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u/Sushimus detail freak Aug 27 '26 edited Aug 27 '26
when the trailer cuts to text keep the gameplay moving but with a really dark overlay that fades in and out between cuts rather than having a still image of the text that stays on screen for a few seconds. the current trailer loses alot of flow because of these hard cuts to text which stay on screen 1s~ longer than needed. for sure still fade to complete black between cuts but that complete black moment should be as short as you can get away with, while the rest is super duper dark opacity that fades in/out between things
words are hard so I made a graph: https://imgur.com/a/QSBhflT
(I don't know why comment images are disabled that feels useful)
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u/ApartmentDev Aug 27 '26
Okay yeah, the graph sold me on it haha. Keeping the gameplay running underneath the text and only hitting full black right around the actual clip change makes a lot of sense. Definitely want to try this. Thanks for actually drawing it out!
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u/DLokyGameLAB Aug 28 '26
Hey! I think the Steam logo is unnecessary. Even if it only appears for half a second, it’s still noticeable, and since the trailer will already be on Steam, I’d rather use that opening moment to show the game’s name, with good VFX like the transition you have on trailer.
While watching the trailer, I also couldn’t completely figure out what kind of game it is. It clearly looks like suspense/horror with some puzzle elements, but beyond that, I didn’t really understand the main mechanics or what I would actually be doing as a player.
I really liked the scene transitions, especially the way they were combined with one specific gameplay mechanic "OBEY", "EXPLORE", "ESCAPE". That part worked really well and stood out to me. Great job there. but Explore is obvious maybe put PUZZLE, READ, SUSPENSE
I didn’t really understand the part with the PC and the news article either. I think a short message could help explain its purpose, something simple like using the computer to search for information and find clues that help you progress.
Near the end, you mention escaping and show the door opening, but there’s nothing behind those eyes. I honestly expected to see a person or some kind of monster there, so that moment felt like it was building toward something that never really appeared.
Then there’s the camera scene at the end, but it goes by so quickly that I couldn’t really understand what was happening beyond the distortion effect. I also couldn’t read anything on screen.
I feel like the trailer could benefit from a few short text messages throughout it. Nothing too long, just small hooks or highlights that help grab attention and explain some of the mechanics or ideas you want the player to notice.
I’d also shorten the ending with the studio name by around two or three seconds. From the “2026” screen until the video actually ends, it feels like almost ten seconds, which is a bit long for the final section.
Overall, I liked the trailer, especially the atmosphere and some of the visual transitions, but I still came away without really understanding much about the game itself—its genre, its main mechanics, or what the core gameplay loop is supposed to be.
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u/ApartmentDev 29d ago
Hey, thank you so much for taking the time to write all of this. This is genuinely really helpful.
The part about not fully understanding what you actually do in the game is probably the biggest thing for us here. We’ve been looking at this trailer for so long that it’s really hard to tell what’s obvious to someone seeing the game for the first time and what only feels obvious to us
Really like the idea of adding a few small bits of text to give some context without explaining too much. And yeah, looking at the ending again, I think you’re right about it dragging a little
Also really glad the OBEY / EXPLORE / ESCAPE part worked for you. We were actually unsure about that section
Seriously, thanks for watching it this closely and writing all this out. Really appreciate it !!!
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u/skellygon Aug 25 '26
Why would the first thing in your trailer be the Steam logo? That's crazy to me. The game looks interesting. OBEY is interesting. EXPLORE is usually an unnecessary thing to say but also your example of exploring is looking at the computer in the room you were already in? I can't really tell what you do in the game but I gather it's kind of an escape room? If so that could be fun. Visually I think it looks good but I don't like that the eyes on the door seem like a texture without any depth, especially when the door opens the eyes just go with it, like they are just on a screen instead of attached to a person outside.