10 Video Game Announcements NO ONE Wanted To Believe

Marketing is everything these days, and the creators and money men behind each video game put great stock in their announcements, hoping to drive enough hype around a release that it all but flies off the shelves on launch day. Indeed, video games occupy a special place in the media cycle, with some developers relying on building a fan base in the months, years and sometimes decades leading up to a game's release (looking at you, Rockstar), and others using the element of surprise to catch gamers unaware with something new.

But just because they recognise the importance of good press, that doesn't mean they always have the goods to back up their bluster.

Over the years there have been many video game announcements that didn't quite go as planned, leading us to cry out in disbelief, "this can't be real!". But real they are, with some truly disastrous mobile reveals to console gamers, negative announcements antagonising core players, original versions of games being delisted in favour of inferior remasters, and games so weird, so compromised, so obviously full to the brim with mistakes or outlandish content that we can barely believe they're not fake. 

With the confirmed release of Pal♡world ~More Than Just Pals~ as a legitimate game (no joke!), we're looking back at 10 video game announcements that no-one wanted to believe. 

Funko Fusion is not a name anybody wanted to hear. Ever. And yet here we are, discussing the multi-platform game based on the already brand synergy-intensive Funko Pop! toy line.

When Funko Inc and developer 10:10 Games announced Funko Fusion in 2023, nobody could believe their eyes or ears, and with good reason. With a mashup of familiar properties including The Umbrella Academy, Battlestar Galactica, Back to the Future, Shaun of the Dead, The Thing, The Walking Dead and many, many more, the announcement promised a game that would take everything fans loved about their favourite horror, sci-fi and fantasy films and shows, and funnel it through the filter of Funko toys, sapping away the charm and wearing our favourite IPs like a fatsuit.

Even fans of the LEGO games or Fortnite, both of which feature similar IP mashups, couldn't believe what they were seeing. The press release promised superficiality of the highest order, maximum consumer tie-ins (the Funko boxes themselves were even present in game stills!) and little in the way of meaningful gameplay

And, do you know what, following the 2024 release, we can say they well and truly delivered.