Box Art

[Dragon]

So, one of the few things that I acutely look for in video games is, if the video game box art appeals to me. It's weird, but, it kind of creates an effect that, "hey, the game looks pretty cool!" So, from that point, what are your favourite video game box arts? Which one appeals to you, and which ones, do you think just-looks-plain-bad? Or anything else you'd like to say about box arts! How do box arts generally appeal to you?

 

[TY]

My fave of all time has to be Borderlands 1.

The bandits, the spiderants and a huge structure on the background while a Psycho holds his hand like a gun against his head on the front.

Mainly i dont really care for box art much, i dont show it to everyone since it'll end up in a box anyways :P

 

[starseed galaxy auticorn]

I love the box art for the Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy especially. It has some of the best box art ever, imo.

 

[thedestinedblade]

Yep, box art has a strange appeal to me as well. I clearly remember paying extra simply 'cause I wanted the game with the cool looking cover.

Ico, my favorite video game cover as of now, is one example.

Spoiler:

I imported the PAL version simply for the cover, lol. The NA cover was nowhere near as nice looking.

 

[TouretteUnicorn]

Box art often has a huge appeal on me and random game purchases. I feel as though the covers affect my perception when I first enter the game; and it never hurts to have a piece of art on hand.

My favorite video game box art;

Spoiler:

 

[Legobricks]

I like the simple box-art, like that of the TES series. It implies, like an old book, that something great is within. Poor box-art is a clashing collage of art assets, review quotes and award listings... really every element made to entice sales sends me the opposite notion of 'look how cheap this game is'.

 

[Hiatus]

I judge games based on how their box-art look, honestly. If it's flashy and stylish, I'll buy the game. If it's too simple, though, then I most likely won't. I'm not the only person who does this. There's a lot of other people out there who do that, too; I'm sure. You shouldn't judge a book (a game, in this case) by its cover, but unfortunately, that's how humans are. You can't do anything to change that. d: One of my all-time favorite video game covers would have to be Dues Ex. The colors are very eye-catching, and I love position that the man's standing in. I also like the cover-art of Wind Waker HD.

 

[T!M]

Hm. I can't think of a specific game covers, but games that often peak my interest have been known to have bright and colorful box art and that's my preference.

 

[Gigginold]

I usually don't pay too much attention to box art. I use the same rule I do for books and movies: Don't judge by their cover.

I will say, though, that box art that works is really neato. I'm personally a big fan of simplistic artwork, ones that don't try and impress me with box art alone.

I think Pokemon is a good example of what I like. It's not too flashy or colorful. It's like "This game has THIS guy in it!", which I think works out pretty well.

 

[Nakala Pri]

If the box art is good, it'll immediately create an illumination that the game is good. xD Like with Moshi Monsters Theme Park 3D, I screwed up. But c'mon, the back of it said you can create your very own theme park and collect cute-as monsters. But it was built off mini-games and stuff. Plus the cover had all of my fave Moshi Monsters on it on Roller Coasters and little trains. xD

 

[Homura Akemi]

Spoiler:

The Burnout series is known for its high speed racing, and destruction. This cover captures both of those well in my opinion.

Spoiler:

Ahh, Touhou. Even things as simple as putting one of the main antagonists on the cover, with some artwork in the background can create a stunning effect.

Spoiler:

This cover just shows the point of the game. Showing what's happening between Naruto and Sasuke, as they..well, battle it out.

 

[GreyVirgo]

One Day walking in the Mall then I saw Pokemon Arcoiris I thought it was a real game for the GBA SP then I bought it because of the Beautiful box art. :)

 

[Shizzable]

I enjoy hilariously bad box art like this:

Spoiler:

In contrast, here's awesome box art from my favorite game of all time:

Spoiler:

 

[Sheep]

Spoiler:

The box art for Etrian Odyssey Untold was beautiful and caught my eye right away! Something about the side-view artwork appealed to me as it looked a lot less generic than the usual front view box art covers we have for anime-styled games.

 

[pompayyy]

I need to give props to Okami HD. The art style is just mind-blowingly good.

Spoiler:

But, Secret of Mana's box art is dang stunning.

Spoiler:

 

[Crunch Punch]

Final Fantasy box arts always look pretty cool, never really played the game themselves but yeah.

To be honest almost all AAA titles have impressive box arts to them nowadays, there hasn't been a single box art nowadays I've seen and thought that it sucked.

 

[Calamitastrophe]

Spoiler:

Star Ocean: Till the End of Time's box art was the reason I started playing this game. I loved the ethereal look it's got going for it. Those feathers, that pose... it's pretty sweet.

And just to throw this out there, the whole judging-a-book-by-its-cover thing is totally the philosophy I use when I pick new games. XD

 

[LoudSilence]

Spoiler:

Not my favourite of all time (that's too difficult to choose), but this is probably the first game I ever liked the boxart of so much that I got it without ever having heard about it.

Seriously underrated. Boktai is an amazing game.