What Cover Art Could Look Like

47 responses to “What Cover Art Could Look Like”

1. 

   Trjn

   September 5, 2011 at 3:35 pm

   If only this were the standard…

   Damn you branding! Damn you classification system!

   Reply
2. 

   Jamesmag

   September 5, 2011 at 3:35 pm

   They look nice. This could work well, as long as there was an insert or something on the inside of the case that describes the game, etc to people that come in to browse. Or perhaps have a description on the shelf underneath the game.

   Reply
   1. 

      Trjn

      September 5, 2011 at 3:38 pm

      I think the best solution would be to have these on the inside and the standard cover art on the outside.

      Makes for easy browsing while in store and then makes for pretty shelves while at home.

      Reply
      1. 

         Jamesmag

         September 5, 2011 at 3:40 pm

         Do you mean have what they have now for the covers on the outside but then on the other side of them, have this art, so when you take it home you can just flip it around and have the artwork?

         Or did I just misinterpret what you were saying? 😛

         Reply
         1. 

            Trjn

            September 5, 2011 at 3:41 pm

            Nope, you’ve pretty much got it.

            I have some DVDs that are like that, it’s a nice touch considering how much I despise the bright OFLC ratings on the side of my DVDs.

            Reply
            1. 

               Jo

               September 5, 2011 at 3:42 pm

               Oh yes this, that would be grand.

            2. 

               HolyAura

               September 5, 2011 at 3:46 pm

               if i recall correctly, i think GOW3 is like that. ( i.e. you could invert the inner print outside.)

            3. 

               Jamesmag

               September 5, 2011 at 3:43 pm

               Yeah I like that idea. Hopefully it’s something they eventually decide to implement.

      2. 

         Tom

         September 5, 2011 at 4:02 pm

         They’re doing that with Resistance 3, I believe, because of the backlash of the logos ruining Olly Moss’ beautiful cover.

         Reply
         1. 

            Braaains

            September 5, 2011 at 4:06 pm

            The Ico/SotC collection, too.

            I do have to give Sony credit for actually changing the original SotC cover slightly (flipped it left/right) when it became clear that the classification markings were going to obscure important parts of it. Nice to see that kind of attention to detail.

            Reply
      3. 

         DENAz

         September 5, 2011 at 5:35 pm

         Brilliant idea, would love it if they started doing that

         Reply
      4. 

         JK

         September 5, 2011 at 7:06 pm

         Madman Ent already does that with most of their DVDs. They have a “clean” reversible cover free from tiny writing and grossly huge classification boxes in the corner.

         Who says games cant do the same thing either?

         Reply
   2. 

      Larry

      September 5, 2011 at 3:49 pm

      This is an excellent idea +1

      Reply
   3. 

      PuppyLicks

      September 5, 2011 at 4:22 pm

      Most PS3 games have this, you can turn the sleeve around for a more text-light version of the cover art, or sometimes something even better.

      Reply
3. 

   Powalen

   September 5, 2011 at 3:39 pm

   More publishers should start doing reversible covers, with these types of things on the inside.

   Reply
4. 

   Chazz

   September 5, 2011 at 3:40 pm

   All they need to do is print the covers double-sided. One side for the store, one side for shelf at home.

   Reply
5. 

   Freeze S. Preston Icequire

   September 5, 2011 at 3:40 pm

   If you have a look at the thread a lot of them have high res images that you can print out and replace the slip. Already have done so for the platinum games I have. I must say, they look even better on the shelf than on your screen.

   Reply
6. 

   Cameron

   September 5, 2011 at 3:40 pm

   Really makes you wonder who the art directors are in these covers at times. Do they just sit there looking at it and get bored? “We need more of everything!”

   Reply
7. 

   Ben

   September 5, 2011 at 3:46 pm

   That ICO one is really nice!

   I agree, there should be more reversible covers around. I always appreciate it when I’m given the option.

   Pity it’s a bit hard to implement for PC games (at least while they’re in cardboard) 🙁

   Reply
   1. 

      Alinos

      September 5, 2011 at 4:51 pm

      Kinda hard to implement for digital sales too 😀

      Reply
8. 

   Jo

   September 5, 2011 at 3:47 pm

   I am tempted to download some of these and get them printed out at printing place.
   Though all my games are in a rack and not visible so it doesn’t really matter.

   Reply
9. 

   Sam

   September 5, 2011 at 3:50 pm

   Not to nitpick too much but this was posted about a week ago already : / My shiny new printed PS3 covers can verify that.

   Reply
   1. 

      Blaghman

      September 5, 2011 at 4:00 pm

      Technically this article linked to this page. Whereas this one is linking to here. The difference being that this particular one is for “Minimalist, clean or alternative box arts for your favourite games”, as opposed to being a simple “PS3 redesign cover” thread.

      Reply
      1. 

         Sam

         September 5, 2011 at 5:14 pm

         My apologies, that said the same covers are featured in both threads : / Maybe a mention of this in the article to clarify would have been warranted?

         Reply
         1. 

            Tracey Lien

            September 5, 2011 at 6:16 pm

            I must have missed that other thread – my apologies!

            Reply
10. 

    PrettyTones

    September 5, 2011 at 3:51 pm

    I love the ICO/SotC one, indifferent towards the rest. I still like my back covers to contain details and screenshots of the game.

    Reply
11. 

    Glenn

    September 5, 2011 at 3:56 pm

    I don’t really care about the crap on the cover slip, what irks me is the giant ass stickers on the front of the plastic case… Those don’t always peel off easily!

    Unfortunately I’m a collector and I’m anal the look of my cases. It’s bugging me that my assassins creed 1 and 2 are AU region with AU rating and my Brotherhood is a UK import… I like things to match. (also doesn’t help there is a giant silver sticker on the front of Brotherhood that won’t come off).

    Reply
    1. 

       bap

       September 5, 2011 at 11:18 pm

       totally the same with my collection. alternate ratings always piss me off. also microsoft collectors edition games usually come with a black case. that’s what i like about collecting ps1, dreamcast, and most things before because the aus releases were the usually the uk version with a sticker over them, or they didn’t require a rating.

       Reply
12. 

    Repneiras

    September 5, 2011 at 4:05 pm

    So I was the only person who thought the Xbox case was a bit too wide? o.O

    Reply
    1. 

       Phill

       September 5, 2011 at 4:13 pm

       nope, the image got stretched by the website it seems, open the image link up by it’s lonesome and it will look right.

       Reply
       1. 

          Repneiras

          September 5, 2011 at 4:39 pm

          Okay, so it’s just me being too lazy to look at the rest.

          Reply
13. 

    Neo-Kaiser

    September 5, 2011 at 4:07 pm

    Conflicting issue. Parents already don’t pay attention to the obvious rating stickers slapped over the case when they’re looking for something to keep their child busy and out of their own hair (one reason that prevented Australias adults rating) so why not leave them out all together?
    (although I’ve never really had a problem with them)

    Reply
14. 

    Chuloopa

    September 5, 2011 at 4:09 pm

    Man, if cover art looked like that, i’d stop dsiplaying it spine-out and have them fixed to my damned walls – those are epic

    Reply
15. 

    Debs

    September 5, 2011 at 4:16 pm

    Those actually look like they’re missing something to me… its unsettling.

    I personally don’t mind the box art and the rating crap etc etc. However, if I wanted to buy video game art, I would buy it separately to be displayed rather than something that will be filed away on the shelf. Also, as Icesquire mentioned, I do hate Platinum game covers…

    Reply
16. 

    Lord Bob

    September 5, 2011 at 4:16 pm

    I did this with most of my original XBOX games years ago by cutting together screen shots and editing in GIMP. Never bothered when I upgraded to current gen machine. They really do look much better.

    Reply
17. 

    Klink

    September 5, 2011 at 4:18 pm

    The ‘Deus Ex: Human Revolution Collector’s Edition’ and ‘The Witcher 2 Collector’s Edition’ both have minimalist (albeit DUDE HUGE boxes) that are devoid of any classifications, developer/publisher names and third party software logos. That is of course, after you remove the very thin piece of glossy paper surrounding the box itself.

    Even my copy of the Brink Steelbook has a piece of cardboard with the classification on it that can easily be removed, leaving a very sleek, minimalist design.

    I believe cardboard/thin pieces of paper are the future here…

    Reply
18. 

    djmcbell

    September 5, 2011 at 4:21 pm

    Now those look better.

    Probably the only games I’ve got where I think the cover art is brilliant are the collectors editions of Halo 2 and Prince Of Persia – Forgotten Sands. These are the metal tin ones. The PoP one looks brilliant especially.

    Reply
19. 

    DeeK

    September 5, 2011 at 4:22 pm

    OK, I admit I’ve been guilty of buying titles from the UK, simply because I was annoyed at the glaringly bright classification graphic here.

    They’re all good mockups. I actually like the original ICO cover better, but this ICO/SotC collection is still very nice.

    I have access to a good colour laser printer at work. I forsee some printing in my future.

    Reply
20. 

    NegativeZero

    September 5, 2011 at 4:28 pm

    I guess this is one way to deal with the fact that the spines on PS3 games changed halfway into the console’s life, so half of the stuff on my shelves has a red stripe at the top and half doesn’t. It’s one of the things I actually liked about the PAL PS2 releases, they all had the same white spines with the same logo and the name of the game in the same font. It’s not exactly pretty, but it’s consistent.

    I like the minimalist feel of these, though honestly I’d almost rather go toward something even more stylized. The Ico one especially. Trouble is I’d want to go all the way and do it with everything, and that’s not viable for collector’s editions that came in larger boxes. Also not something that’s cheap once your collection is big enough.

    Reply
21. 

    Aidan

    September 5, 2011 at 4:48 pm

    Many of those are just stunning.

    Reply
22. 

    Sesshomaru

    September 5, 2011 at 4:51 pm

    Madman have reversible covers. Some of them are great, some of them are meh. The point it you can flip and have the same info on the back, a pretty picture of Naruto on the front and no stupid ratings logo. Game publishers should do this.

    Reply
23. 

    Simon

    September 5, 2011 at 6:13 pm

    It’s near impossible to make a shitty Demon’s Souls cover, the artwork from that game is amazing. Slap that on with a logo and hey presto, it’s boxart!

    Reply
24. 

    John

    September 5, 2011 at 6:24 pm

    Why mustyou keep rubbing in my face that I have a really bad printer =(

    Oh well.

    Reply
25. 

    Otacon

    September 5, 2011 at 7:35 pm

    My favorite one is definitely the ‘Ico and Shadow of the Colossus’ HD collection cover. It is probably the best cover ever.

    Reply
26. 

    compl3x

    September 5, 2011 at 7:43 pm

    Wasn’t this already posted on Kotaku a little while ago?

    Reply
27. 

    Justice

    September 5, 2011 at 8:52 pm

    Imma just print these out on photo paper
    and replace them

    Reply
28. 

    Bdub

    September 6, 2011 at 4:12 am

    They look amazing in concept, I don’t think they look quite as good once they are actually printed and in the case though;
    http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt337/boorberry/DSCN0952.jpg

    I think it’s the white outline of the case that makes them look a bit worse.

    Still, I love the Ico and the Resistance 3 covers.

    Reply