Making a Game Trailer

Hey there, Gamers and Game makers!

In this week's blog, we're going to talk about making a trailer for your game and cover some tips that will give you a more stand out professional quality video.

First off, why should you care about having a trailer for your game? Well, trailers act as one of the first things people will look for when they hear about your game and you'll need it to create excitement for your game as well as it acting as a call to action. Ok let's break down some key tips for making your game trailer.

1: Short and sweet
In an age where people are consuming media on a continuous basis online, you need to make sure your trailer has a chance of not only being seen but watched in its entirety. To do this, aim to have your trailer no more than one minute long. Make sure to fill these 60 seconds with the best elements and moments from your game so that it showcases the strong points of your game. It should also be very clear what your game is about and what the gameplay is.

2:Don't giveaway to much
It can be tempting to try cram everything into the trailer. To show off every aspect of it to the player. However try to avoid doing this. You'll find people engage more with your game if you tease them with say one really good bit and maintain an air of mystery or suspense in the trailer. This can make the player want to actually play the game in order to get deeper into that mystery and find answers. It's very important to maintain some secrets about your games story.

3:Don't overuse effects
When editing a video, especially a trailer it can be tempting to start going wild with the effects and fancy titles but try to hold back on that. Your trailer is supposed to convey your game in the best possible way and once you start going over the top with effects and titles or transitions, you run the risk of taking away from your game which ends of doing more harm than good. For a trailer like this where you only have 60 seconds, open simply with a logo or splash for the game and company if applicable. If your trailer doesn't require a lot of text or transitions in the trailer then don't force them into it. Keep it simple.

4: Avoid using VO unless it's needed
We've all heard some pretty bad trailer VOs and the main problem with a bad VO is that it can take away from what might be a really good game but because the VO was cringy it made me stop watching a trailer for a game I might have been interested in. So unless your game trailer really needs a VO, avoid using one and if you do really need one I would advise going the extra mile on that by trying to budget for a professional VO actor.

5:Let folks know where to find your game!
One huge mistake I notice in some indie game trailers is that the trailer itself can be great and the game will look fantastic but at the end of the trailer I'm left with no information at all. I've no idea when the game is coming out or where I can get it and sometimes I'm not even told the name of the game. So it's hugely important to have a call to action at the end of your games trailer. Make sure at the end of the trailer it's clear where I can find out more information about the game and how I can keep up to date on it's development.

As always I hope this has been of some use and if you have any questions, feel free to get in touch or leave a comment below.

​Until next time!