What is the most hype you've ever seen for a game pre release/launch day?

[pizzasafari]

I don't actually spend that much time in gaming forums so I don't really see the full extent of how much hype games get outside of fanbases I'm already a part of. Other than that the only hype I really hear is my own my friends'.

I can tell you though that the hype for Persona 5 in the leadup to its release day among the fanbase was out of this world. If it was released any later I'm fairly sure that I myself would have had a nervous breakdown. When I got that knock on my door from the postman on that fateful day. Hoooooooohohohohohoo. Wow. I was a happy boi.
(I got my preorder a day early too, so from official release date onwards I was among like 1% of players that were getting the trophies, nice)

[dhaabi]

These days, this sort of hype prior to a game's release is largely a rare occurrence for a variety of reasons. So, after glancing at this topic, I started to wonder what game in recent years has had the most hype. And, after thinking about it, Elden Ring surely is the most noteworthy example. Not only were FromSoftware fans ecstatic, but George R. R. Martin fans and just players in general were too. For a long time, it seems like all sorts of people were anxiously awaiting it, and then for a few months, it seemed like everyone was playing it.

Nowadays, it's uncommon for one singular entity to command the general public's attention like before. Too many games release and there are all sorts of niche communities for a person's specific interests, and the same can be said for all types of entertainment too: film, television, music, and so forth. Simplified game creator tools and better access to them marked the end of the end of this regular occurrence for games, whereas streaming marked the end for film, television, and music. Anyone with the right skillset can create a project and upload it to some service. AAA publishers, Hollywood studios, and major record labels can be entirely avoided now.

[telekill]

I haven't been hyped for a game release since Uncharted 4 (2016). It's also the last collectors edition and strategy guide purchase for me. I was excited for Shenmue 3 (2019) as well but knew before it released that it wouldn't complete the story so my hype was lowered.

[marvelvscapcom2]

In my lifetime easily GTA 5. I feel it should be universal without nostalgia goggles on. I got the game 12 hours after the midnight launch parties and their was still a crowd around the entire electronics section of walmart. It was on good morning America. Howard Stern. The voice actors become overnight celebrities. Their was lore. The walmart clerk just was scanning them like candy bars. Stacks were literally to the ceiling.

I mean it was so anticipated. The game moved more units in one weekend then I believe any physical media prior at tjat time.

It dominates sales on two different console generations.

I remember it was like a holiday.


They even documented that their was nationwide callouts from work that day. A good 10 percent surge just from 1 video game.


Overall. GTA 6 is probably gonna make that look like kids play. I imagine it might cause some serious crashing to servers if the networks and rockstar dont plan for the massive influx.

[AstralSoul]

I never really followed the hype of games, I know which games I personally was hyped for though. I went to handful of midnight releases for games I was super excited for:
Final Fantasy XII
Super Smash Bros Brawl
Final Fantasy XIII
Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
Pokemon Sun/Moon
Red Dead Redemption 2

The biggest turn out of these was easily Skyrim.

[mrkonasoni]

Um, it's been a while, but I can confirm that the last time I saw a community stand together in hype for a game that we were all excited for was ¤The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword, and it ended kinda poorly.

Lemme explain. The game was liked, and I do believe it is good, but for the most part, it didn't live up to the expectations we were all holding up for (just the people I used to talk to); it was like March... 2011. I was part of a Nintendo News forum about video games, I was still a teenager and the news for Zelda Skyward Sword always had from 30 to 70 comments and everyone was pretty excited for no reason at all, we all just assumed it would be the game of the year and better than the other fantasy game coming soon named... well, Skyrim, lol

But while the news was arriving and Nintendo started confirming stuff, the excitement started dropping from the comments; everyone was talking only about this game for months with theories and what we were all expecting, but skepticism started growing, and well... I was trying to stay positive.

Launch day arrived; I bought it and played it for hours, and... I liked it but a lot of people I shared the forum and I used to talk about weren't convinced it was the next Ocarina of Time or Twilight Princess everyone there was hoping for, it was a fine game and that's it but it had a lot of hype as Nintendo last shoot for the Nintendo Wii and one that took 5 years into the making (something fairly rare at the time), and then because everything can always go worse the admins of the website made a pretty long review with THREE reviewers calling it the game of the year and with 3 perfect scores, I still remember that it was one of the few times the comment section had more than 100 comments with people complaining or defending the game, and well there a theory that they only did it because of Nintendo money and hoping for a partnership since the review score apparently was part of official advertising for the game and all three of these reviewers were also Nintendo fanatics.

At the end of the day, it's fine I guess, I liked the game but it helped to settle down my expectations for New games and I wasn't exactly too excited when Zelda BotW was announced but that's fine because when I played I completely loved it and I believe this situation with Zelda Skyward Sword that I am telling in this story, also helped a lot of people to have clear expectations about what to expect about video games and put the line about what to expect for avoid unnecessary disappointment.

I stayed in the forum for 5 years more until it died but during that time I never saw people having as much hype for a New video game as it was for Skyward Sword, not for GTA V, not Smash Bros for Wii U, Witcher 3, MGSV or even the release of the Switch, there was always excitement but a more realistic and grounded one and...

I still like to believe it was the fault of the unholy amount of hype a lot of people had for this Zelda Wii game that unfortunately didn't live up to the unrealistic expectations of a large part of the community I used to be part of back then.

That's my story, these days. I only have hype for the New Sonic and Konami games, and I ran to my Steam Deck excited to buy the Castlevania Dominus Collection immediately. I was so excited to play Contra Operation Galuga that I ended up loving, Cygni too and... I am also pretty excited about the Silent Hill 2 remake, and I am confident that I am going to love it; that's the most similar thing to the hype I feel these days.