Top 10 Worst Video Game Box Arts

Script written by Eric Steiner

Top 10 Worst Video Game Box Arts

Video game box art is supposed to attract gamers, not send them running. Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’ll be counting down the Top 10 Worst Video Game Box Arts. For this list, we’ll be looking at games that had misleading or poorly-executed box art. The covers will be North American versions unless stated otherwise.

#10: “Cheggers Party Quiz” (2007)

If you live in the U.S., you’re probably wondering who this awkward-looking man is. It’s Keith Chegwin , or as he’s sometimes called “Cheggers”, an English television personality and, boy, does he have some personality. Apparently someone decided this guy needed his own video game and in 2007…this Europe-exclusive title was released. The cover features a horrible, CGI rendered version of Cheggers complete with blocky hands and a creepy smile, which are none too inviting. The back of the box actually threatens the buyer to “…Get it now, or he’ll be round your house!” (!) Hopefully Cheggers will stay far, far away.

#9: “Resident Evil 6” (2012)

Every good horror game needs gut-wrenching box art that just exudes fear. “Resident Evil 6” gave us… the letter “6”, which appears to be made out of strands of DNA. Perhaps they wanted to steer away from featuring the main characters on the boxes and go with something a little more mysterious. Still, this cover is pretty forgettable, unless you go on the internet where some fans believe the “6” looks like a giraffe getting a…sexual favor. Once you see it, you can’t un-see it. Now that’s scary!

#8: “Forsaken” (1998)

What does a crying, tattooed woman have to do with a space shooter? Your guess is as good as ours. “Forsaken” is a memorable game for its 360-degree movement and addictive multiplayer, but this cover is just baffling. They may have been going for some eye-candy to attract the intended audience since the game is rated “M” for “Mature”, but why is the woman crying? Why does she have a heart-shaped tattoo of the game’s title under her eye? We can’t help but wonder how many players were turned away because of the cover. Probably not the best marketing decision…

#7: “Batman Arkham City: Game of the Year Edition” (2011)

Bad box art doesn’t always equate to a bad game. In fact, “Batman Arkham City” is on this list because it was so good that when they redesigned the cover for the ‘Game of the Year Edition’ they weren’t going to let you forget it. The standard edition features a clean, black-and-white picture of Batman looking over the city, with red blood smeared on his fist and nose to provide some nice, subtle contrast. The ‘Game of the Year Edition’, however, is bombarded with countless quotes from websites and magazines giving the game perfect scores. Seriously, did they pat themselves hard enough on the back with this one?

#6: “Snow White and the 7 Clever Boys” (2006)

Here’s another game that American players should be glad they missed, because, Europe-only release, “Snow White and the 7 Clever Boys”, plays just as bad as it looks. The developer, Phoenix Games, released a few Fairy Tale-based games with just horrendous CGI box art however, “Snow White…” takes the cake for being the worst. A majority of the “gameplay” is a 2D cartoon, so we’re not sure why the box art needed 3D characters. We’re just glad these creepy creations were never put into motion because the life-less look on Snow White’s pale face is the thing of nightmares.

#5: “Karnaaj Rally” (2002)

This next box art is just a stain on an otherwise decent combat-racing game. The awkward-face, blue-hair, and weird angle make you question what effect the designer had in mind. The bruises on the man’s face are way too severe—this isn’t exactly a back-alley brawler. Add in the lame blurred car and boring checkered flag background and you have a game that was probably passed up by a lot of people because of the pathetic packaging. We wonder if the model on the front cover had any idea what he was posing for.

#4: “Mega Man” (1987)

The Blue Bomber’s introduction to the U.S. was not a graceful one as the cover of the first game features a disproportionate, middle-aged man in a yellow and blue jumpsuit holding a gun. In the background you can see palm trees, explosions, and strange-looking buildings. Japan got the box art right from the very beginning while the U.S. didn’t accurately depict Mega Man on the cover until the 3rd game. Gamers never saw it coming when Capcom actually added the bad box art version of Mega Man to “Street Fighter X Tekken” so the world could finally see the abomination in action. At least they can poke fun at themselves.

#3: All Sega Master System Box Arts (1986-98)

We’re not sure what Sega’s angle was for the cover art of Master System games, but the first word that comes to mind is “boring”, because most of the covers consist of a single image set on, what appears to be, graph paper. The game “Black Belt” features a tiny foot kicking in the bottom left corner, “Choplifter” has a helicopter, and “Pro Wrestling” shows… a headless wrestler holding a decapitated head. Think it can’t get worse? How about the game “Ghost House” where the cover is literally just a picture of someone holding the game. This is probably one of the reasons why the Master System didn’t become a household name in the U.S.

#2: “Phalanx” (1992)

Side-scrolling shooters were very common in the late 80s and early 90s, however, not too many featured an elderly man playing a banjo on the front. The team designing the cover for this game could not have missed the mark any more, which makes us think they weren’t aiming in the first place. The game’s box art definitely made the game stand-out in its day, which is probably why everyone passed up the more recent Game Boy Advance port which went with a conventional space shooter cover.
Before we cringe our way to the top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:

“Toobin’” (1989)

“Castlevania Dawn of Sorrow” (Konami's Best hits version) (2005)

“Super Bust-a-Move” (2000)

“Metro Cross” (1985)

“ICO” (North American) (2001)

#1: “Mystery of the Druids” (2001)

It’s hard to imagine a situation in which someone would be making this ridiculous face. Maybe if a car ran over your foot or you just smelled a rotting animal’s carcass? But for this suspense, point-and-click adventure, it just doesn’t work because it’s so out of place and humorous. Since this is a mystery game, the creators were probably trying to spook the audience, but that has completely backfired. I mean would anyone take Back to the Future seriously if Marty McFly had this expression? Or Nathan Drake? Or Barack Obama? Or this guy?

Do you agree with our list? Which video game do you think has the worst box art? For more informative Top 10s posted daily, subscribe to WatchMojo.com