Well, in my opinion, too much hype can also HURT sales. Sometimes it can set expectations too high, so when the game gets lower-than-stellar reviews, people see it as a bomb and avoid the purchase.

I can agree with one thing, though; it really IS nice just KNOWING that a certain game is in the works. But that's a rare case. Like Kirby :D I was so glad to hear that it's going to happen on the Wii. But there are plenty of examples where games get too much coverage and build up too much hype for their own good.

There HAS to be a magic number...the perfect in-between.

Some of the big name games have been being hyped far too long for... er... far too long.

Final Fantasy VII (and III (VI) for that matter.)
Cruis'n USA
Mario 64 (Debuted 95, came out June 96 in JPN, September US)
Star Fox 2
Duke Nukem Forever
Many Sega CD games
Mortal Kombat (Home Versions- Debuted in January, Featured April Issue of EGM (March) came out in September)

Games are definitely announced and hyped way too early these days. As a giant monster Nintendo fan, I must say...

Case in point: Brawl.

May 2005: announced
October 2005: started development
May 2006: first official trailer
May 2007: started getting mega-hyped at the Dojo
January 2008: first released in Japan

2 years and 8 months after announcement.
2 years and 3 months after development started.

That's nuts. That's way too long. It's gotta stop.

But hey, at least it's not as bad as Spore, or however long it'll take for StarCraft 2.

Yeah the hype does get started a little early on a lot of games I agree. Then you're left wishing your life away waiting for the months to pass so you can get your hands on that big name title. And when was the last time you ever saw a big name game hit it's release date? Or at least hit the date and not be full of bugs. It's sort of a catch 22 for me, I'm mad when they can't hit release dates and I'm angry when they do the whole "when it's finished" thing. At least I'm not that excited about Duke Nukem Forever, feel sorry for those poor bastards.

Another thing these developers need to worry about is having the hype not last the development cycle. They need to strike when the iron is hot. I remember waiting so patiently for Shadowbane an online rpg to be released. At one point it was voted the #1 most anticipated game in PC Gamer. They kept pushing the release date back every few months and by the time it finally came out, I, like many others didn't even bother to pick it up. A few months down the road I did make the impulse purchase but got home, and found out the pc I had bought a year and a half ago that was supposed to play this thing at it's highest graphical setting couldn't even handle 3 people on the screen. To think I had bought that PC with Shadowbane in mind. Just look at how that game did for sales after being so hugely hyped. The mean side in me loves seeing games that are over hyped way too early fail because they missed their window.

Reminds me of the new Camaro too, how long ago was that thing first shown? 6-7 years ago? Chevy built up all the new muscle car hype and now Dodge is going to steal their thunder with the new Challenger. Spring 2009 as a 2010 model? Come on GM, Transformers was released on HD DVD for **** sakes.

L.A. Noire. No game play footage, whatsoever. All we got is a name, a CGI trailer, and the name of the third party making it. People are going freekin' crazy for this game. Hyped too soon? You better believe it!

certain developers need to shut up and deliver

And don't firget Killzone 2 & MGS4. Worthy of the hype? Yes. But we've been watching trailers since 2005! What's wrong with a 1 year announcement prior to a product being put on shelves?

Sony likes to show game when they are FAR from being ready, I think we agree

Definitely. A good portion of the PS3's biggest games were getting hyped years before they came out (Heavenly Sword, MGS, FFXIII, etc.), and then there are games that start getting hyped before there's anything substantial (Sadness).

way to much hype--they seem to think every game is teh second coming of Chuck Norris and 7 out of 10 end up being lame games (lair)