Has there ever been a Steam indie game trailer that stuck with you for hours or even days after you saw it? You get a sense of satisfaction, yet you want more of it. When you watch a gaming presentation, where tons of trailers are showcased, which ones stick out to you?
What Is Important in an Indie Game Trailer?
More often than not, some trailers feel like they’re following the same guidelines as everyone else. Now, that doesn’t mean that it’s not a bad formula at all. Given the current stream of media content, people crave something that is different and catches their attention the moment it begins. For indie studios, getting this level of attraction can be tricky, but there is a way to stand out amongst the endless sea of developers including:
- Gameplay
- Tells A Story
- Call to Action
- Music
- Sound Effects
Let’s take some time to dissect the above and define what makes a great indie game trailer!
Gameplay
When it comes to good indie game trailers, I can’t help but think about Supergiant’s Hades and Hades II. If you’ve seen the trailers, you know that there’s a lot going on in such a short period of time. Supergiant shows you exactly what type of game this is and what to expect in terms of gameplay. Gameplay is crucial when it comes to selling your game to audiences because that is what players will be anticipating. Even if it’s a little bit of gameplay, it’s important to highlight your work within the trailer.
Tells a Story
There are a few ways of tackling this element of a trailer. One way is to use cutscenes from the game. You can craft a story told within the games universe with animation, like in the Hades II trailer. Another way is by using gameplay focused on telling your story. Hone in on key aspects of your many cutscenes and highlight that within your story. You want to present something that will spark an interest within your audience without giving too much away.
Related: How To Start Marketing Your Indie Game
Call to Action
Getting the attention of your audience is one thing but keeping it going afterwards is a whole other aspect. That’s why a call to action is crucial to piquing the interest of your audience so that they have something to look forward to in the future. Do this at the end of the trailer with studio plans for the future or give a demo launch date. It could also be as simple as providing which platforms the game will be on. Making sure that the viewer can anticipate more is key to keeping the interest ongoing after the trailer has come out.
Music
The use of music can have a huge impact on giving the viewer a taste of what is to come from your title. The genre of your game is important to note when figuring out what music to use. A good example of this is the trailer for Skate Story, which features the song Set It on Fire by Blood Cultures. A song, in and of itself, can tease the story that you want to tell within your game. Like the Skate Story trailer, the song is matched with the editing, which is a creative way of presenting the product.
While I understand that this level of editing might not be attainable for all indie developers, pay attention to your song choice and use what you can do!
Related: Unraveling the Importance of ‘Grammer’ in Indie Game Development
Sound Effects
These can allude to the type of game you’re looking to present. Depending on the genre, utilizing sound effects can let the viewers know what to expect when it comes to performance. Horror titles value the full scale of noises from a squeak in the floor to someone screaming bloody murder. They can be used to create a sense of realism for the viewer, which can keep them engaged as they watch the trailer.
How to Plan and Promote Your Trailer
Now that you know the fundamentals of what makes a great indie game trailer, you’ll need to start the planning phase. 505 Games Production Support Lead Luis Alamilla says you should compare a trailer to an elevator pitch for a stranger. “When creating a trailer, I would focus on what message I’d like to communicate and key points I want highlighted regarding the game,” he said in a LinkedIn message to us. He says he would plan out a storyboard to “make sure [he doesn’t] lose track of [..] target goals.”
It’s hard to make your trailer stand out, however, among a showcase like Nintendo’s Indie World and other events. It can be easy to get lost in the shuffle. “The issue with showcases is that depending on the structure of the showcase, it’s very easy to lose the audience after a few more trailers or a poorly structured show,” said Alamilla.
You’ll want to make sure that the show you work with has a great structure to it. The 505 Games Production Support Lead says there’s “risk and reward, and you’re only partially in control.”
A unique premise and a gorgeous art style will help you stand out among the crowd. If its a roguelike card game, it’s less likely to garner attention. For example, Cuphead was only shown for mere seconds during the E3 2014 Xbox indie game reel but gained the attention of millions of fans, curious to find out more. Publications like Engadget called Cuphead the highlight of Xbox’s conference that year.
It went on to return with full trailers at Xbox’s later showcases and became a huge hit, getting its own Netflix show and critical acclaim. Put your best art style and gameplay on show, and you never know, you might be the next StudioMDHR.
Now, in the age of social media, indies are standing out with short clips of their games. You don’t necessarily need the help of PlayStation or Nintendo to promote your game to a wide audience. Luminous Nights, for example, has gained an audience of Kingdom Hearts enthusiasts on X and other social media platforms. The game’s creator Yahya Danboos is consistently getting great engagement on each post by following trends.
Danboos posted the “hard facts” about his game after reposting (retweeting) another indie dev’s post. It has received 1.7K likes on the platform after posting a clip of the game just under two minutes.
Need Help Crafting Your Own Trailer?
All in all, crafting an effective Steam indie game trailer is no easy task, especially within a short amount of time. While more material can help ease the pressure of not spoiling too much of the game, how you present it is that much more important.
Don’t be afraid to go outside the box when it comes to trailers as long as it is authentic to your game and what you want the viewers to see. In terms of articulating that, you can trust us at Frowns Marketing to aid in the process of getting your project seen and heard!
What are your thoughts?