Destiny Cover Art Sticks With the Formula

[Eldritch Warlord]

Unsurprisingly no one has noted that, in contrast to every other "dudes with guns" cover for a video game ever made, these dudes are moving away from the camera.

To me that's important, it shows that there's a very different intent behind this cover than most others. To me it speaks of a more open-ended journey of discovery rather than focus on a well-defined and limited task.

Not to mention the guy on the right side's head looks like it's popping off because it's so high off of his shoulders. The posture's alright, it's a standard pose you see a lot with the over-the-shoulder look, but the fluffy hood really messes things up and makes everything else look wonky.

I believe the one on the right is a female exo. Since exo are mechanical they don't need to conform to human anatomy precisely.

Or you know, it could just be a tall helmet.

 

[Neverhoodian]

Spoiler

I realize the Escapist isn't the most objective news source out there, but this should seriously be labeled as an editorial or rant instead.

I'm not saying I particularly like the cover myself, but I'm not trying to pass off my feelings about it as the "correct" reaction.

 

[cricket chirps]

And yet still no PC version ): which means at some point I shall still have to grab a next gen console -_-

It does come out on current gen consoles btw. A fact which many people seem to be overlooking. Most of the "next gen" games are coming out on current gen consoles as well.....why does no one else notice this and realize there really aren't very many reasons to pick up the new consoles ._. I mean other than "they're new so they must be better"

 

[fix-the-spade]

It's not just the way his feet are facing, his thumbs are also facing the opposite way of his face so most likely he's supposed to stand facing the other way... I wonder if the guy who designed the head on that cover art wasn't on good terms with the guy who made the rest of his body and decided to make him face us out of spite...

The helmets pictured are the 'right' way round in that you're looking at the back of them, it's just the shape of them is horrible and gives the impression of a visor. Somewhere in Bungie an artist spent a couple of days raging about having to stick to the model sheet even though it looks backwards.

Aww, the guy on the left is trying to be the token female anyway...

The more I look at it, the more I think the one on the right is an actual female. Look at the how closely the trousers #ahem# conform to the contours of the body, also, the somewhat impossible angle of the hips and the sharply narrowing waist before the upper armour parts begin.


It's a pretty awful box art this, I never know who these bits of Dudebro art are supposed to be appealing to. The hobbyist gamer knows before they've even entered the store (or website) what they're going to buy. The Call of Duty buying masses know what they're buying, it's Call of Duty, Bungie can put what they like on this box, those people won't even pick it up because it fails the fundamental requirement of being Call of Duty.

That leaves people in the shop who don't know what they're really looking for, for them the sole purpose of the cover is to make them pick the box up and read the blurb. This cover just looks like a cheap Halo knock off (irony strikes!), the middle guy especially just looks like a 'Not Spartan' and swathes of people will skim past it on their way to something with an established name. It's up there with Bioshock Infinite for taking an interesting game and making look as cheap and dull as possible, it helps even less that the sphere looks reminiscent of the Didact's ship from Halo 4.

 

[Smooth Operator]

That looks like the Halo guy in some rags, so they are essentially saying "MS took our IP so we're just making it under a new name".

Hell it's a surefire way to sell massively.

 

[MarsProbe]

I know people are going to go "oh, but this is what the game is about: sci-fi people with guns and space magic" (by this time, some already have, I presume) and yes, that is what the game is about. But would it really hurt to try and do something just a little different, just this one. Probably even more so than with Bioshock Infinite, this game is likely to have an even more guaranteed established fanbase, seeing that it's Bungie. Though I imagine this is more likely to have been a decision of the marketing bods than the artistic types. It would be great to see that slick looking placeholder art of the sphere looming over Earth, but if we're in luck maybe we can at least hope for a reversible cover.

Either that, or it's the old Collectors Edition ruse, which gets the sophisticated cover instead of the generic one.

 

[Jamous]

Well that's disappointing. It's not awful, but it could be so much better.

 

[Jburton9]

I also liked the original one as well seeing a giant alien orb on a planets surface. What is there, what has changed or will change? It feels more epic where this is a rocky out cropping and that supposedly looks over an area maybe?

Lastly, how do you build empathy with characters if they all have no human points of reference? Suits and helmets everywhere hmm.

 

[BrotherRool]

I though this one was pretty good compared to a lot of other covers. Apart from the back of the helmet being too shiny and looking like a visor, that's just a major art fail that is going to bug every person who ever sees it

 

[The White Hunter]

And yet still no PC version ): which means at some point I shall still have to grab a next gen console -_-

It does come out on current gen consoles btw. A fact which many people seem to be overlooking. Most of the "next gen" games are coming out on current gen consoles as well.....why does no one else notice this and realize there really aren't very many reasons to pick up the new consoles ._. I mean other than "they're new so they must be better"

That would be a part of my problem, see I want to play Destiny with my friends, and since there's no PC version they'll be playing on PS4, which means if I want to play it it will have to be on the PS4. Though I'll wait a while after the thing launches anyway, and see how it rolls out.

Destiny and Killzone: Shadow Fall are really all the next gen has until Infamous Second Son.

 

[Spud of Doom]

This boxart smells suspiciously like focus testing.

 

[Worgen]

I can't tell if hes facing forwards or backwards. This cover is stupid.

 

[klaynexas3]

Don't know what all y'all are bitching about, the box art tells me everything I need to know about the game: it is a shooter (guns), set in the future (space armor), it's post apocalyptic (old and worn shawl meant to evoke nomadic imagery) possibly takes place in third person (you'll be looking at his back the entire time), and there's magic involved (glowing hand).

In other words, everything a box cover should be. It's generic because everyone uses it, and everyone uses it because it works.

That was my thought as well. This one conveys everything that should be conveyed, action game, with guns and magic, thats sci fi.

The place holder box art, while coolish, told me nothing about the game other than it might possibly be sci fi or fantasy and who made it.

Because heaven forbid you do a little background research on a game before you buy it and actually find out whether it caters to your tastes or not. It's not like there's been a whole load of gameplay footage of Destiny or anything...

And what about the people that haven't heard of the game, but simply see it sitting on the shelf. And yes, it could happen, people in this world could be unaware of a Bungie game. The point of box art, while to be appealing in of itself, should also be to let people know what the game should be about, so they have a chance to "judge a book by its cover," instead of having to research every detail about a game. Some of the funnest games I've played have simply been impulse buys, and the box art does a fair deal to grab my interest, so if it doesn't tell me anything about what the game is, I lose interest quickly.

Don't get me wrong, the box art is mediocre at best(the place holder WAS better, at least with conveying a setting, and back art can be used to convey guns guns and more guns), but even so, it should work to make a consumer understand what a game is without having to go out of their way from simply seeing it and deciding they want it. That's what businesses hope for anyway.

 

[J Tyran]

Box art? Will that be on the Floppy Disk release?

 

[Baresark]

The art is uninspired, but as another poster pointed out, it's fine for the game and gets the message across. It's boring and the art style is meh, but it tells you everything you need to know about the game. I, for one, am not falling all over myself to play this. It doesn't seem like anything special at all, and the cover art kind of proves my point. Maybe I'm wrong though.

 

[Proverbial Jon]

Don't know what all y'all are bitching about, the box art tells me everything I need to know about the game: it is a shooter (guns), set in the future (space armor), it's post apocalyptic (old and worn shawl meant to evoke nomadic imagery) possibly takes place in third person (you'll be looking at his back the entire time), and there's magic involved (glowing hand).

In other words, everything a box cover should be. It's generic because everyone uses it, and everyone uses it because it works.

That was my thought as well. This one conveys everything that should be conveyed, action game, with guns and magic, thats sci fi.

The place holder box art, while coolish, told me nothing about the game other than it might possibly be sci fi or fantasy and who made it.

I understand your points but there's no getting around the fact that it's still frightfully generic artwork. Just look at Bungie's first Halo game:

Spoiler: Halo: Combat Evolved

I've always loved this cover because it shows exactly what to expect from the game while still being stylish and exciting. You have a clear idea that it's about bad ass space marines, there is a hostile alien presence, there will be lots of conflict in a new world. And in the artwork and composition alone there is variety and colour. Far more interesting to look at in my opinion.

Bungie might not be right to use the artsy Destiny concept but they can do a lot better than what we've been given.

 

[Nazulu]

Eh, it looks like it suits the game now. Just another shooter inspired by other popular first person shooters.

And what about the people that haven't heard of the game, but simply see it sitting on the shelf. And yes, it could happen, people in this world could be unaware of a Bungie game. The point of box art, while to be appealing in of itself, should also be to let people know what the game should be about, so they have a chance to "judge a book by its cover," instead of having to research every detail about a game. Some of the funnest games I've played have simply been impulse buys, and the box art does a fair deal to grab my interest, so if it doesn't tell me anything about what the game is, I lose interest quickly.

Don't get me wrong, the box art is mediocre at best(the place holder WAS better, at least with conveying a setting, and back art can be used to convey guns guns and more guns), but even so, it should work to make a consumer understand what a game is without having to go out of their way from simply seeing it and deciding they want it. That's what businesses hope for anyway.

No. There is no 'should have to explain things' when it comes to covers. That's ridiculous. I never found the cover to be a good source of information other than it's trying to be clever. They have always been using interesting abstract covers and names to give it a sense of wonder, and no ones had problems with it that I know of. When I wanted info I just looked at the back. You know? Where the info is meant to be for those who are interested. In fact, everyone I've seen in shop always looks at the back. I reckon it's pretty rare for someone to just buy a game because of the cover.

 

[scw55]

Cloth cape looks good.
Why didn't they just go Journey and make the figures be drenched in fabric?