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Nothing builds up anticipation and hype quite like a reveal trailer for a new video game. Whether it’s an existing franchise waiting for a new entry or an entirely new franchise altogether. The cinematic trailers are brilliant at engaging audiences and teasing them about what could be soon in their hands.
However, some games go too far on their trailers, and treat audiences to what is more of a great cinematic experience, than a fun gaming one. There’s nothing more underwhelming than witnessing a gorgeous, movie-quality trailer, only to play the game and feel entirely disappointed.
11 Halo 5
A new entry into the beloved franchise of Halo. The reveal of Halo 5 promised fans a mystery, and a great new journey for Master Chief. We open on a sand planet. A hooded figure watches as architecture bursts from the sand, revealing an ominous and ghastly structure.
With a boom, a force knocks back the hood from the stranger, to reveal the one and only Master Chief. Fans were ecstatic to see where this game would go, but were once again left disappointed with the story, and felt somewhat cheated out of what could have been a great game.
10 Fallout 76
Helmed by the renowned Todd Howard of Elder Scrolls fame, and pioneering a new game in the Fallout series, a true dream for many players. Who could forget the selling point, a multiplayer Fallout game?
With a beautiful rendition of Take Me Home, Country Roads, and a slow pan across different environments awaiting players to explore with the same enthusiasm as most Bethesda titles. The game promised to rebuild America together, a future beginning with you. Sadly, the game launched in a less-than-positive state, demanding microtransactions to progress through a buggy wasteland. Luckily, many updates later, Fallout 76 is enjoyed by the many who consider it worth trying.
9 DC Universe Online
One of the greatest things DC has ever produced, the cinematic trailer for their new game was utterly incredible in detail, action, and drama. The trailer wasn’t ashamed to show off the DC mythos, with a plethora of famed heroes and villains at total war. It also wasn’t ashamed to give characters a brutal and violent death.
DC Universe Online delivered a great gaming experience for fans of MMOs who have an extensive love for all things DC. The game is regularly updated with new gear and missions inspired by the comics, and soon a graphical update. However, fans who knew nothing about this game would have expected an immersive Justice League game, and not an MMO.
8 Destiny
Bungie finally revealed its bold new franchise after years of teasing and mystery: Destiny. Marvel Studios' Iron Man director, Jon Favreau, directed the trailer which featured The Mandalorian's Giancarlo Esposito. The trailer features the three classes: a Hunter, Titan, and Warlock.
The characters group up, showing their different abilities and skills as they venture across The Moon and then to Mars. Their power and teamwork inspire and excites. The game made us believe we were in for a solar system-spanning adventure with friends. However, the game’s release was underwhelming with a story that didn’t engage, a lack of things to do, and a priority on overpowered loot.
7 Overkill’s The Walking Dead
There was a lot of hype surrounding Overkill’s game in The Walking Dead universe. Every few weeks, a character would receive a beautiful cinematic trailer. The detail in each shot was something out of a movie, and the story that these trailers continued was on par with the show. Fans were confident that we were going to get an emotional and gripping game that could be the more mature and serious Left 4 Dead.
Upon release, what fans got was an underwhelming game. The story didn’t stick in anyone’s mind and lacked the entertainment and emotional impact to remember. According to devs, the game was always doomed to fail.
6 Duke Nukem: Forever
Announced and delayed for over a decade, the latest entry into the beloved Duke Nukem franchise finally received a promising reveal, complete with a release date and a show of gameplay. The trailer was a splendor of early 2000s mayhem. From female nudity to an array of explosions and gunfire. The trailer is ripe with violence, cursing, and genital jokes.
There was much promised in the trailer. An abundance of war, new weapons, vehicles, and fun. Sadly, fans were left disappointed with Duke’s outing, and were underwhelmed that they had waited many years for the King to triumph, but fell flat, with nothing much to offer.
5 Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2
This cinematic trailer for The Force Unleashed 2 includes everything a Star Wars fan could want. From the voiceover of Yoda to the breathing of Darth Vader. Both voices plague the hooded protagonist, showing audiences his conflict with his place with the dark side and the light. Everything around him is being crushed with the force, showing his uncontrolled power.
Fans are delighted to see the return of Starkiller played by Sam Witwer, and even more delighted to see the ignition of dual lightsabers, as he charges toward a monster big enough to make a Rancor look like a chicken. The game faltered, and there are things to love, but it left us underwhelmed.
4 Anthem
EA and BioWare once again team up to create a new experience for players. Upon its reveal, Anthem could be summed up as Destiny meets Iron Man. What’s not to love? The intense power of teamwork and armor, in which the characters on screen fly around and collide fists with aliens.
The game had great-looking environments, character designs, and a promise of exciting gameplay and teamwork. The result upon release was lacking, and so much potential was left squandered. Fans were disappointed that Anthem never got the fix that Destiny did, and EA decided to leave Anthem in the rubble soon after.
3 Aliens: Colonial Marines
With an intense, atmospheric yet bleak environment, Aliens: Colonial Marines opened its trailer with a reminder to fans of the Alien franchise just how scary, deadly, and overwhelming the Xenomorph horde could be. Marines clamor for weaponry to protect themselves and each other from the alien threat. The camera for this trailer constantly pans down to the lower levels, showing how each floor of this structure isn’t safe.
Sadly, the game itself was met with overwhelming negativity. After countless delays, gamers received an unpolished experience, ripe with bugs and glitches upon release, with an AI of both marines and aliens ruining many gamers’ times and throwing them out of the immersive world.
2 Dark Souls 2
The cinematic trailer for Dark Souls 2 promised a much more story-orientated title, with an armored knight venturing through unknown lands, and battling unknown assailants. The trailer seemed in line with the Souls brand, with the character being near death in multiple battles throughout.
A controversial entry into the beloved Dark Souls franchise by From Software. Dark Souls 2 divided fans for its change of mechanics, somewhat clunky action, and lack of an innovative, interconnected level system. The game has many fans, and some believe it is not underwhelming, or a bad entry into the Souls franchise. Dark Souls 2 has aspects to love and dislike.
1 Dead Island
Audiences were gripped from the start by the emotional impact that this trailer begins with. The camera pans out to show a deceased little girl. It’s horrible, striking imagery that fits the tone for the harsh realities of a zombie outbreak. The trailer shows the events that transpire in reverse. Featuring a mother and father protecting their daughter from zombies.
The trailer has millions of views, and is remembered fondly as a great short film, but not so much as a great game. The trailer makes you feel for characters you will never see again, yet the characters you find or play in Dead Island are forgettable, as is the stale gameplay and story.