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Back when game releases were few and far between, covers were exciting and artistic achievements that were a joy to place on your shelf.
Nowadays, we're convinced that there are only five pieces of box art in the industry.
Don't believe us? Check out this lot – and these are just four examples of each. We could easily have found more…
1. "The loner"
Nothing says videogame cover more than a single figure either striding into the distance or walking towards you. Perhaps there's an airship flying behind or they're surrounded by scenery from the game in an attempt at variation, but it's been done to death.
2. "The big giant head"
If it's not the whole figure then it's just their head, looking menacingly out at you from the cover. Bethesda is particularly guilty of this one.
3. "The character arrow"
Sometimes it's not all about one guy – it's about the team. So what better way to show that than a good arrow formation with the protagonist at the centre? FLANK!
4. "The car"
When there's no protagonist but a Cribs-worthy garage of cars in the lead, you've got to have a slow-mo drive-by on the cover, complete with gleaming paintwork and the smell of burnt rubber. They know there are other angles of cars, right?
5. "The hand"
Valve was onto a good thing with Left 4 Dead, but the problem was Dead Space arrived just a month before with the same hand theme. We've had more solitary appendages since and they've lost their impact.
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