Game trailers are about as representative of games as all the washing powder ads are representative of well... an actual washing powder.
Also, both tend to be pretty insulting treating me like a total moron.
Originally posted by nethaniah
Seriously Farmville? Yeah I think it's great. In a World where half our population is dying of hunger the more fortunate half is spending their time harvesting food that doesn't exist.
Cinematic trailers are designed to convey the mood or feeling of the game.
Gameplay trailers are designed to show the gameplay.
The former operates on the same level as a movie trailer, and the latter seems to be pretty straightforward.
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein "Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
Yes, they do. All of them. They all feature dramatic music featuring a massed choir and heavy, doom-laden orchestral chords, a CGI movie ostensibly about what the game is supposed to be about, yet which bears absolutely no relation to actual gameplay... Yep, that's game trailers.
The best answer I can give is "some times." Not every development team is guilty but some do sell you on a dramatic story that might be awesome but doesn't truly relate to what your character ends up doing in game or how it really plays. Two MMORPGs were notoriously bad for this in recent times.
Both are awesome, dramatic, story introductions, released "as trailers" that don't actually represent play in any way. I wish they had made movies out of both often but they don't click as game trailers.
Then you have a company like Gearbox that seems to get it right every time with their trailers mixing story, gameplay, and content just right to present an exciting vision of what you are actually getting into.
i think we need to separate cinematic trailer and actually game trailer.
A cinematic trailer is designed to convey a feel for the "world" of the game and is usually in no way shape or form representative of the gameplay. And that is ok. It is not designed to to be.
a "game trailer" on the other hand should try and stay as true to actual gameplay as marketing will let it. It is after all designed to sell the consumer on the actually game and not the world.
But even with that being said, yes i think studios polish their game trailers a tad bit to much, leading to people feeling "betrayed" when the game does not live up to the trailer.
I love the living heck out of good cinematic trailers like the ones produced by Blizzard or Square Enix.
Cinematic trailers are designed to convey the mood or feeling of the game.
Gameplay trailers are designed to show the gameplay.
The former operates on the same level as a movie trailer, and the latter seems to be pretty straightforward.
Agreed.
I've always seen cinematic trailers as both a marketing tool and (as you said) and outlet to convey the mood (sometimes setting) of the game. They are fun to watch most of the time, but I often wonder if they are worth the effort to make. A crew with a game demo at a convention (in this industry) will generate more exposure than a single cinematic trailer will. As to whether the cinematic trailers are overly dramatized, welcome to modern media.
Comments
Game trailers are about as representative of games as all the washing powder ads are representative of well... an actual washing powder.
Also, both tend to be pretty insulting treating me like a total moron.
Cinematic trailers are designed to convey the mood or feeling of the game.
Gameplay trailers are designed to show the gameplay.
The former operates on the same level as a movie trailer, and the latter seems to be pretty straightforward.
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
"Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
The best answer I can give is "some times." Not every development team is guilty but some do sell you on a dramatic story that might be awesome but doesn't truly relate to what your character ends up doing in game or how it really plays. Two MMORPGs were notoriously bad for this in recent times.
SWTOR
DCUO
Both are awesome, dramatic, story introductions, released "as trailers" that don't actually represent play in any way. I wish they had made movies out of both often but they don't click as game trailers.
Then you have a company like Gearbox that seems to get it right every time with their trailers mixing story, gameplay, and content just right to present an exciting vision of what you are actually getting into.
Borderlands 2
i think we need to separate cinematic trailer and actually game trailer.
A cinematic trailer is designed to convey a feel for the "world" of the game and is usually in no way shape or form representative of the gameplay. And that is ok. It is not designed to to be.
a "game trailer" on the other hand should try and stay as true to actual gameplay as marketing will let it. It is after all designed to sell the consumer on the actually game and not the world.
But even with that being said, yes i think studios polish their game trailers a tad bit to much, leading to people feeling "betrayed" when the game does not live up to the trailer.
I love the living heck out of good cinematic trailers like the ones produced by Blizzard or Square Enix.
This have been a good conversation
Agreed.
I've always seen cinematic trailers as both a marketing tool and (as you said) and outlet to convey the mood (sometimes setting) of the game. They are fun to watch most of the time, but I often wonder if they are worth the effort to make. A crew with a game demo at a convention (in this industry) will generate more exposure than a single cinematic trailer will. As to whether the cinematic trailers are overly dramatized, welcome to modern media.