Video game cover discussion

[Mutoes]

Well, i suppose that cover(megaman) could be called endearing in a odd way. It certainly gets your attention.

One game i bought only judging the cover and back description was kings field for psx

At first i hated the game for its tedious and slow controls and didnt really play it too much until few years later when i started appreciating its bigger scope, music and atmosphere a bit more. It wasnt a bad purchase considering how i made the decision.

 

[Verd1234]

I thought that KOTOR had a great cover as it reminded me of the original trilogy...

 

[Surf Solar]

Nice thread.

That "Phalanx" game looks interesting! I agree that it is much more interesting to see subtlety or some ambience going on than a guy staring in the camera with a grim look (even the Fallouts are guily of this and it's quite boring - when I think of "Fallout" I don't think of cool dudes running around in powered armor first).

I also never understood what is so "weird" about PS:T's cover-art..

 

[Guiltyofbeingtrite]

Probably the most honest game cover of all time is this:

Yes, that is in fact all this game is.

 

[Knight Captain Kerr]

North America has rubbish box art.

I don't think the box art in North America is ever as good as the box art in the rest of the world. For example compare Heavy Rain in Europe and North America.

North America has a messy looking piece of bad photoshop. In Europe it is simple and catches the eye.

 

[Wooz]

You know, being once employed as a manufacturer of Photoshop Bruce Willis Clones, there's only one thing I'd like to add to the discussion.

Ultimately, it isn't what the guy doing it or his immediate superior think is good looking that gets the green light. It isn't how much you can argue your point as to what is aesthetically pleasing and what isn't. It isn't the amount of academical knowledge and qualifications, including MA degrees, you have in a graphic design field. It isn't how good you actually are otherwise in designing covers. It isn't the sensibilities of some kind of stereotypical erudite Europeans and white trash Americans.

What gets through is what the Art Director in charge of marketing/cover art approves.

And then the debate and speculation starts:

Should it be original? Should it be art? Should it be an unoriginal safe bet, based on sales figures? Should those figures be taken in consideration while designing a cover? Should it stand out? If so, how much, and how?

Slippery slopes, shades of gray. There is no universal answer, true for all of those questions. Depends on the title. Depends on how you're pitching it. Depends on a lot of things, mostly including how much you think your cover influences sales.

 

[Serge 13]

Re: North America has rubbish box art.

North America has a messy looking piece of bad photoshop. In Europe it is simple and catches the eye.

Gosh, the north american cover looks soooo awful, whereas the european cover is quite neat looking.

 

[Brother None]

(snip)

This was a good post.

 

[mobucks]

Haha look up the cover of RapeLay. Wasnt sure if posting it was against the rules. No nudity, but... c'mon it's RapeLay.

 

[UniversalWolf]

I like the cover for Nord and Bert Couldn't Make Head or Tail of It.

 

[UncannyGarlic]

But yes, that cover. It and other parts of Planescape's marketing, presenting it as too "weird", are often cited as part of the reason for the game's limited success.

The cover wasn't something that would have made me want to pick it up but I had seen screenshots from the game that did make me want to pick it up. Morte would have been good to put on the cover.

And here is the infamous Megaman cover for the north american release, most likely the worst cover for a game i have ever seen.

True enough but the PAL artwork was pretty sweet.

 

[Mutoes]

Yeah agreed. I allways wondered how the pal version looks so much better than the NA one.

 

[Alphadrop]

Haven't seen the PAL version, that's pretty nifty.

 

[TorontoReign]

This cover attracted me to Double Dragon when I was a kid. The NES taught me so much.







Sometimes simple is better. I wish they would make another Shadowrun RPG.

 

[Kyuu]

Re: North America has rubbish box art.

I don't think the box art in North America is ever as good as the box art in the rest of the world.

Certainly not always the case. For example:

EU:

JP:

US:

US definitely got the best cover there, IMO.

 

[Walpknut]

^The three of them are ugly anyways.

This is one of my favorite SMT covers.

It's so pulpy, I love it.

 

[agiel7]

You want to see a truly absurd disparity in game boxart:

Here's the American version:

Then there's the Japanese version:

 

[Ilosar]

Haha, it looks like the Ghosts are taking an afternoon break while admiring the sunset. The American cover is certainly the most faithful to the game. Oh, and if you guys want more examples, there's a tropes for that http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/AmericanKirbyIsHardcore

 

[Makenshi]

Here's one great cover, imo:

 

[Alphadrop]

^The three of them are ugly anyways.

This is one of my favorite SMT covers.
Cool Pictoor

It's so pulpy, I love it.

I have a PS2 now, I really should get round to buying that game.