Behind the Bean | The Making of "Bean-Lieve" Among Us 3D

[{"content":{"text":" Sometimes the silliest idea becomes the winning idea. As the Schell Games' marketing team was gearing up to promote the launch of Among Us 3D , we realized we already had a ton of beautiful trailers showing off the gameplay, cosmetics, and tag mode. How could we make another trailer for launch that would capture people's attention and get everyone talking? By referencing an 18-year-old marketing campaign for one of the best FPS games of all time, of course! Ali C., associate marketing manager and also the Bean-lieve trailer 's editor and director, spills the tea on everything went into creating this instant classic. "},"id":"2d377761-ea90-4e27-ba0b-e965b1c58134","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h2","text":"Watch the Trailer","customid":""},"id":"a004183c-0c53-45ce-a564-858c96783e64","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":" To have any clue what we're talking about, you have to watch the trailer: "},"id":"1bfda914-a21c-4a05-bf38-dbe5ec4192e1","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"web","url":"https:\/\/youtu.be\/RgefpoJ3IoM","video":[],"poster":[],"caption":"","autoplay":"false","muted":"true","loop":"false","controls":"true","preload":"auto"},"id":"138c2a77-957f-49da-9d65-471f7197967c","isHidden":false,"type":"videoBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h2","text":"Bean-Lieve: Origins","customid":""},"id":"2d80e4a8-20ad-44c7-b676-6226ad1cc473","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":"Why on Earth would Among Us 3D do a parody of the Believe trailer?","citation":"Ali C., internally (monologue and in-office)"},"id":"023eb443-5737-4311-a66e-9e02a6e9b1f8","isHidden":false,"type":"quoteBlock"},{"content":{"text":" So, how did the idea come about? Flashback to a few months before launch when Ali led a pitch meeting for trailer ideas where anything was up for consideration. By the end of this raucous session, the team was left with 65 ideas. Then, it was Ali's job to categorize, see what was sharable and feasible, etc. Some of these ideas became short form videos, some became ideas for future content and some were left on the cutting-room floor. One idea was too good to pass up. Our colleague Mack N., web operations manager and resident FPS expert, had shared the idea, \u201c Halo 3 Believe Trailer parody with miniature Among Us beans.\u201d Everyone thought the idea was really funny, but was it doable? Ali whipped together a test animation of a red bean looking up at the camera, mirroring Master Chief at the end of the trailer, and that was the moment we knew this was it. And sure, Ali's desk is covered in Pokemon and cozy game paraphernalia, but don't accuse her of being a fake fan. She credits the Halo marketing campaigns for inspiring her to want to work in the video game industry, and this trailer was a full circle moment for her. Plus, one of her best friends is a a Halo superfan, and her last birthday party involved all of her friends going to her apartment to just watch her play Halo 2 . If that doesn't count as true fandom, then nothing does. "},"id":"5f7b7a64-4b1f-4b60-982a-99749132ac24","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/XQEDywgARz5cuFSd"],"src":"","alt":"","caption":"I love it when a plan comes together","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"ec8d9125-04b7-44a1-8288-7e5ec70db2fc","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h2","text":"Putting it All Together","customid":""},"id":"d03b97f2-797f-44ba-8c87-dc3297deb155","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"text":"The most dramatic video of my life","citation":"@ilplay on YouTube"},"id":"f2ae39e2-2c8a-4513-bbe5-ad5898b8387f","isHidden":false,"type":"quoteBlock"},{"content":{"text":" Now that the idea was in place and possible, it was time to storyboard. Ali created a document that showed each shot from the original Believe trailer, how long it lasted, what needed to be conveyed, and any camera movements. Then, it was into our custom tools for Among Us 3D that allowed us to move each Crewmate where we wanted it, adjust the hands, and position the camera right where we wanted it. A (master) chief concern was in conveying emotion. The original trailer is full of humans with extremely expressive faces; so could we do the same with our faceless Beans? Ali studied up on how cartoonists do this and focused on the hands and lighting to communicate the fear, anxiety, and shock prevalent throughout our trailer. Even with all that expertise, group shots were still the most challenging and required a ton of work to keep the poses varied and interesting, while still being readable and conveying the proper emotions (like the silliness of yellow swan diving into the lava to avoid the Infected). "},"id":"efeaf5d0-70d9-4994-b11b-ccda247aef18","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/QyziuEz5AoW46nkS"],"src":"","alt":"","caption":"Check out the master spreadsheet. Yeah, we got to write 'circle game hand sign' and get paid for it.","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"c4ab139b-5a3c-4fae-9146-5199d49c1b29","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"text":" Ali's personal favorite scene was when the blue Bean is reaching for the Emergency Meeting button. We couldn't use the gun and felt like the button just worked so well. Ali loved the reaction this particular scene got when she showed it around the office, and knew she was on the right track. Want to see how close Ali got it? Watch both trailers side-by-side . "},"id":"7bd57a9e-e8e9-459b-b477-b3b0f9935a87","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/caNLyheptqpEyTRj"],"src":"","alt":"","caption":"This one gets us every time","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"d91716ce-d8ca-487b-a3b6-d35a37455d85","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"level":"h2","text":"Community Response","customid":""},"id":"71b6db55-86a8-4d78-94fb-4d18a1849f57","isHidden":false,"type":"headingBlock"},{"content":{"embed":{"input":"https:\/\/x.com\/Halo\/status\/1919888946512716061","media":{"title":null,"description":null,"url":"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Halo\/status\/1919888946512716061","tags":[],"image":null,"feeds":[],"code":" sus — Halo (@Halo) May 6, 2025 ","width":550,"height":null,"aspectRatio":null,"authorName":"Halo","authorUrl":"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Halo","providerIcon":"https:\/\/abs.twimg.com\/responsive-web\/client-web-legacy\/icon-ios.77d25eba.png","providerName":"Twitter","providerUrl":"https:\/\/twitter.com\/","publishedTime":null,"license":null}}},"id":"9fc7d4c4-ffd0-43c2-9bc7-31c27e733c4f","isHidden":false,"type":"embed"},{"content":{"text":" Sure, all of the views and shares are nice, but what we really wanted to know is if we hit the mark with gamers. And the only way to do that is by reading the comments. Initial sentiment was a ton of excitement about the release itself, but then people started noticing the framing, the music and the final \"Bean-lieve\" message. All of a sudden, FPS players were commenting on an Among Us game! Things quickly reached a turning point when we got one comment on YouTube that read, \u201cmy kids might be the ones that are playing this all the time, but the reference is just for me (and the other olds). Thank you.\u201d Tons of comments in a similar vein followed, and we even got a response from John Halo himself calling us suspicious. "},"id":"f6131bef-8d20-4cfa-9f11-da6f8693f1d9","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"location":"kirby","image":["file:\/\/l4eZ1IO6p8Qu8IHt"],"src":"","alt":"","caption":"Lime what are you doing get up!!","link":"","ratio":"","crop":"false"},"id":"6bda2165-d501-40a1-9957-aef8b93fb824","isHidden":false,"type":"imageBlock"},{"content":{"text":" By far, this is the comment that perfectly captured what Schell Games hoped to do with this trailer. Parents have been watching their kids play Among Us 3D, and the 2D game was transformative for so many when we were isolating during a global pandemic. Ali's vision was to let them know that we hear them. Behind the Bean is a group of dedicated developers who have loved games for decades. We\u2019re really all just a bunch of people who love games, so let\u2019s celebrate them in whatever form they take throughout the years and go play. We hope to see you in our next lobby! Stay suspicious and, above all, Bean-lieve . "},"id":"6f45d353-6ce6-47ed-a4d0-9cdc8a6de435","isHidden":false,"type":"textBlock"},{"content":{"text":"The real ones get the reference","citation":"@Lajos_Kelemen YouTube"},"id":"e209438c-0bd6-4dd6-8e22-b4ae57a30f36","isHidden":false,"type":"quoteBlock"}]