Portal 2 Box Images Released for NA and EU

[Hectic Glenn]

You may have seen earlier in the week the release of Portal 2 box art however only now have Valve distributed high resolution images of the box art for PC, xbox 360 & PS3 for both North America and Europe.[br]

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[br]Europe:[br]

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North America:[br]

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[DEATHMASTER]

cool.

 

[Warped]

I can't wait to play this! its on my top 3 of my most wanted this year

 

[Acepilotf14]

I'll just be buying it on Steam anyway.

 

[RestInPeas]

I'll just be buying it on Steam anyway.

Don't do that without checking the price of a physical copy first! Unless you want to pre-load and play the moment it's released (or whenever the servers finally let you activate), it might be cheaper for some weird reason..

 

[morgs]

If anything it'll be cheaper on steam.

 

[Acepilotf14]

Don't do that without checking the price of a physical copy first! Unless you want to pre-load and play the moment it's released (or whenever the servers finally let you activate), it might be cheaper for some weird reason..

Not in California.

 

[Naph]

Cheaper in stores?
Not until we somehow fuse together with some other continent.

 

[Lucid]

Ugly box art.

 

[-smash-]

I don't know, I just don't dig it.

 

[Ennui]

Looks fine to me. Shit, I'm not really concerned with the box art in the first place, but what's wrong with it? It doesn't have Chell? Portal 2 has the player characters be robots because of the coop mode, that's cool with me.

 

[MJ12]

I like it, makes me want the game.

 

[Paulaner]

Don't do that without checking the price of a physical copy first! Unless you want to pre-load and play the moment it's released (or whenever the servers finally let you activate), it might be cheaper for some weird reason..

Agreed. If retail box is cheaper (and it's often cheaper in some store), buy it. You will register the game on Steam anyway.

By the way: that cover art is really, really bad. Putting the focus on those co-op robots makes me feel somewhat uncomfortable, and the long legged robot is not good-looking, imo.

 

[Marler]

Valve are so awesome

 

[ríomhaire]

Makes me want to get a purely Steam copy. I don't like it at all (and I like the co-op robots).

 

[MJ12]

By the way: that cover art is really, really bad. Putting the focus on those co-op robots makes me feel somewhat uncomfortable, and the long legged robot is not good-looking, imo.

Valve is a business and they are trying to market a sequel to a game that became surprisingly popular. This box art tells the average consumer that 1.)There is going to be something new in this game, robots, and maybe some sort of co-op or multiplayer and 2.) Lets the people who have only heard of the game Portal, know that portal is an action puzzle game- As opposed to some simple cover with just the title and logo, the average person might think, "Oh, I heard of Portal, heard it's a puzzle game. Sounds boring.", and may not even pick up the box. However, now, "oh my god robots and co-op?! Sweet, let me pick this up and read about!"

Works great.

 

[Omnomnick]

Old news, people need to check the Portal 2 section more often.

I'll just say what I said then. I like this box art but it doesn't concern me because I'm getting it on Steam anyway.

 

[Tony]

Valve has never really been known for their amazing box art anyways.

Chell herself has never been all that important either (her name only appears in the credits) so having her on the box art would probably only confuse consumers.

 

[sixteenth]

I saw these two fan-made cover's on Reddit. I love the simplistic design far more.

Spoiler

Spoiler

Source

 

[Asknoone]

As someone said, Valve have never been known for their boxart. TOB is one of the ugliest incarnations that exist to testify this fact, but this Portal 2 seems to work. It's a little busy and the background seems inappropriate, but I think I like it. Hm. I do.

I saw these two fan-made cover's on Reddit. I love the simplistic design far more.

Spoiler

Source

It's a retail box intended to attract sales; not a teaser poster intended to attract interest. These minimalist designs - and the one I kept in the quote in particular - are not suitable, and not all that interesting, either.

 

[Dinnesch]

As someone said, Valve have never been known for their boxart. TOB is one of the ugliest incarnations that exist to testify this fact, but this Portal 2 seems to work. It's a little busy and the background seems inappropriate, but I think I like it. Hm. I do.



It's a retail box intended to attract sales; not a teaser poster intended to attract interest. These minimalist designs - and the one I kept in the quote in particular - are not suitable, and not all that interesting, either.

I think the first one looks quite decent, although it needs a bit more polishing(sharp edges)

The minimalist style doesn't suit Portal 2's style as well as with the first Portal tho.(the first Portal looked far more 'sterile')

 

[Krynn72]

It's a retail box intended to attract sales; not a teaser poster intended to attract interest.

Why are they exclusive from one another? In fact, I don't understand how you could imply that they're different things. How can you get a sale without getting their interest? In my own experience, simplistic covers always grab my attention, and lead to far more sales than 'sweet pics.'

Case in point (even ignoring the quality of the art itself) the Qin book would make me look at it simply because of the cover, whereas I wouldn't bother looking at the Song of Ice and Fire one, because I can tell immediately what it is and figure that I'd not be interested. With the Qin book, I've have to open it up and read about it to find out if I'd be interested.

And thats not a good thing, because I am interested in the aSoIF book, but had I not known of the content beforehand the cover would have turned me off. But if they got me to open the book and read a bit of it to find out what it was about, I'd likely be hooked.

 

[Escaep]

I like it.

 

[Sheepo]

When trying to capture the immediate attention of a random person shopping, you don't go for subtlety or minimalism. If someone already wants the game based on prior knowledge, flashy box art brings the game to their attention and will most likely not prevent them from buying it, assuming they're the least bit rational. If they aren't already wanting it, you're certainly not going to catch their attention by throwing a '2' and a stick figure on the box.

As for the actual design, it really bothers me how the robots legs are so exaggeratedly stretched, it seems like a really obvious and annoying detail that throws off the whole picture. But I mean, Steam, so what do I care?

 

[Krynn72]

When trying to capture the immediate attention of a random person shopping, you don't go for subtlety or minimalism. If someone already wants the game based on prior knowledge, flashy box art brings the game to their attention and will most likely not prevent them from buying it, assuming they're the least bit rational. If they aren't already wanting it, you're certainly not going to catch their attention by throwing a '2' and a stick figure on the box.

I guess I'm not the least bit rational then.

 

[Sheepo]

I mean, if you've done your research and actually know what the game is, and you know you like the sound of it, the box art should definitely not sway you. On comedy central The Social Network was advertised as an akward teen comedy, but if you know it's not one, that shouldn't really affect your interest in it. Books =/= covers.

And yeah, you're a ****ing dog knnyr, of course you're irrational.

 

[Vegeta897]

I'm with Krynn. Minimalistic covers and even minimalistic names always attract my interest. "Hmm this looks so simple and understated, it must be good if they're going to try to market it like this" Like they have nothing to compensate for.

"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" is a mouthful of dog shit military themed action words that just makes me say "ugh" and doesn't pique my interest at all.

"Arma" is an example of a really simple name that would attract my interest, just because I want to find out what it's hiding. Unfortunately the box art is a typical action fps guy with a gun on the cover. But I digress.

 

[Darkside55]

Valve has never really been known for their amazing box art anyways.

As someone said, Valve have never been known for their boxart.

...

It's a retail box intended to attract sales; not a teaser poster intended to attract interest. These minimalist designs - and the one I kept in the quote in particular - are not suitable, and not all that interesting, either.

The original orange box was the best box Valve ever had, and the design on that was extremely minimal, featuring only a logo and a name. Did wonders from drumming up interest in the game. They really should go back to this style instead of trying to cram in a lot of busy scenes with characters everywhere on their boxes. The last two boxes to use this style were the HL2 collector's edition, and the Christmas edition.

 

[JUL3]

I don't like it, Portal's box art was simple, but very likable (to me, anyway.)
This looks to intensive to the box art for a VALVe game, compared with all the other titles this is the first where it's people (or in this case, robots) doing things.

 

[MultiVaC]

Yeah, Valve has always been pretty bad with box art. The only one they've ever done that I particularly liked was Left 4 Dead, and that one was about as far from the Portal 2 box art as you can get. It was minimalistic and distinctive. The original Half-Life one Darkside posted and the old Half-Life 2 face boxes were pretty good, but I don't think they would be as effective for people who haven't even heard of Half-Life or seen the Lambda logo. That Portal 1 box art is more what I think they should aim for, but I really know nothing of marketing. I just find that style much more aesthetically pleasing and representative of the game. It also sort of bugs me that they are emphasizing the co-op robots so much, I hope they aren't giving the single player as little focus in development as they are in marketing.

 

[Krynn72]

I mean, if you've done your research and actually know what the game is, and you know you like the sound of it, the box art should definitely not sway you. On comedy central The Social Network was advertised as an akward teen comedy, but if you know it's not one, that shouldn't really affect your interest in it. Books =/= covers.

Well thats irrelevant. As I said in my post, it doesn't really matter if you know about the product before hand. I'm talking for the people who walk into a retailer and look through the boxes of games oblivious to whats inside them. That was my whole point with the book analogy. Simple covers pique my interest much more than cluster**** collages or sweet pics. Like Vegeta said, if I saw ARMA2 on a shelf, knowing nothing about it, I wouldn't even give it a second glance. What they show is an action shot of hurrr durr badasses yelling and pointing with a so cool chopper flying over them. I'd think thats what the game is, and they're just another COD clone. The box art for Heavy Rain (european version that is) is a fantastic example. It doesn't have the FBI guy using his supercool sci-fi hologram thing, or a person pointing his gun at someone. Its got a piece of origami. That would make me pick it up and read the back.

Idunno, maybe its not so much a matter of simplicity, but a matter of design versus graphic heavy. Ones that are well designed tend to be simpler. Like the Shadow of the Collosus Box art. Its got actual art, and kinda tells you what it is right off the bat, but its simplicity with a colossus on a fairly blank background is much more tasteful than, say, God of War's. I guess its just me being pretentious as usual, assuming flashy box art is trying to cover up a shitty product.

But to get back on topic, the only cover from the Half Life series I don't mind is the one for hl2. Its not great, but its not too bad. I don't like the other ones at all. However Portal's is really good, and both covers for the L4D games are good. The Orange Box is a good example of why I'm kinda changing my mind. I don't like it. Theres almost no design to it at all, so I don't grant it much artist value at all. However, I think, in terms of marketing, it is a decent example of where simplicity could lead to a sale, because I'd see it and go "what the hell is this?" and look at it. With the other examples I've made in the thread it wouldn't be so much of a "what the hell is it?" reaction as it would be "this looks interesting." I'd say the latter is a better goal, since "wtf" isn't always the greatest first impression.

 

[Paulaner]

It also sort of bugs me that they are emphasizing the co-op robots so much, I hope they aren't giving the single player as little focus in development as they are in marketing.

I agree. At its roots, Portal is a single player game. I think of co-op mode as a nice addition to the core gameplay. I will never play in co-op mode, but it's a welcome bonus. All this emphasis on the little robots (videos, trailers, and now the main cover art) is leaving me perplexed.

 

[JUL3]

I hope they aren't giving the single player as little focus in development as they are in marketing.

Development is surely over by now, or at least in extreme final stages.
But I do agree, VALVe's focal area is (or at least should be) singleplayer. Being how Portal is set in the Half-Life universe I'm hoping for something, anything, that might give indication to Episode Three/Half-Life 3. I know it's a long shot, but a fanboy can dream can't he? D:

 

[Asknoone]

Why are they exclusive from one another? In fact, I don't understand how you could imply that they're different things. How can you get a sale without getting their interest? In my own experience, simplistic covers always grab my attention, and lead to far more sales than 'sweet pics.'

They are not exclusive from one another. That isn't what I said. I took it for granted that it would be read as such, but obviously not. Of course it must attract interest in order for it to sell (especially if you don't previously know what it is), but it's a different kind of interest. You can yap on all you like about minimalism, and I will agree with you to the extent that yes, it is my preference over busy designs, but the image I was addressing? that's teaser minimal, not sales minimal.

 

[Sheepo]

Well thats irrelevant. As I said in my post, it doesn't really matter if you know about the product before hand. I'm talking for the people who walk into a retailer and look through the boxes of games oblivious to whats inside them. That was my whole point with the book analogy. Simple covers pique my interest much more than cluster**** collages or sweet pics. Like Vegeta said, if I saw ARMA2 on a shelf, knowing nothing about it, I wouldn't even give it a second glance. What they show is an action shot of hurrr durr badasses yelling and pointing with a so cool chopper flying over them. I'd think thats what the game is, and they're just another COD clone. The box art for Heavy Rain (european version that is) is a fantastic example. It doesn't have the FBI guy using his supercool sci-fi hologram thing, or a person pointing his gun at someone. Its got a piece of origami. That would make me pick it up and read the back.

Idunno, maybe its not so much a matter of simplicity, but a matter of design versus graphic heavy. Ones that are well designed tend to be simpler. Like the Shadow of the Collosus Box art. Its got actual art, and kinda tells you what it is right off the bat, but its simplicity with a colossus on a fairly blank background is much more tasteful than, say, God of War's. I guess its just me being pretentious as usual, assuming flashy box art is trying to cover up a shitty product.

But to get back on topic, the only cover from the Half Life series I don't mind is the one for hl2. Its not great, but its not too bad. I don't like the other ones at all. However Portal's is really good, and both covers for the L4D games are good. The Orange Box is a good example of why I'm kinda changing my mind. I don't like it. Theres almost no design to it at all, so I don't grant it much artist value at all. However, I think, in terms of marketing, it is a decent example of where simplicity could lead to a sale, because I'd see it and go "what the hell is this?" and look at it. With the other examples I've made in the thread it wouldn't be so much of a "what the hell is it?" reaction as it would be "this looks interesting." I'd say the latter is a better goal, since "wtf" isn't always the greatest first impression.

Well it's only irrelevant because your previous post made no sense. When I talked about people who weren't the "least bit rational", I was clearly talking about people who wanted the game but changed their mind based on box art, and then you said you must be irrational then.

As for your point, I don't know, I guess I don't shop much and I can't speak too much for other people, but I really don't picture people just scanning box by box for things. I'd think they really scan for a few particular products they are already interested in and maybe their eye might catch something they like. Either way, I think flashy is the better way to go. Sometimes it can be taken too far, to ugliness, though.

However, I just want to point out that this has nothing to do with my particular preference. For the most part I don't let it bother me, if it has a cover like, great, if not, whatever. Particularly for video games, it's not like I ever see the cover again once it's on the shelf.

Edit: I didn't change anything, I have no idea how this happened.

 

[Vegeta897]

Either way, I think flashy is the better way to go.

But don't you get it? What you're calling 'flashy' is in fact the opposite of eye-catching. All the cluttered action shots and stuff are just visual noise lost in a crowd at a glance. A simple and plain box-art is what catches your eye.

 

[Sheepo]

a) What am I saying 'flashy' is?
b) No, you're kind of generalizing what it is to look at a shelf covered with video games. The 'cluttered' doesn't really have that much of a majority (if it has a majority at all), and dividing the designs into 'simple' and 'cluttered' doesn't really do the incredible range of differences enough credit. You make it sound as if you're looking at a wall of black boxes with the occasional white box thrown in.

 

[Vegeta897]

a) What am I saying 'flashy' is?

Forgive me for not following the discussion all too closely, but from what I gather you think that action-y covers with maybe a guy holding a gun or an explosion or some other scene from the game are flashy.

b) No, you're kind of generalizing what it is to look at a shelf covered with video games. The 'cluttered' doesn't really have that much of a majority (if it has a majority at all), and dividing the designs into 'simple' and 'cluttered' doesn't really do the incredible range of differences enough credit. You make it sound as if you're looking at a wall of black boxes with the occasional white box thrown in.

Look at this photo of a typical game shelf.

Lots of visual noise going on here. It's hard to distinguish anything at a glance. Meaning, you have no idea what is on the cover until you actually focus on one of them and see "oh it's master chief holding an assault rifle, oh it's some guy standing in front of a spaceship". These are all examples of the clutter that do not immediately pop out at you. The titles themselves are you read them are probably more prone to catch your interest than the art.

What do you notice first? Probably those two covers that are just a guy on a plain white background. I'm not saying anything to the quality of these covers, but they are the most eye-catching boxes in that photo, arguably. They show contrast; a black figure on a white background. A recognizable black figure even: you can tell it's a man without focusing on it.

 

[Krynn72]

Exactly. Out of all those boxes, the ones I looked at first were the ones with a dark character/object with a white background. They're distinguishable because they have a clear design and lots of contrast. Looking at the other boxes, I see halo with a darkly shaded Master Chief on a dark background, or that Lego Star Wars II (I think?) with just a cluster**** of characters in 'action pose.' I'd wager that it is, in fact, harder to to find products you're interested in if they have busy artwork on the cover, because your eye is naturally going to veer to boxes with simpler, more concise boxes. Its for that very reason a person, not looking for anything in particular, is more likely to look at those boxes, simply because they notice them.

 

[Sheepo]

My eyes go right to the green boxes, but that's just me really. I'm not saying you don't have a point, your reasoning makes perfect sense, but just rationalizing why one should do better than another won't actually make it so. Boxes are made to sell, and if they didn't sell, then they wouldn't be out there.