Jeffrey Hope
ENGL 1312
Video game publishers can use many ways to advertise their games to the public. Two
ways that Activision has advertised their game Call of Duty: Ghosts is with a cover spread for
Game Informer (Ryckert, 2013) and a video trailer entitled “Epic Night Out” uploaded by them
to YouTube (Infinity Ward, 2013). These media advertise the game in different ways for
different purposes: the cover spread to advertise an article about the game, and the trailer to
advertise the game proper.
Dan Ryckert, writing for Game Informer, wrote an article that, in part, revealed a cover
spread advertising Call of Duty: Ghosts (Ryckert, 2013). The spread uses mostly dark colors and
shows three armed and masked men, lit from behind, aiming at something off-cover to the left.
In the bottom-right corner of the front cover, there is a text that reads “Call of Duty: Ghosts:
Activision’s juggernaut steps out of the shadows” (Ryckert, 2013). One of the armed shooters
takes up most of the space in the front cover, thus using pathos to extract some sense of fear. As
an advertisement for a then-upcoming game, however, its intended purpose is to encourage the
viewer to buy the magazine and read about the game. Although one might spend as little as
approximately ten seconds viewing the cover, a buyer of the magazine would be more frequently
exposed thereto than someone who did not buy the magazine.
The YouTube trailer for Call of Duty: Ghosts begins with four armed men driving into
the ruins of Las Vegas in an older-model convertible and then opening fire on enemies in and
around an abandoned casino. The setting later changes to a more maintained urban area (where
an armed woman briefly joins them), then outer space, then a snowy clearing surrounded by
mountains. All the while, the men continue to shoot at mostly off-screen enemies. The trailer
then reverts to the abandoned Las Vegas setting for the rest of its length except for one shot
where the snowy clearing is used. The song “I’m Gonna Live Till I Die” by Frank Sinatra plays
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ENGL 1312
in the background. Toward its end, the words “There’s a soldier in all of us” appear on the screen,
and finally the title and release date of November 5, 2013 appear (Infinity Ward, 2013). The
entire length of the video is one minute and 44 seconds.
The trailer takes advantage primarily of pathos, evoking fear most especially, to
communicate its message that one must kill one’s enemies before being killed by them. The
background music is another notable example of pathos, suggestive of what the shooters might
themselves be thinking about their actions, as there is no evidence that they give second thoughts
about them. There is some sense in ethos in the “There’s a soldier in all of us” tagline, suggesting
that defending oneself is honorable. Although not true for all points in history, soldiers have
historically been viewed highly by the nation for whom they are fighting. The trailer appears to
be a montage with no apparent plot and thus does not effectively use logos.
For both the cover spread and the trailer, the intended audience is video gamers. Game
Informer is a video game magazine whose contents would appeal most to this audience. It is
unreasonable to interpret the trailer’s primary audience as any other group; however, it is
conceivable that a parent of a child that plays video games might choose to view the trailer to
determine its appropriateness to the child. The purpose of the two genres is different, however.
The cover spread is more effective at encouraging viewers to read more information about Call
of Duty: Ghosts; the trailer is a more straightforward advertisement for the game. Except for the
corner text, no language relevant to the game is used in the spread; the trailer uses informal
language, most prevalently from the background song (although the people in the trailer
occasionally talk to each other).
The cover spread uses the term “juggernaut” to suggest that Call of Duty: Ghosts is part
of a successful video game series (Ryckert, 2013). Thus, it attempts to establish Activision, the
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ENGL 1312
game’s publisher, as credible. The trailer attempts to establish credibility by using the tagline to
justify the shooters’ actions. The spread does a better job at credibility than the trailer at
establishing its credibility for its purpose. The corner text of the former is written like a headline
and thus serves its intended purpose to encourage the viewer to read the corresponding article.
On the other hand, one might disagree with the actions of the shooters in the trailer and believe
that the tagline does not show that the shooters are “soldiers,” as although their dress is clearly
inspired by the military, none of them wears a full uniform. Additionally, their only attempts to
hide are to avoid being hit by gunfire—they do not attempt to avoid being detected. With the use
of pathos, however, the trailer does a better job, as the cover spread may be somewhat offputting for those not interested in Call of Duty: Ghosts’ genre. In both cases, especially in the
cover spread, the audience may likely know how earlier Call of Duty games are like and would
want to know if Ghosts is as good or better than those previous games.
A cover spread can only suggest the game in question, especially as its designer in this
case chose not to use a screenshot. Thus, the use of imagery is very important in this genre, as
inappropriate design may fail to do the game justice. Although the trailer chose not to use
screenshots or game footage, either, it can nevertheless more accurately capture the game’s
nature, as its only major difference from a video game as a form of media is the lack of an
interactive element. The feel of each is different as well. The cover spread had a need to use an
easy-to-read font to promote the article that contrasted well from the large black sections of the
spread. The trailer had a freer font choice, though it still had to choose one fitting of the game’s
mood. Additionally, the trailer has a tendency to disfavor the very dark colors used in the spread.
In both cases, the dominant organization strategy is through visuals. The cover spread
uses space—when folded, each half of the spread could easily stand on its own as an image. The
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front cover uses space as a strategy, leaving enough room above the shooter’s head for the
magazine title and advertising the article on a shadow cast near his left shoulder. The
organization strategy of the trailer, however, is to show several simulations of what gameplay is
like via actors, thus giving prospective players an idea of what to expect from the game should
they purchase it. Although not aimed for television viewing and therefore free of that medium’s
time constraints for commercials, it can be argued that the trailer is limited to the length of the
chosen background music, as only one song is used and it can be jarring if it starts or stops at
awkward places in the trailer.
Overall, the Call of Duty: Ghosts trailer is more effective in its message than the cover
spread for the same game, as it conveys information similarly to video games and trailers do not
suffer the disadvantages that print media have when promoting a video game. While static media
can only give a general impression about dynamic media, a dynamic media can accurately
portray information about other dynamic media. This similarity can better inform the public, as
things are not “lost in translation” when expressed in other media.
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ENGL 1312
Ryckert, D. (2013, September 10). October Cover Revealed – Call Of Duty: Ghosts. Retrieved
September 10, 2014.
Official Call of Duty®: Ghosts Live-Action Trailer - “Epic Night Out” (2013, November 2).
Retrieved September 10, 2014.