Everything began after being somehow irritated at just how similar modern video-game magazine covers look, the minimalistic look is taken to an extreme and it seems that no risk is taken into improving the overall design.

I asked myself, just how difficult would be to pull off a similar looking cover, and the answer is, not much :)

I started by doing some moodboards that could serve as an inspiration on how the modern state of videogame magazines looks, and it really comes down to that big portrait with a very thick font on the title, and getting both aspects integrated.

The older ones, on the other hand, were very distinct, often times taking more risks with text border, color combination, and having more than one image on the cover. It would feel weird to have this style back, as a lot of this trends are seen today as old fashion. But I definitely can see how it can be turned into an style for retro-oriented magazines.

It really was much more time consuming to achieve what I wanted to convey with the retro cover than the modern one, which barely took me any time to get that similar vibe. The perfect game, of course, was Tactics Ogre, which got a remaster just last year and is the perfect game to have in order to make both covers coherent and comparable on the same terms.

My intention after this study is to try and get a fresh new style in the mix and just see how it could benefit and peak the interest of potential buyers in the content that it has inside, so my personal style of magazine cover will come eventually and be published here, hopefully reflecting what I'm trying to with this study.

This is not a jab at actual magazine companies, I'm just remarking an actual state of fatigue on the user perspective regarding this kind of covers. I really admire this designers and I think layout on the actual reviews and interviews inside has just gotten to a really high standard and that is a huge acomplishment on itself.

What is your take on this matter? Let me know in the comments

Cheers, Neng

UPDATE: I finally finished my version of the covers, trying to take from traditional vinyl styles, I went for a design with an OBI, or magazine jacket. It is removable and gives the reader the option to see the whole artwork displayed when removed.

I went for this design because I think there is some elements that need to be present when first buying a magazine but become less relevant once you have purchased it, this way enables the buyer to choose what they prefer.