Publishers invest a lot of money and effort in marketing their games. The gaming trailers should be impressive and the advertisements should be convincing. However, with some buzzwords and clichés, they often exaggerate. Here are 7 of them.
Marketing is a very important matter that can consume huge sums of money. Activision pumped about $200 million into the marketing of CoD: Modern Warfare 2 (2009) with a development budget of only around $40 to $50 million.
Publishers try to present their games as attractive, cool, exciting, and extraordinary as possible. And… they sometimes exaggerate a bit. Gamers are now rather skeptical of grand promises of photorealistic graphics, completely innovative features, and fun for over 700 hours.
Therefore, here are 7 clichés that appear in almost all trailers and gaming commercials that you can really not hear anymore in some cases.
“Content for the next 10 years”
Many gamers have to think carefully about how and where to invest their limited time and money. Games that offer long-term enjoyment or high replay value sound very tempting. It’s a good deal when you invest your money and can spend hundreds of hours in the game.
Multiplayer games and MMOs are usually at the forefront. They are (ideally) continuously supplied with updates that deliver new content. But sometimes, games overwhelm with promises.
Huge roadmaps with content plans for the next 10 years sound rather unbelievable in our time, where games are postponed, canceled, and taken offline every month. And in experience, such games do not survive for 10 years to deliver all the content.
“The largest open world yet!”
Open-world games are not bad in themselves. They have their advantages and their target audience that enjoys playing them. However, in recent years, a slightly megalomaniac trend has emerged in this genre to make them bigger and bigger.
Maps from older games like GTA San Andreas or Skyrim, which are considered huge, are estimated to cover about “meager” 38 km². In comparison, games like Ghost Recon Wildlands with 440 km² and Death Stranding with 596 km² are absolutely gigantic.
However, the vast areas must also be filled with content, and that’s where many gigantic open-world games struggle. Repetitive quests, an influx of icons, and dull side quests do not become more enjoyable just because they are spread across a larger map. Bigger is therefore not always better.
“Dynamic and lively world”
This cliché is usually always used in connection with the open world. Next to the largest maps, the advertisements also boast about how “dynamic” and “lively” the world is. It almost feels real.
Unfortunately, that’s rarely the case. The dynamics often boil down to a day-night cycle and enemies that are only active in certain situations. In some cases, NPCs react to certain scripted changes in the story progression. But as dynamic and lively as it is advertised in trailers, it rarely turns out to be.
Therefore, the promises of “dynamic and lively worlds” have gradually developed into PR speak over time, from which one does not really expect much. But hey, maybe that will change in the future.
“Gripping story”
One of the most frequently used advertising clichés is undoubtedly “Gripping story,” which is also partly because it is used in many other media. Movies and books also employ the catchy phrase that promises fun and excitement.
This phrase is often accompanied by further claims that support it. The characters “embark on an exciting journey full of adventures and dangers!” or they “uncover a conspiracy that will lead all countries into a world war!” and so on.
For this cliché, the promise is kept more often than with some others, also because the excitement lies in the eye of the beholder. Nevertheless, the phrase is used so often in advertising that it now sounds empty.
“Brand new experience”
The “brand new experience” has a strong tendency towards limitless exaggeration, especially in our time. Everything seems to have been done, everything has been seen and experienced before. Hardly anything feels truly new.
Especially the AAA sector often stays in very safe waters of genres and gameplay elements that are already tested and found safe. Calling the next shooter, open-world game, or action RPG a “brand new experience” is… bold.
Unless, of course, the phrase simply refers to a new game. In that case, every game would automatically be such an experience, and the cliché would have no real significance regarding the content of the game.
“Endless possibilities”
The advertising slogan of “endless possibilities” can come in several different versions. There are also phrases like “More freedom than ever before” or “infinite build variety”.
They usually refer to the gameplay elements related to character customization. And while the thought behind it is certainly well-intentioned, the rule applies here, as with the open world, that more is not always better.
And let’s be honest: In the end, there will always be a meta that everyone uses. You won’t escape from that. With it, all the greater freedom and endless skill combinations will also disappear.
“Pre-order now to…”
And finally, at the end of many trailers comes the call to pre-order now. This is not inherently wrong; after all, publishers want people to buy and play their game. However, there is usually a long list of conditions attached.
Because the “Pre-order now…” phrase often continues with “… and secure exclusive skins, avatars, weapons, bonus characters, bundles with rare resources or currencies” and so on. Often there isn’t just one pre-order bonus, but a whole series, depending on which store or country it is pre-ordered from.
When publishers escalate with their preorders, there can also be a shitstorm from the community, as was the case with Deus Ex: Mankind Divided (via Polygon). It is therefore better for everyone involved to keep it grounded.
And what about you? Which clichés, buzzwords, or promises from gaming advertisements can you no longer hear? Tell us in the comments.
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