5 Ways to Tell a Game Won’t Live Up to Its Own Hype

Hype Doesn’t Match Game Description

One of the easiest ways that you can tell a game isn’t going to live up to its hype is if all of the things people are excited for were never even said. There are many examples of this, some recent ones being No Man’s Sky and The Witness. The Witness was a truly amazing puzzle game, yet some were a little disappointed that there was nothing to the game outside of puzzles, and it wasn’t what they expected, even though that’s all the trailers ever really showed outside of a bit of walking around.

No Man’s Sky is sort of in this same boat, although this one is a bit trickier. On one hand, there are quite a few promised features that just aren’t available in the game just yet, although Hello Games says they will be added in… eventually. If you were expecting all of that and ended up being disappointed then yeah, they deserve all of the disappointment levied at them. But, there are also a few out there who were upset for reasons nobody knows. Sean Murray, who may have bit off more than he could chew, was always clear about the exploratory nature of the game, and stated many times how you would spend most of the time alone. It was to be an individual journey, with some multiplayer sprinkled in (which we’re hoping still comes some day), but still a very solitary endeavor indeed.

When the game did eventually launch, the crowd was split over whether they loved what was included versus being upset over what was still missing. Then there were those who were surprised at what the game actually was, having no idea what No Man’s Sky even was. Needless to say that they were very disappointed at the slower, more methodical nature of the product. 

It’s All Graphical

Watch Dogs wasn’t a horrible game. Did it have some issues? Of course, what new IP doesn’t? However, a lot of the flack it received concerned the graphics that players got when they finally popped in the game on launch day. It looked nothing like the trailers from before, and while the gameplay elements were still mostly in tact, it just couldn’t be overlooked.

While this wasn’t all malice in Ubisoft’s case in this instance, it is a common trick to get fans to want a game. Show a beautiful slice of a game that is impossible to deliver on current hardware. Mix in some action-packed scenes, some gorgeous lighting, and a sweet tagline and you’re in.

If you hear everyone talking about how great a game looked in a trailer or a demonstration, and it’s all about the visuals, steer clear or, at the very least, be wary. Don’t feed into gorgeous 1080p visuals, those do not make an amazing game. 

Too Many Buzzwords

Marketing is a part of the game. It gets people excited and generates all of the hype that helps sell games when they finally release. A lot of the time, this is done by using certain words that make things sound really, really good. Explosive, stunning, game changing, innovative, awe-inspiring, and plenty more words you’ll hear tossed about.

If a company feels that they need to tell you all of these things rather than let a game speak for itself, that’s usually a telltale sign that things probably aren’t going to be as great as hype is dictating. Great games speak for themselves. You see the trailer and you see the actual gameplay, then you’re sold. Everything else is just a bonus.

They Bill Themselves as Being the Next “Insert Great Game”

Games will always be compared to other games, and that’s perfectly fine. The best way to sell your friend on a game is to compare it to something that they like. For instance, you may want them to pick up Saints Row, so you’ll use GTA as part of your description. There’s absolutely nothing wrong when fans of a game do that after trying a game and drawing those connections on their own.

However, when devs are doing it before anyone even gets a chance to try the game, problems will arise. You’ll often see this when developers are comparing their games to either GTA, the Souls series, or Call of Duty. Everyone wants to be the next big thing, and you don’t get much bigger than those. It’s easy to garner excitement by saying this is “just like Grand Theft Auto,” only you can fly and create whatever you want, or to tout your shooter as being just like the biggest shooting franchise out right now, but with more features. People love those games, and with good reason, so other games will try to use that well established hype to bolster themselves.

You shouldn’t be excited for a game because the creators tell you it’s like another. You’ll be left expecting a cool GTA, but only receiving a game that’s just moderately similar. It’s sad, because some great games are shot in the leg before the race even starts this way. If you’re expecting one thing to be a game you already have, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Just let the game be its own thing.

Lots of Delays

While this isn’t a guarantee that a game will not live up to its hype, or even be bad, it can sometimes be a precursor to issues. It honestly all comes down to the reason for the delay. Sometimes, such as in the case of Uncharted 4, a delay is just to add a bit of polish to the already finished product. Usually in these instances, the game is just as great as you hoped for and there are little to no bugs in the final experience.

But then there are the delays that are shrouded in a bit more mystery. These normally come with comments about needing more time to deliver what was promised (meaning they bit off more than they realized), or the need for a change in direction (meaning their initial promises just can’t work). There do happen to be times where these types of delays actually really work out, but more often than not, things just aren’t what players expected in the end.

If a delay hits a game you’re hype for, understand the difficulties of game development, but also temper your excitement. After all, there could very well be trouble brewing in paradise.