have a favourite… although I do like the SH2 traiiers cause they have the music + scenes of gameplay that never made it into the final cut.

Fair do’s; enjoy a trailer for what it is- a trailer. It’s obvious we won’t agree on their full use but a nice resolution there.

one has to be the trailer for Bioshock Infinite – esp as the first time I saw I had no idea that another one was coming

some others…

Fallout 3, I watched that one over and over until the release

and as I have the other console will have to add Metro 2033, Gears of War 3, and Left 4 Dead series esp the one for 2 zombies in N’awlins certainly hope the rumours are true and Valve releases them via steam for the ps3 because IMHO the L4D series were the best games to ever be released on that travesty of a console (errr can I say that?)

Holy [DELETED] yes! Pandemonium! was great. I’d love to see a remake

can anyone help me just logged in 2 home and all my bought things are dissapeard from home even in navigator purchased items r vanished but my rewards r still there but dont know how 2 get my apartments clothing back pls help

@Mr Gallagher; Depends on what you class as late. You arrived when the cleaning was sweeping up the streamers…
I think I can shorten your reply too, ahem: “Project2insanity was right!” *RUNS*