{"id":1869555,"date":"2026-04-07T09:17:26","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T06:17:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1869555"},"modified":"2026-04-07T09:17:26","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T06:17:26","slug":"state-of-decay-3-reveal-trailer-wasnt-reflective-of-the-actual-game-says-studio-head","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1869555","title":{"rendered":"State of Decay 3 reveal trailer wasn&#8217;t reflective of the actual game, says studio head"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/state-of-decay-3\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      State of Decay 3<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">State of Decay 3 reveal trailer wasn&#8217;t reflective of the actual game, says studio head<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Oh deer.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/state-of-decay-3-report-details-troubled-development-1648811289149.jpg?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"state-of-decay-3-report-details-troubled-development-1648811289149.jpg\" data-lightbox width=\"570\" height=\"319\"><\/p>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Connor Makar avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/tAtwiaBo_400x400.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"374\" height=\"374\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Connor Makar avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"tAtwiaBo_400x400.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"374\" height=\"374\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/connor-makar\">Connor Makar<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Staff Writer<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-04-07T09:17:26+00:00\">April 7, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<div class=\"comments\">\n      <a class=\"comments__link comments-bubble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/state-of-decay-3-reveal-trailer-wasnt-reflective-of-actual-game-says-studio-head?view=comments\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n          10 comments<br \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"20039ba6-ace9-4a98-8b00-69869ab6515b\" data-name=\"State of Decay 3\" data-follow-text=\"Follow State of Decay 3\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following State of Decay 3\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow State of Decay 3\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following State of Decay 3\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow State of Decay 3\" title=\"Follow State of Decay 3\"><br \/>\n  Follow State of Decay 3<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Studio head of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/state-of-decay-3\">State of Decay 3<\/a> developer Philip Holt has confirmed the 2020 reveal trailer was based entirely on &#8220;a concept&#8221; for the game, and a major inclusion in said trailer won&#8217;t actually make it into the game: zombie animals.<\/p>\n<p>This interview, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=HOkaGz7KBcw\">conducted by content creator Sunny Games<\/a>, is a roughly 48-minute catch up with State of Decay 3 after a period of mostly radio silence. It comes shortly after the reveal of an alpha playtest for the game popped up during the Easter weekend.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"State of Decay 3 - Official Alpha Playtest Announcement Video\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Ae4fQi77X0M?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/Ae4fQi77X0M\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">State of Decay 3 &#8211; Official Alpha Playtest Announcement Video<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>You can watch the State of Decay alpha playtest trailer here.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Ae4fQi77X0M\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When asked about the 2020 announcement trailer, and the elements featured within including zombified animals, Holt said: &#8220;No zombie deer! There really wasn&#8217;t a game team when we were working on that trailer, it was so early. There were like four &#8211; five people, the game was in a word document.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The trailer was done by Blur. It was all pre-rendered. It represented a concept, our thoughts at the time of what might be cool to explore in State of Decay 3. And as we&#8217;ve had a chance to build a team and get going on the game, some of those elements I think are going to persist in the game that we deliver and some of those things are just, like, we&#8217;re not doing zombie animals.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/kotaku.com\/state-of-decay-3-xbox-series-x-s-sexism-microsoft-undea-1848728682\">Previous reporting in 2022<\/a> claimed that Microsoft was pushing for trailers from its developers to build hype around the next console generation, and this trailer took the development team at Undead Labs by surprise.<\/p>\n<p>This interview comes after a refreshed push by Undead Labs and State of Decay 3, after the development team has been largely radio silent for a few years now. Undead Labs did release a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/state-of-decay-3-resurfaces-after-four-years-with-new-cinematic-trailer\">cinematic trailer for State of Decay 3<\/a> back in 2024 to keep fans keen, but aside from that, not much on the game has been discussed!<\/p>\n<p>There were also reports that State of Decay 3 would be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/xboxs-state-of-decay-3-and-gears-of-war-e-day-heading-to-ps5-report-claims\">joining Gears of War: E-Day as a PS5 release<\/a>, something which has yet to be confirmed with the announcement of the game&#8217;s alpha test.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>Studio head of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/state-of-decay-3\">State of Decay 3<\/a> developer Philip Holt has confirmed the 2020 reveal trailer was based entirely on &#8220;a concept&#8221; for the game, and a major inclusion in said trailer won&#8217;t actually make it into the game: zombie animals.<\/p>\n<p>This interview, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=HOkaGz7KBcw\">conducted by content creator Sunny Games<\/a>, is a roughly 48-minute catch up with State of Decay 3 after a period of mostly radio silence. It comes shortly after the reveal of an alpha playtest for the game popped up during the Easter weekend.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"State of Decay 3 - Official Alpha Playtest Announcement Video\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Ae4fQi77X0M?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/Ae4fQi77X0M\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">State of Decay 3 &#8211; Official Alpha Playtest Announcement Video<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>You can watch the State of Decay alpha playtest trailer here.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Ae4fQi77X0M\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>When asked about the 2020 announcement trailer, and the elements featured within including zombified animals, Holt said: &#8220;No zombie deer! There really wasn&#8217;t a game team when we were working on that trailer, it was so early. There were like four &#8211; five people, the game was in a word document.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The trailer was done by Blur. It was all pre-rendered. It represented a concept, our thoughts at the time of what might be cool to explore in State of Decay 3. And as we&#8217;ve had a chance to build a team and get going on the game, some of those elements I think are going to persist in the game that we deliver and some of those things are just, like, we&#8217;re not doing zombie animals.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/kotaku.com\/state-of-decay-3-xbox-series-x-s-sexism-microsoft-undea-1848728682\">Previous reporting in 2022<\/a> claimed that Microsoft was pushing for trailers from its developers to build hype around the next console generation, and this trailer took the development team at Undead Labs by surprise.<\/p>\n<p>This interview comes after a refreshed push by Undead Labs and State of Decay 3, after the development team has been largely radio silent for a few years now. Undead Labs did release a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/state-of-decay-3-resurfaces-after-four-years-with-new-cinematic-trailer\">cinematic trailer for State of Decay 3<\/a> back in 2024 to keep fans keen, but aside from that, not much on the game has been discussed!<\/p>\n<p>There were also reports that State of Decay 3 would be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/xboxs-state-of-decay-3-and-gears-of-war-e-day-heading-to-ps5-report-claims\">joining Gears of War: E-Day as a PS5 release<\/a>, something which has yet to be confirmed with the announcement of the game&#8217;s alpha test.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News State of Decay 3 State of Decay 3 reveal trailer wasn&#8217;t reflective of the actual game, says studio head Oh deer. News by Connor Makar Staff Writer Published on April 7, 2026 10 comments Follow State of Decay 3 Studio head of State of Decay 3 developer Philip Holt has confirmed the 2020 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-1869555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869555","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1869555"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1869555\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1869555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1869555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1869555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}