Rockstar Settles on Mediocre L.A. Noire Box Art

[TwistedEllipses]

Its meant to be l.a NOIRE, i.e black and white.
I like the title on the cover, but the background for it should be something more subtle and moody. And rainy, definitely rainy.

That's what I was thinking, it's not very evocative of what it is...in fact, in my opinion it looks vastly superior just by gray-scaling it:

Spoiler

EDIT: The major problem is still the crowded nature of the boxart, when noir is typically understated with its most iconic scenes using empty spaces and light...

 

[Thamous]

It's freaking boxart. Why in the world does it matter what it looks like?

 

[Latinidiot]

If I see one more montage box-art shot, I'm going to eat a puppy.

Puppy is best served with pasta.

 

[RowdyRodimus]

After this, Heavy Rain and Infamous 2 I'm so glad I live in Europe. Who cares if we get games later, at least our box art is stylish. Sadly I probably won't be buying it as its not coming for PC. DAMN YOU ROCKSTAR!!!

Edit:

That's what I was thinking, it's not very evocative of what it is...in fact, in my opinion it looks vastly superior just by gray-scaling it:

Spoiler

Not bad, but Europe one is still better. Replace the womans face with the building in the Euro version and I'll buy the game

It needs the woman. It's Noire, it's all about cops, crooks and dames. The European version looks more like the cover to an Untouchables DVD box set.

 

[josemlopes]

I actually like it, the red in there is kind of off but the game it self reminds me of a movie and so does the cover. It does a good job to show what the game is about.

 

[Plinglebob]

After this, Heavy Rain and Infamous 2 I'm so glad I live in Europe. Who cares if we get games later, at least our box art is stylish. Sadly I probably won't be buying it as its not coming for PC. DAMN YOU ROCKSTAR!!!

Edit:

That's what I was thinking, it's not very evocative of what it is...in fact, in my opinion it looks vastly superior just by gray-scaling it:

Spoiler

Not bad, but Europe one is still better. Replace the womans face with the building in the Euro version and I'll buy the game

It needs the woman. It's Noire, it's all about cops, crooks and dames. The European version looks more like the cover to an Untouchables DVD box set.

Firstly, whats wrong with looking like an Untouchables DVD Boxset? The problem with the picture of the Woman is a) its not that great a picture and b)Its not something I would consider important to the game. It seems that the important things in the game are the detective, crimes (so keep the police) and the city. Also, it strikes me a bit of the constant marketing stratagy of "Stick a woman on it and more people will buy it" rather then an effort to be artistic.

 

[josemlopes]

Its meant to be l.a NOIRE, i.e black and white.
I like the title on the cover, but the background for it should be something more subtle and moody. And rainy, definitely rainy.

That's what I was thinking, it's not very evocative of what it is...in fact, in my opinion it looks vastly superior just by gray-scaling it:

Spoiler

EDIT: The major problem is still the crowded nature of the boxart, when noir is typically understated with its most iconic scenes using empty spaces and light...

I do admit that gray scaling that image improved it's look my leaps and bounds. Still I do understand why they went for the bright red and bright blue. They're very eyecatching colors, they draw your attention. That's why cops use them as lights and why people who drive flashy red cars get shitloads of speeding tickets.

Someone like me is bound to know the game before I buy it, so box art isn't important. But I think the concept with the coloring is obviously to draw attention to a consumer who might not be as well informed. I mean, must we act like we're looking at the box art for Megaman 1? It's not that horrible.

The black and white cover reminds me way too much of Heavy Rain.

I guess that it could be something with the main character smoking a cigarette and holding a pistol in a dark alley with a dead body on the ground and some cop lights. At night

 

[Covarr]

Here's an idea I had. I was hoping to make something stylized and unique, somewhat like ICO; even if it doesn't say too much about the game, the goal is to grab people's attention on a shelf.

Spoiler

P.S. Thanks

 

[lettucethesallad]

Ooh, the graphics/design nazi in me is in an uproar. But I still have a feeling I'll love the socks off that game, no matter what.

 

[Mr. Socky]

It's not quite as bad as the Mass Effect 2 box art [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/96189-Mass-Effect-2-Box-Art-Fails-to-Impress], but it's damn close.

Which, if you think about it, is the best way to get people to buy special editions. I mean, I basically paid the extra ten bucks for the ME2 special edition simply so it would look awesome on my shelf instead of dumb. Maybe Rockstar is doing something similar? ...I hope?

 

[Frozen Donkey Wheel2]

Eh, it's not so bad. Not great, but not bad. It's actually pretty good, I think.

 

[Covarr]

Here's an idea I had. I was hoping to make something stylized and unique, somewhat like ICO; even if it doesn't say too much about the game, the goal is to grab people's attention on a shelf.

Spoiler

P.S. Thanks

ICO didn't even manage to break 200,000 units sold in North America. Not even 700k worldwide. I wouldn't go to Team ICO to get advice on how to market a game. Of course I wouldn't go to them to get advice on how to make one either. Every gamer know that there's no task more annoying than escorting a character controlled by a horrifically dim A.I. ICO is basically an entire game based around that concept...

I should say, I had the European ICO boxart in mind. The American boxart was garbage, and I don't doubt it contributed to the game's failure.

P.S. Thanks

 

[harknesssimm]

seriously where is rockstar's signiture comic book-esque style, red dead and the gta series had great box art, this is just boring

 

[coldfrog]

This is the European version.

Much better tbh.

I agree - it's not some glob of character images thrown together without rhyme or reason - it has a sort of overarching sense of the city looming over the character, a coherent shot of the world that is clearly intended to portray the two most important things: The character and the setting. Perhaps this is even over-analyzing but the lighting makes it seem like he is going farther into the darkness of the city, which of course is exactly what you'll be doing.

Also, I had never seen the trailer before, but now that I've seen it, I love it! If they can successfully combine elements of case-solving games like Phoenix Wright or some of the CSI games, with action elements and the quality acting that Rockstar tends to hire, this very well might be one of the best games in a while! I kind of wish they'd designed an entirely new city, but I'm not too upset about it. The video certainly made it look like the world had a bit of color, and I like that. I'm anticipating this game more the more I hear about it.

 

[Blaster395]

Get rid of the stuff going on behind the guy in the center, and just have a plain black background. Its far too cluttered.

 

[DustyDrB]

How are you not going to go with black and white box art for this title?

It's L.A. Noire. Just do this:

-Black and White

-Lead character (the investigator) blowing smoke while kneeling over of a body left in a lonely city street. Maybe a few other officers standing about, perhaps a little bit of a car.

And you're done.

This is the European version.

Much better tbh.

Nah. It's on the same level of blandness.