The absolutely bizarre PlayStation 5 app for Blue Box Studios’ survival game Abandoned will be available to pre-load from the PS Store on 29th July, and we suppose the Dutch developer felt like it wasn’t getting quite enough media attention. In order to rectify that, the viral marketing maestros have deployed a new teaser image, which shows an out-of-focus image of a man with an eyepatch. Given the ongoing Hideo Kojima connections, you can already guess where this is going…
https://twitter.com/BBGameStudios/status/1420089120362270721
Of course, the pattern is well established at this point: YouTubers will make 30-minute theory videos designed to feed the social network’s algorithm, Reddit will deconstruct the graphic and share some wild conspiracies online, and Twitter will harass the indie developer at the helm. All of this will culminate in yet more comments about the fact that Blue Box Studios has no connection or relationship with Hideo Kojima – and then the app will be delayed again. Probably.
For those of you who don’t know, the Realtime Experience app – as it’s been renamed – is meant to be an interactive piece of software that will allow you to watch Abandoned’s first official trailer in realtime on your PS5. That trailer’s due to drop on 10th August, but you’ll have almost two weeks to pre-load the client itself. As previously alluded, this was already supposed to release once this summer, but was allegedly pushed back for polish. Second time’s a charm?
[source twitter.com]
Comments 69
Kept you waiting, huh?
Back down the rabbit hole we go lol
The people behind this are geniuses.
I don't condone the harassment of anyone and anyone doing it should be investigated if a line is crossed. With that out of the way this team is made up of a bunch of clowns, I'm now actively rooting against them and their crappy little game.
Kept you waiting, huh?
I don't even know anymore...
I'm just about ready to ABANDON this marketing campaign, am I right lads? Hahaha, great banter. Catch you guys later.
Oh, Christ. Just reveal your God d**m game already.
Yeah, this is Kojima or a bunch of people trying to feed that. If it’s Kojima, it’s genius, if not, we’ll all be disappointed.
I’m gonna pre-load in case it is Kojima. I love that madman.
I really want them to reveal the game and it’s just an Pong clone called something like ‘Ian Botham’s Pro Fart-Box’.
Its clearly a Harvey Birdman game
@Danloaded This is the only thing that would interest me at this point.
I'VE NEVER STOPPED WANTING TO BELIEVE
Harassment is never ok, but at this point it seems like they feel the harassment coverage itself is just helping their PR.
I am so beyond sick and tired of this entire marketing campaign... could somebody just wake me up when the whole thing is over?
I like how Sammy just perfectly described three websites in one article.
If they have no affiliation with Kojima, I will give them credit for using these methods to procure more interest in their game. It's a sneaky way to better advertise your product.
Blue Box: "We're just a normal small indie studio working on something totally not vague and mysterious. We're totally not promoting Abandoned in weird ways to drum up conversation and speculation. We've got absolutely nothing to hide."
Also, Blue Box: releases weird, vague image for a trailer app(?) using a blurred out face with an eyepatch and strange blurred text above the title
Either these people are marketing geniuses who have a big secret to hide that's going to be fantastic or they're the biggest bunch of reckless buffoons in the world. Thankfully, we'll find out soon.
In the spirit of C.S Lewis, either these antics are the work of Mr. K himself, of madmen or something much worse.
This is bonkers
“Blue Box” Games… isn’t that just the PlayStation? Blue packaging and all... we’re all getting punkd
New theory, it's not silent hills but metal gear solid 😀
@get2sammyb So update: the blurred man with an eyepatch is more than likely another asset flip.
https://mobile.twitter.com/TCMF2/status/1420157161301237760
How awesome would it be if this was a crazy reboot of Metal Gear Solid? Still won't be mad if it's not either Silent Hill or MGS.
@DertieBertie I'm hardly the only one, look at this comments section itself or any other site. Everyone is sick of their stupid PR stunts, if this isn't some elaborate Kojima stunt then they basically have buried themselves and their game.
wait so is it a metal gear game?
Uh-uh. Nope. Not going down this road Blue Box I'm done. You hear me!? Done! I refuse!
@Korgon nope ur coming along with us on this wild ride like it or not
Either it is Hideo Kojima or I'm boycotting these amateurs for piggybacking of HKs success and recognition
"We have no affiliation with Kojima nor Konami..... anyway, here's a blurred image of a guy with an eyepatch which may or may not have anything to do with Metal Gear."
There was a rumour that Metal Gear was getting a remaster/reboot earlier this year so if Kojima is involved could this be it??
I think it's hysterical how people here at Push Square still think it's NOT Kojima and/or Playstation teasing MGS and/or Silent Hill, despite it being so obvious.
Hype bro. Hype! I’m all in.
@Juanalf yes, because their game would have been such a success without this kind of marketing, as most indie games are.
@doctommaso it wouldn’t surprise me at all if Kojima and Konami made up and worked on a metal gear again, I would absolutely love to see that but I really don’t know about this.
Is it really Hideos style? The only sort of footage we saw was some weird 1 minute thing with a girl explaining what sounded like a really simple story for a survival game. Since then it hasn’t gone smoothly, the trailer continues to get pushed back and right now a lot of people have given up on this game. I feel like if this was Hideo we would have already gotten a legitimate trailer. It wouldn’t surprise me at all of this really does turn out to be some random indie game where the company have simply taken advantage of all the conspiracy theories around it.
Question: if this was a random indie studio causing trouble would Sony even approve a trailer app?
At this point I’m wondering if it’s an app or demo. Kojima might be trying to recreate the PT demo talk in a much more extravagant fashion.
@Janeo99 If it's weird and atypical, it's his style.
@Jaz007 Exactly. And to me, if it's not legit, Sony doesn't allow ANY of this stuff from a studio making a PS5 exclusive.
@nessisonett I love silent drape runners!
Who cares about this anymore?
Some gamers really need to get a sense of humour...and perspective.
They've added a little bit of mystery and excitement to your lives, you should be grateful.
Whatever it is, the world will continue to turn and there will still be hundreds of other games coming out, some of which you may wish to play. Nobody's being tortured or killed, it's just some interesting if perplexing marketing.
Hardly the crime of the century.
😒
On a personal note I would love it if they were working on a MGS remake.
@Col_McCafferty Hahaha. I know, right? The average gamer who posts online about... video games should seriously do something about the anger issues they have.
@RBMango honestly doesn’t even look the same. Update disapproved 😂
Ok now I am thinking it's got to be something with Kojima, before I was not too sure but loved all the conspiracy, this now is just too much of a coincidence. I hope for their sake it is, otherwise I think this will massively back fire.
@nessisonett haha that made me laugh, currently watching twin peaks at the moment nearly finished the latest one, watched them few years back but it's such a great and weird series had to watch again.
it is Silent Hills Abandoned, it stars solid snake and the app is no such thing, is a free demo that will unlock after the trailer...
oh and the first one to finish the demo will get a visit from Kojima itself!
@nessisonett and what is TP backwards? P.T! coincidence? I think not.
This is getting tiresome in my opinion.
It's obviously Goro Majima, guys.
App is a launcher for remasters of all the IP's 'abandoned' by Konami? Speculate big haha.
BLUE Box...BLUEpoint...they both have BLUE in the studio name. Boxes are sometimes made of METAL which is usually SOLID. Snake hides in BOXES! Some snakes are probably coloured BLUE maybe...This is clearly indicating a Blue Point remake of MGS, 100% confirmed. Somehow Norman Reedus and a rabbit are involved as well.
@nessisonett I would so play a Nadine game, chronicling her quest to locate the elusive oil soaked cotton balls.
Just freaking show it, Blue box. I dare you.
Haha this is a wind up now. First they delay and then ask if we're ready because they are, and now they are teasing mgs instead of silent hill?
Im downloading this app just to see what they are playing at!
You know like how the Switch OLED was super disappointing compared to the Switch Pro everyone had built the project up to be?
This is gonna the game version of that.
Too much hype. This is an extremely bad (if not devastating) marketing - people will curse them forever - if it's not the new Silent Hill.
@get2sammyb Or criminally insane. One or the other!
If you're going to use Kojima's legacy to market your game, you better be able to direct and write or gtfo. There's like a 1% chance this game, if it is an indie made by a guy who outsources AAA assets with an indie budget, can live up to this.
Well, I made it through July without thinking about Abandoned much. But better believe i’ll be there August 10 to see what this app is about.
On twitter they've said that this app will deliver all the controller features along side the trailers e.g. haptics etc. They mention adaptive triggers as well so it'll be interesting to see how that works.
I hope for their sake that there's something substantial with this because they really are pushing it now.
These guys are basically playing with fire at this point. And I'm here to support the ***** show.
Anyone wondered that BlueBox could simply be the reveal that Bluepoint is now part of Sony and they're remastering "XXXXX" game?
Oh come on, that’s just trolling. Maybe they will just perpetuate this promotional drip-feed until we find out that the marketing itself was the game and we are all the players.
There has to be something big behind this. Sony doesnt just let anyone make an app for the PS5 or promote a company that has nothing to show from the past at all. Also Sony staying quiet with this PR mess from a small indie company....right.
There also isnt a "real" office in the Netherlands. Ive looked them up on KvK ( an organisation we have in the Netherlands, where companies register and can get support setting up their business ) and they are fully registered since 2015, but if you look up the adress on google maps its just a normal neighbourhood. I doubt that place serves as an office for 10-20 ppl.
It sure feels like they're using the tin foil hat-ness of the whole thing to their advantage with this teaser. It even looks like the MGS3 font.
Whatever this turns out to be, sticking the landing is officially a must…
At the end of MGS V, there’s a cassette tape - “Truth Records: Les Enfants Terribles” - in which Ocelot talks about David and Eli being raised free range. In regards to Les Enfants Terribles, he says ‘might as well call it “ABANDONED”.’
Everyone thinks it must be silent hill, so I think it would be awesome if it turned out to be metal gear lol.
Question? Why do you guys think it could be a MGS (I know the eyepatch..) even if the description says it's a survival horror game?
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