Jump to content
Search In
  • More options...
Find results that contain...
Find results in...
hardcore_gamer

Thoughts on my fictional Quake CD add-on cover?

Recommended Posts

So I am creating a mod for Quake that will contain 3 episodes (each will contain 4 levels). However, the idea is to present the mod as if it were one of those unoffical CD add-ons that were released a lot while Quake was still all the rage. I am no graphics artist however and am thus asking for your feedback.

The idea is that these are suppose to look like real CD game covers. I have already completed the first drafts/attempts.

The front:



The back:




The mod download is suppose to come in a folder that is suppose to look identical to the kind of folder that would appear on a game/Quake add-on CD, and will contain the mod, the covers, and perhaps even a short written manual!

I want to make it really look like this is an actual unoffical expansion pack for Quake!

Also, if anyone has a talent for art and feels like creating something that looks better then that would be really awesome, since I am no artist personally.

Also, I intend to actually print the covers and burn the mod into a real CD to make the immersion even stronger!

So, how are the covers? Bad? Good?

EDIT: Ok guys, I just went a step further and created a whole game manual in PDF format that is suppose to look like a real manual that you would expect to see come with a game. It includes things such as the story and descriptions of the new features.

You can read the manual online here: http://www.scribd.com/doc/149386611/Shroudghoul-for-Quake-Manual

The actual file itself will also come with the mod itself once it is finished.

Also, this mod now uses the Quoth mod for the more monsters and mapping features.

As usual, feedback is always welcome/useful.

Share this post


Link to post

It looks pretty legit, though on the first cover I would de-intensify the red text just a little bit (looks too MS-Paintish), but other than that, cool!

Also, shouldn't it read, "An all new adventure?" :)

Share this post


Link to post

Hyping up your project as a "collection of the greatest Quake levels ever made" might be a bit much, don't you think?

Share this post


Link to post
esselfortium said:

Hyping up your project as a "collection of the greatest Quake levels ever made" might be a bit much, don't you think?


You need to keep it in mind that the cover is suppose to look like a real PC game cover. The purpose of a game cover is to basically advertise the game. Its not suppose to be unbiased or critical of the actual game.

When was the last time you saw a game cover that said "A FAIRLY DECENT GAME THAT MIGHT POSSIBLY BE WORTH YOUR TIME!!!"

I am well aware that my levels won't literally be the greatest levels ever made. I just put that on the cover to make it look more legit.

Share this post


Link to post

It doesn't really describe what it is, though. I've learned next to nothing about what I'm actually going to get from your Quake project by reading the synopsis. It tells me about some vague themes and settings that are basically what I'd already expect in a Quake project, and then it tells me they're really great.

Is there lots of vertical combat? Are your maps focused on scripted traps? Will I find imposing, large-scale fortresses? Claustrophobic catacombs? Open courtyards and arenas? Nonlinear locales to explore? I can only guess about any of this, because right now there are just a bunch of words that tell me "12 Quake maps that are good".

Share this post


Link to post
esselfortium said:

It doesn't really describe what it is, though. I've learned next to nothing about what I'm actually going to get from your Quake project by reading the synopsis. It tells me about some vague themes and settings that are basically what I'd already expect in a Quake project, and then it tells me they're really great.


Sounds like the description of a typical Quake CD add-on to me.

I don't think your getting the point. The cover isn't suppose to be informative or clever. It's only real purpose is to emulate the feel of a late 90's Quake CD add-on game cover.

Share this post


Link to post

Even on modern games, sometimes - even after I have read the cover - I don't know what I'm supposed to be getting with the game. I mean, sometimes I can't even work out if it's a FPS or a RTS or whatever.

Share this post


Link to post

I don't recall people misusing "epic" all that much back in the day. Spot on with the repeated uses of "awesome", though... ;)

Share this post


Link to post
DoomUK said:

An all new adventure


temples


Spelling errors have now been fixed.

Also, I updated the front cover so that it looks less MS paint like.

Share this post


Link to post
esselfortium said:

Hyping up your project as a "collection of the greatest Quake levels ever made" might be a bit much, don't you think?


Isn't that every shovelware ever though?

Share this post


Link to post

I guess I should have posted these at the start of the thread, but I only finished uploading the later one right now anyways.

The first video is outdated, but I will post it anyways since it shows the hub world while the later doesn't, while the later shows what has been made thus far of the first level. I suggest you watch the first video until 1:30 since everything after that is outdated, and then just watch the second video which shows a recent built of the level.



Share this post


Link to post

The font sucks. It looks like you made that by firing up MS Paint's text tool, using the default font. Even actual shovelware covers looked better than that.

Likewise, the HG logo is ridiculously aliased (like you had made it with MS Paint's ellipse tool) and it has different proportions on the front and the back.

"Monsterized" isn't a word that can be taken seriously.

Share this post


Link to post
Gez said:

taken seriously.

Maybe I'm misjudging the author's intent, but I think this snippet encapsulates where every negative critique is coming at this from the wrong angle.

Am I the only who remembers these types of boxes from the 90s? They were totally hyperbolous, fallacious, and ridiculous.

Although where I think this one goes wrong is in its bold use of the actual Quake "Q." The real boxes I remember tended to try to fool purchasers into thinking the software was more legitimate than it was, but they usually stopped short of having identical background boxart. I say at least run it through some cheap, 90s-esque Photoshop filters. :3

Share this post


Link to post
schwerpunk said:

Although where I think this one goes wrong is in its bold use of the actual Quake "Q." The real boxes I remember tended to try to fool purchasers into thinking the software was more legitimate than it was, but they usually stopped short of having identical background boxart. I say at least run it through some cheap, 90s-esque Photoshop filters. :3


Or maybe use some cover art that has nothing to do with the "project". For instance, the original NES Mega Man.

Share this post


Link to post
Gez said:

The font sucks. It looks like you made that by firing up MS Paint's text tool, using the default font. Even actual shovelware covers looked better than that.

Likewise, the HG logo is ridiculously aliased (like you had made it with MS Paint's ellipse tool) and it has different proportions on the front and the back.

"Monsterized" isn't a word that can be taken seriously.

To be fair, his cover does look like something straight out of a nineties shovelware publisher.

Share this post


Link to post

Ok guys, I just went a step further and created a whole game manual in PDF format that is suppose to look like a real manual that you would expect to see come with a game. It includes things such as the story and descriptions of the new features.

You can read the manual online here: http://www.scribd.com/doc/149386611/Shroudghoul-for-Quake-Manual

The actual file itself will also come with the mod itself once it is finished.

Also, this mod now uses the Quoth mod for the more monsters and mapping features.

As usual, feedback is always welcome/useful.

EDIT: There are some spelling errors but those will be fixed.

Share this post


Link to post

20MB RAM? I wasn't aware they sold RAM in 10MB increments..

But I think it should be changed to 16MB or 24MB.

Share this post


Link to post
Mr. Chris said:

20MB RAM? I wasn't aware they sold RAM in 10MB increments..

But I think it should be changed to 16MB or 24MB.


Since the mod isn't close to finished some of the things in terms of TR aren't clear yet, so I just copy/pasted the requirments from the original Quake, while making the RAM requirment higher because I figured that more complex levels with more stuff going on would require more RAM. The HD space requirment doesn't even list a requirment, it just says "X amount of it is needed". This manual is a first draft, so there are things in it that will probably change.

I don't think the minimum requirments should be taken seriously though, since nobody is still using a PC from the mid 90's.

Anyways, what were your thoughts on the actual manual? Technical requirments aside?

EDIT: Also, I will probably make a new cover for the CD case since the features listed on the current one are now outdated since I decided to change the project so that it now includes features from the Quoth mod.

Share this post


Link to post
Mr. Chris said:

20MB RAM? I wasn't aware they sold RAM in 10MB increments..

8+8+4.

Or even 8+8+2+2. Like having a computer with 4 MB RAM in two modules of 2 MB each; then upgrading by getting two modules of 8 MB each, finding that you have a total of four module slots in your mobo, and going "why the hell not just use them all".

Share this post


Link to post

Outlandish idea, but how about finishing the actual levels first and only then pimp gimmicks? Not least because a 12-level project is very ambitious even for experienced mappers, not to mention someone who's only just started.

Share this post


Link to post

Looks pretty cool. I think the second version of the front cover seems more like an actual CD cover.

Also, if I were you, I would capitalize the letter "H" from the word "hell" in the back cover description. Just an idea.

Share this post


Link to post
negke said:

Outlandish idea, but how about finishing the actual levels first and only then pimp gimmicks? Not least because a 12-level project is very ambitious even for experienced mappers, not to mention someone who's only just started.


Except that I haven't only just started.

While this may technically be my first mod for Quake, this isn't the first time I have to use the Radiant editor to make levels. So I already have plenty of experience with level design of this sorts. Also note that the first video I uploaded of gameplay is very outdated and most of the starting area has been mostly replaced.

Its also worth noting that I have lots of free time, so while this will take a while to complete I don't consider 12 levels to be that big of a deal.

Share this post


Link to post

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×