Favorite Game Trailers of 2021

This is the last post of 2021, which means it's time to share some of my favorites indie and AAA game trailers of the year. Let's start with the indie games which can't lean on incredibly high fidelity graphics to impress audiences, and instead have to find one or two things to really make them stand out. Here are my favorite indie game trailers from 2021 (in no particular order)

First is this trailer for Happy Game by adventure game makers Amanita Design. This trailer doesn't do much to help you understand how the game plays, but what it does do is create a twisted, amusing, and unsettling mood through its editing and clever usage of stock footage. Intercutting families happily watching very dark and disturbing game footage is so subversive and brilliant. You may not finish this trailer knowing how the game works, but you'll have a good sense of how it will make you FEEL.

Next is the story trailer for We Are OFK which is some sort of biopic game about a fictional band in Los Angeles. This is a very nicely edited story trailer which feels like it could be for a feature film or series. There are some smatterings of gameplay concepts within the footage, but it mostly gives you a nice sense of the characters, some deep thoughts to chew on and some great music tying it all together. 

Great use of stock footage? Or GREATEST use of stock footage?

Next is the trailer for Knights of San Francisco, which I wrote a review of in a previous newsletter post (you will sense a theme). Making a trailer for a text based game is an unenviable task, but this trailer made by the developer makes it look easy. This trailer gives a good sense of the game mechanics, its personality, and the basic game loop.

I just recently broke down this one-take trailer for Planet of Lana, and if I'm going to review or break down a trailer that means it's probably a shoo-in for one of my favorites of the year. Just masterfully directed and choreographed, and the cute cat-like alien thing means I was doomed to include this no matter what :3

Another trailer I reviewed which earned a spot on my favorites of 2021 is the trailer for Atrio: The Dark Wild which was also made by its developer. I love love love how easy it makes to understand the game, but does it in a very entertaining and absurd way which builds and builds the entire time and makes you want more. Brilliantly done, absolutely hilarious and very well executed.

This trailer makes making a trailer for a building game look easy.

I also reviewed this trailer for UNBEATABLE because how could I not? There's so much good stuff in this not the least of which is the use of text to explain the game while also infusing so much attitude and style into it. Very well structured Kickstarter trailer that probably had a lot of people just itching to back it as soon as the trailer finished (if not sooner). When a game has a really strong art style and design, it makes everything stronger, including its marketing materials.

Another favorite trailer from this year was this trailer for Phantom Abyss which is like an Indiana Jones game full of deadly traps at every corner. The capture in this is excellent and the editing to the music and sound is tight and fun to watch. It makes the game look like a fun and harrowing experience.

Next up is this trailer for Beastbreaker which is so simple, but no less effective. It starts by showing a ball, which then fades into a mouse wearing a cape who is the game's protagonist. They whip out a tiny sword and then suddenly they're bouncing all around the body parts of a giant creature. It has a great slow build to the climax, and the message of "Ball bouncing game, but you're a mouse" is very clear and interesting. 

It's a ball, but it's a mouse, and it breaks up beasts. Simple and effective!

Another trailer I really loved for its simplicity was this trailer for A Little to the Left; it's a game about sorting and straightening things. For a game so simple you'd think a trailer might be boring, but they show just enough of each level to keep things moving at a brisk pace. Sometimes satisfying you with a completed puzzle, but mostly showing just enough to illustrated the goal of each level to tease you into playing the game. There's also a fun surprise ending :3

Last indie on my list is the announce trailer for Loot River. Full disclosure, I did a consultation for this trailer and provided a very rough outline with direction notes, but they deserve all the credit for the excellent execution. This trailer is very tightly edited, and each shot conveys a different idea or nuance on the core idea of the player moving platforms and fighting enemies. The cinematics are nicely intercut into the gameplay too!

This game speaks to me on a very deep level.

Next up are the AAA game trailers! One reason I separate these trailers is because AAA games tend to be made by trailer houses or dedicated teams within the studio, so I judge them differently (that said, I've certainly seen trailers for AAA games which were nothing to write home about). Most AAA games do not have to spend as much time worrying about conveying a game's hook in the way indies do. Even if they do worry about it, there are enough other "game-y" elements which still excite even if the hook is somewhat lost amongst the explosions.

My first is this montage celebration of PlayStation games by @Much118x. If you're not familiar, they make amazing videos and animated GIFs which they post to Twitter, often with lots and lots of fun match cutting. This montage is as much a tribute to match cutting as it is to the PlayStation exclusive titles. Very fun to watch!

Next is this CG cinematic teaser for The Outer Worlds 2 which calls out the game trailer industry for how it makes cinematic trailers. This was a favorite from the year pretty much across the board in the game industry, and rightly so. A great way to have fun and show the sense of humor of the game.

Next up is this staggering gameplay trailer for Horizon: Forbidden West. I have no actual insider knowledge of how this was made, but this must've been handmade and perfected using lots of dev tools, scripting, and other things that would not be possible to do from just playing from a live build. The timing, framing, and choreography are too perfect to be anything else (mostly the timing). I don't say that to take away from it. I think this is a great example of a trailer showing a variety of idealized gameplay all in one take. Really showcases a lot of what to expect in the game and ties it up in a very pretty package. In general, it's far more likely a gameplay trailer has a lot of custom work in it when there are fewer cuts, and the player, camera person and NPCs all hit their cues with precise timing.

I don't know if I'll like The Outer Worlds 2, but I love the trailer!

On the other end of the spectrum is this Halo Multiplayer Reveal Trailer which is also excellently directed but in an entirely different way. The variety of cuts in this tell me this was likely all done in-game. Lots of great gameplay footage which cuts together with cinematic angles. The editing is tight, and each moment flows nicely into the next one. It has great spatial continuity and legibility, and it's lots of fun to watch!

DEATHLOOP universally had incredibly well executed trailers and the launch trailercombined all the great things from the campaign. The stylish graphics, the great game capture, stellar music and very tight editing. This is a trailer which feels like a full meal experience which you can rewatch to get a great sense of the game.

Last but not least is the "Better Together" trailer for It Takes Two which has utterly fantastic music, great integration of story, character, game mechanics, and HYPE! The story is touching, the character relationships are clear, and the game is easy to understand. The trailer-ized version of the Fleetwood Mac song is both the icing on the cake, and kind of the cake itself. This trailer gets my blood pumping and really hits me in the feels.

Story + Gameplay mechanics + killer music = Very good game trailer

There were so many more game trailers I really loved from 2021, but these ones really stood out. If you'd like to see the rest of my favorites, here they are in my YouTube playlist. Congrats to all the game developers and trailer makers behind the stellar work this year; you're a huge inspiration!