New KOFXV Trailer Returns to Solo-Format, Showcasing Fan-Favourite Leona
- Mack Flett
- May 12, 2021
- 2 min read
SNK’s latest weekly character trailer has returned to the one-at-a-time pattern that preceded last week’s Ryo/Robert trailer, and this week’s tease brings on the hotly anticipated reveal of perennial fan-favorite Leona Heidern.
Though not necessarily shattering expectations as her presence on the roster has been confirmed since the game was first revealed last year, the snippets of footage from the original announcement trailer featuring the redesigned Leona and her Orochi powers were well received by diehards who applauded the evolution of her character model from the prior installment, and this extended look is certain to please those who have been eager to see more.
The only concern now is the same one that haunts SNK’s marketing team every day: who do they follow-up with to keep the hype going? Last week’s dual trailer demonstrated SNK’s awareness that fans won’t stick around for unsurprising reveals, especially when preceded by exciting ones. That said there are a more than a few mainstays that, regardless of relative popularity (or lack thereof), will have to get shown off eventually.
As we await the launch of the new Guilty Gear, hear rumblings of a new project from NetherRealm Studios, and look ahead to the final DLC characters for Street Fighter V’s final season, competitive but lesser-known franchises like KOF will live and die by the power of the hype-train, as developers do all they can to keep it chugging along to launch day.
With that in mind, balancing the requirement to show off such a large roster of characters with the promise to “shatter all expectations” looks like a delicate act, and hopefully one the publishers can maintain in the long-term.
The King of Fighters XV is due for release later this year.
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