Hell Let Loose has shown a trailer for the update “Devotion to Duty,” which fans find so bad that the developers apologized for it.
What kind of shooter is this?
- Hell Let Loose is a hardcore shooter developed by Team 17
- In gameplay, Hell Let Loose is somewhat like the anti-Battlefield. While the shooter also focuses on large battles with up to 100 players, it emphasizes strategy and communication.
- As a hardcore shooter, Hell Let Loose relies on realism and dispenses with any aids like a crosshair, hit markers, or kill confirmations.
- On Steam, Hell Let Loose had an average of 7,400 concurrent players in May 2023 and was able to increase player numbers compared to May 2022.
- Additionally, 86% of over 65,000 ratings for Hell Let Loose on Steam are positive, and it is considered a kind of hidden gem among shooter fans.
Which trailer is in question? In June, several gaming events took place, such as the Summer Game Fest, where numerous trailers were shown. Among them was the “PC Gaming Show 2023.” There, Team 17 showed a new trailer for Hell Let Loose, which introduced the upcoming update “Devotion to Duty.”
Part of the update is supposed to be a new game mode that is shorter and faster than the usual “Hell Let Loose” matches and includes only 25 players per team. In the standard mode, up to 100 players compete against each other on historical battlefields.
You can watch the trailer from the PC Gaming Show 2023 here:
What do players say about the trailer? The community of Hell Let Loose is anything but thrilled with the trailer and is passing a harsh judgment. Some find the trailer simply ugly, while others find it shameful. Overall, there is a lot of criticism (via YouTube):
- Bipolaroo: “I think I speak for a large part of the community when I say that this is single-handedly one of the worst trailers for the game ever released. How can you make it look so bad?” – 885 likes
- nachode8007: “[…] Let’s hope their skills in game development are better than in making trailers.” -774 likes
- shrenko: As a long-time ‘Hell Let Loose’ player, that was really very embarrassing. – 407 likes
- Omega59er: “This trailer is a disgrace. Team17 should be ashamed to have sent this to PCGamer to show it to 25,000+ people.” – 213 likes
Overall, the mood in the community is currently not so rosy. Recent ratings on Steam are only at 57% – very low compared to the strong 86% that Hell Let Loose has been able to gather over the past years.
Many fans accuse the development team of not caring about the game. One player even writes on Steam: “This was one of those ‘rough diamond’ games […] but it is time to realize that the developers/publishers (Team17) do not care about this game.”
Hell Let Loose also has really cool or at least less failed trailers:
Developers apologize: “We are sorry”
What do the developers say? After the harsh criticism of the new trailer, the developers are now speaking out. In a statement released on Steam, they write that they are sorry and apologize for the disappointment:
We are sorry. We had hoped to present an exciting and engaging trailer for our next update ‘Devotion to Duty’, but unfortunately, we did not meet expectations. We understand that you were eagerly anticipating the trailer, and we deeply apologize for the disappointment, frustration, and feeling of disappointment in the community.
Team 17 via Steam
In the statement, the development team also addresses the currently generally difficult state of the game and says they are working to improve the player experience but are progressing more slowly with the core gameplay and meta than planned. In the future, they want to learn better from player feedback.
Not only the anti-Battlefield has a difficult situation, the real Battlefield has also been struggling since its release to win back its disappointed fans. At least the new season trailer is well received:
