Masahiro Sakurai, the game director and designer probably best known for creating the Super Smash Bros. And Kirby series, has spoken publicly about what he believes is an effective video game trailer. The verdict? “Go to the real game as soon as possible.”
In a new video posted on his YouTube channel, ‘Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games’, Sakurai advised listeners not to make trailers that take too long to get to the point, which he believes is actual in-game footage.
“Sometimes the trailer has an opening cinematic or character intros that go on and on, and it takes forever to get to the part where they show the actual gameplay,” he said. “In some cases, trailers such as those on a game’s Steam page may not show any gameplay footage at all. Please do not do that! And Pleaseget to the real game as soon as possible!”
Expanding on this, Sakurai added that he has “almost developed a habit of skipping the beginning of most trailers altogether” due to the amount of lengthy introductions and logos that often precede the juicy bits.
He admitted that popular series are more likely to get away with omitting in-game footage from their trailers, but encouraged those working on new IP or indie games to get in on the action straight away. “We can find out more about the story and world of the game later. (…) Just hurry up and show what makes your game attractive,” he added.
There’s no doubt that this is a popular sentiment among many in the gaming community. While there are exceptions, there is often a heightened sense of excitement surrounding a game’s first in-game footage rather than its first CGI teasers.
Do you want to stay informed about the game releases for the rest of the year? Be sure to take a look at our overview upcoming matchesas well as our list of upcoming Switch games, to see what’s on the horizon.