REMASTERing the Cover
So last week, we showed you the 3 concepts that we started off with for Secrets Can Kill REMASTERED. It sounds like a lot of our fans liked the first concept the best, and that was also our initial choice, but upon further examination, we thought it might be too boring and plain on the store shelves. We wanted something that would pop more. By 'pop' we mean stand out from the rest of the games and grab your attention. While the first concept does a great job paying homage to the original cover, we chose the second one to go with something completely new.
Once we chose the second concept, we mocked it up for the illustrator. It uses the 3D model of Connie from the game as the focal point. Hal and Hector are in the background and we added an extra girl so both genders were evenly represented. This is what we gave him to work from:
The illustrator came back with the below image. While we liked it, Connie didn't really look like Connie anymore. She was too 'mousey' and meek – a far cry from her judo champion stature. Her pale skin and red hair didn't make her a compelling character on the box.
So for round 2 from the illustrator, we gave directions to make her look stronger with a little bit more of an ethnic look. We also changed her shirt to magenta to more closely match the outfit she wears in the game and add more color to the box.
We were quite pleased with the way Connie looked by this point and just added a few small tweaks. Her eyes are blue, the light around her is brighter, she has more defined freckles. We debated adding her necklace, but that would have cluttered up the "Nancy Drew" logo on the bottom of the package. Hector is moved further into the background so he doesn't distract from the 80th anniversary messaging. So, without further ado, here's the final packaging:
So that's how packaging evolves – very slowly, tweak by tweak until we find the perfect combination. What do you think of the final packaging for Nancy Drew: Secrets Can Kill REMASTERED?
You can preorder this mystery adventure game (boxed and download) today or you can find it in retail stores on August 24.
