With The Game Awards taking place later today, an interesting report has come out of Kotaku detailing the inner workings of the event, with a couple of sources even highlighting how much trailers apparently cost for the show.
The outlet says that according to "two sources familiar with this year’s show", a three-minute slot could cost over $1 million USD for a developer / publisher, while a one-minute trailer could cost up to $450,000 USD.
"According to two sources familiar with this year’s show, a 60-second trailer during the 2025 ceremony can cost up to $450,000. A three-minute trailer costs over $1 million. Two separate sources in the video game publishing world said that while they had not been briefed on this year’s rates, these sounded in line with what they’d expect from previous years."
Despite this, it's also mentioned that Game Awards host Geoff Keighley "curates free slots for what he personally wants to champion", and we're assuming those are mostly small indies that don't have the means to fund their appearances.
If true, it seems pretty crazy to us that anyone is paying over 1 million USD for a trailer at The Game Awards, but it still undoubtedly provides a lot of exposure to the gaming masses. Maybe it's worth it, maybe it's not?