Star Wars: The Force Awakens new trailer released | Watch

The new Star Wars trailer reveals a whole lot of information but has left fans speculating over one big question | WATCH

The new trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens is out — and it is epic in every way.

The trailer debuted during halftime of the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles American football game in the US.

In response, fans overwhelmed cinema websites selling advance tickets for the next instalment in the intergalactic saga and the latest trailer for the film instantly went viral.

The huge demand from eager fans in the US and Britain seeking to secure their seats for the premiere led to site crashes and loading issues.

Tickets for the film also went on sale in Australia this morning.

The trailer reveals a lot of new information about the plot and characters, but fans will be left frustrated by the fact there appears to be only a fleeting glimpse of Luke Skywalker, played by Mark Hamill.

Hamill also fails to feature on the [poster released this week, with some fansites speculating his appearance in the film is being kept under wraps until nearer the December 17 release.

However, we do get to see more of Kylo Ren, who appears obsessed with Darth Vader and ‘finishing what he started’.

Mini teaser-trailers had been distributed on social media in the run-up to this release, while the official poster was also unveiled.

Check out the new official poster! Tune in to @ESPN’s Monday Night Football for a new look at #TheForceAwakens. pic.twitter.com/NTRWLlVyID

— Star Wars (@starwars) October 18, 2015

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens is one of the most eagerly awaited films of the year, and the first in the series in a decade.

Super fans of the saga will also be able to book tickets for marathon viewing of the first six instalments in the series before Episode VII.

“Certain cinemas are being overwhelmed with requests,” said Odeon, a leading cinema chain in Britain. “The website has taken a battering today.

“We’re trying to fix the problem as quickly as possible. Please bear with us as we summon the Force.”

US sites Fandango and MovieTickets.com also experienced problems as fans rushed to snap up tickets. Vue Cinemas in Britain said Jedi fans snapped up 10,000 tickets in the first 90 minutes of tickets going on sale.

Walt Disney has launched a mega marketing campaign ahead of the film’s opening, teaming up with toy manufacturers to build up the hype. Analysts expect Star Wars-related merchandise sales to reach up to $US5 billion ($6.89bn) this year.

The game was broadcast on ESPN, which, like Lucasfilm is a subsidiary of the Walt Disney Company.

The Force Awakens, the seventh film in the franchise, is one of the most anticipated of the year. Even its trailer launches have become events in and of themselves.

The second teaser trailer, which debuted in April, has over 64 million views on YouTube to date.