Modern Warfare 2′s Infamy Trailer

and here… we… go…

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the 5 keys to successful video game marketing, as told by the Ayzenberg Group.  #5 on that list was “Trailers are Important”.  In recent video game marketing, I haven’t seen too many trailers that really shine.  Yet it’s painfully obvious that Activision/ Infinity Ward have put in a lot of effort into their trailers.

The latest one is the “Infamy” trailer…. and it’s amazing.

Breaking down the trailer into its component parts reveal a stunning attention to detail, knowledge of the audience and faithfulness to the series and overall tone of the game.

The Music

When the trailer starts, the sound behind the announcer is a heart-beat.  This takes you back to the original Modern Warfare game, bridging that link between the new and the familiar, it creates a sense of tension and anticipation.  The subtlety here reinforces the feeling that you’re only really aware of your own heartbeat when you’re physically extended… or something’s wrong.  The music starts and builds as the action itself intensifies… then stops.  There’s the heartbeat again.  When the big “reveal” happens, the music starts again… suddenly you’re back into the intensity.  I particularly like this because the sound actually mirrors the intermittent action, fear and “holy shit” moments that the original Modern Warfare had.

There are four acts to the trailer:

1. First Act: Setting the scene.  There is conflict in your standard war-torn fields, then cut to the shot of the carnage in the airport.  This builds the anticipation and fear to the familiar setting.
2. Second Act: The footage. Starting with the Modern Warfare 2 logo, we’re entered into the violent and brutal settings in which the game is played.  This gives us a good idea of what to expect and shows disjointed scenes of the conflict.
3. Third Act: Things Change Forever. What starts as confusion, you don’t exactly know what’s happening.  It’s short, it’s the calm before the storm, but you know that things are not good.  It’s a way to mirror the sound in the trailer as the heart-beat commences again.
4. Fourth Act: The Reveal and Catharsis. We find that the war is brought home.  We see the White House, Washington Monument and most of DC on fire and in ruins.  This is the “holy shit” moment… followed by the understanding that this world has changed, and we’re fighting back.

What’s particularly powerful about this trailer is that it’s executed in such a way that plays on our fears, expectations and it does so brilliantly, and in just over 2 minutes.  When I saw this trailer last night while watching the Chargers and Steelers, I stopped all action… paid attention…grabbed the TiVo remote and watched it a few more times.  This is an excellent trailer, aimed at the right people, at the right time to show exactly how big this story is going to be.  It hints at the story and it hints at the action… but doesn’t give us the “why” or the “how”.

Even as a marketer myself, I can’t seem to stop watching it.  I know what they’re doing, and I know how they’re doing it, but this trailer hits all the right buttons on a near biological level.  I immediately placed this game, after this trailer, from the “will buy” to “will buy on first day” category.

Modern Warfare 2′s Infamy Trailer