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originally posted in:Art and Stuff
Edited by Saphyr: 9/30/2013 10:14:22 PM
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... ... ... I desire to convey an idea against the current image shown. Click the spoiler if you give a damn about my opinion that follows. [spoiler]Icons. Icons will burn a memory into a gamer's mind when they recall the game. Destiny has an icon, the Traveller. What would be best to introduce the player visually to the game, on its cover? I believe it is the icon itself. No character matches that icon unless they are constant and recurringly familiar in their image. Do you know the icons of games I remember most? Look no farther than my chosen profile image. That was the only front image of my first Bungie game's box. It has recurred ever since, even through the Halo era. Look at the traditional Hylian shield from LoZ. Look at the Traveller, obscured from view as it is here, or the Destiny tricorn. Skyrim has the dragon motif. These games, when you look at the box art, appears special... It appears mysterious. You are artistically compelled to buy it. It should be able to go on your wall as an art piece if it's good enough. Let the back images convey the gameplay action you expect! Let the front convey its soul! I've seen enough action characters on the front of Crysis, CoD, Bioshock, Call of Jaurez, Battlefield, Halo, Borderlands, Fallout 3, etc. in FPS covers. I have had enough! I look at each of these now and I no longer see value in the covers. This cover wouldn't have sold me if I didn't know what Destiny was. It's like any other. What I just said is an echo of those trolls who keep saying that this game is going to be like Borderlands or CoD, but with, what is in their minds, minor differences. We already do not want association with traditional shooters because this game is meant to remake the genre itself and change it; we want our game to be special and iconic. With an image like this, we are associating with that status quo. We want a potential player to say "What is this? ... A cooperative experience blending single player and multiplayer? Huh.", not "Another FPS? Do we even have any more room for these? I already have my 'Modern Warbattles', so I have no business looking at this!" I preferred the first image with just the Traveller for this reason. It's an icon. It is a simple image that will graft itself into the psyche of the player to recall whenever they think "Destiny". Something of this sort is busy, complex, and unfortunately too similar in design principle to many other games that have come about.[/spoiler] None of the above applies if a limited edition case were to abide by the ideal I advocate for above. Getting both in this case probably works out better for everyone than getting only either.
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  • [quote]This cover wouldn't have sold me if I didn't know what Destiny was. It's like any other.[/quote]To be completely honest, if I didn't know what Destiny was, I wouldn't necessarily be drawn to the game by the placeholder cover because it provides no information as to what it's about. That doesn't mean it isn't badass art, it just screams intrigue more so than excitement. This cover almost looks as if the Traveler is making landfall (it reminds me of District 9) for the first time. While that doesn't accurately portray the story of Destiny, it does blend intrigue and excitement proportionately. For all we know the rather faceless trio we see on the cover [i]could[/i] in fact be a recurring presence in he form of trailers and media to come. Like you said, we'll be buying the double deluxe version that includes a multitude of supplemental works of art complete with anoxic encasement. I'm not trying to argue but you know people who will be buying the game sans special edition cosmetics won't care about the cover art as much as us. There's alway the possibility of a reversible sleeve insert that would appease everyone.

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  • [quote]That doesn't mean it isn't badass art, it just screams intrigue more so than excitement.[/quote] To me, "badass" wouldn't be the representing aspect of Destiny, anyways. The idea of my critique was that conveying little information to you is, in fact, the closer representation of what the game wants to be to the player... a mystery. It isn't your game if you aren't interested in looking on the backside of that box once you take notice of how little you are told on the front. What piques that curiosity you would be made to feel from the more minimal box art is the part of the game that is different from Titanfall, CoD, Battlefield, Halo, or Killzone. It's not killing aliens; it's not competitive multiplayer, and it's not realism. Intrigue is what will make this game fun in its own way. Like I hinted in the last word, though, I see the necessity of sales to be found in exploiting teenage ego and inattentiveness to all but the badass fantasy from using this image. As I saw someone remark elsewhere, it is turning the idea of front-facing action shots on its head... almost literally, given the confusion about the direction that Hunter is facing.. [quote]For all we know the rather faceless trio we see on the cover [i]could[/i] in fact be a recurring presence in the form of trailers and media to come.[/quote] You don't recognize those three? They came out of the "Law of the Jungle" trailer. The link is made, yes. Consistent marketing.

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  • Edited by hopla: 10/1/2013 2:32:24 PM
    ^badass art This cover is aimed at consumers who, regrettably, are like me. The box art shows the Traveler in a position that inspires mystery like I said earlier. It shows the iconic trio. It shows space magic and guns held by a range of characters. That grabs my attention, I already know its not a normal shooter, it's a shooter with an element of mystery, adventure, and variety. That's something I can tell I want to play. If it was just the Traveler hovering over Earth none of that would be conveyed. I might pick it up and I might not. In fact I probably wouldn't because when I walk into a game store I already know what I want to buy and the only thing I'll actually browse through are the old gen games and those by the front register. [url=http://www.bungie.net/en/Forum/Post?id=62082387&path=1]Check out my reply on Irishfreak's thread[/url]. Not every game cover needs to or can afford to be original. Personally, i find it refreshing that they d[i]idn't show them facing the camera[/i]. You talk about appealing to teenage badassery, well this [i]does[/i] turn that on its head because it reversed the ego fantasy mirror view motif. Instead it evokes adventure. All movie posters basically followed the same model for years before the minimalist art prints started showing up. While the new and old posters are equally cool in their own way, one gives you much more information about what you're paying for than the other (oddly enough, considering movies have gotten more expensive) because film has turned into such a refined art form, posters are now viewed much more as collectible items instead of advertising. Like we both agreed, this isn't the cover for us. We have probably opted out of the stock case/art and [i]know[/i] we want that 'collectible item' (feel) already. [quote]You don't recognize those three? They came out of the "Law of the Jungle" trailer. The link is made, yes. Consistent marketing.[/quote]That's what I'm saying, it already has that iconic element to it (if these three are to be seen in future media and they remain without a great specificity of backstory) that supplements the icon of the Traveler.

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