Game Developers Need to Stop Announcing Games So Dang Early

Game developers are getting into a bad habit of announcing games way too early, and it could be killing hype for some of their titles.

[Jakens]

Announcing games early doesn't hurt my feelings, I'm ok with the pratice.

[zsquaresoff]

Nothing wrong with it, always nice to know what's expected in the future.

[pecorre]

While I agree with the author, gamers in general seems to like it. So, publishers will continue.

I never understood why publishers announce games if they have absolutely nothing to show. Metroid Prime 4 and Elder Scroll are two good examples.

[phoenixwing]

I like knowing what is coming so no they dont

[isarai]

Eh, im patient, and im not one of those idiots who raise expectations the more time passes. Doesnt bother me as long as the game isn't a complete mess when released.

[Smokehouse]

I agree but it really depends on the marketing. Mortal Kombat x was announced a year early and there were months of no information. When mortal Kombat 11 was announced 4 months away I was thinking it would be 4 months of full of information but that wasn’t the case. Those 4 months felt like forever. I think that’s a good window though. Announce 4 months away and build crazy hype with the marketing. If you announce a year ahead and have a steady stream of marketing then that’s fine. Don’t announce and then disappear.

[Tross]

I think it's a case of it being more and more difficult to keep game development a secret in this day and age. But announcing games at the right time can increase hype. It just happens to be the case that games are often announced before something changes and the project doesn't proceed as initially planned.

I heard a theory that there were plenty of games stuck in development hell in the past too, but they weren't announced nearly as often, and when they were it was a small blurb on a page of some magazine. So, devs didn't get nearly as much flack for putting development on a back burner, as their projects weren't as well-known if they were leaked at all. I think there is validity to that theory. We just happen to live in an age where few can keep their mouth shut anymore.