Age of Wonders 3 - Cover Art Revealed

After going with a bunch of alternatives with our co-publishing partners, we settled on this concept. Our retail partners want a standout cover, preferable with the logo at the top so it’s easy to see on the shelves. The cover should show the experience of what the game is about. It displays the various types of leaders you can be in the game , looming above a battlefield in a fantastic world. The central character also has high contrast so we have an element that pops from a far (from smaller on-screen versions).

There were big arguments whether a female (Sundren) or male (Edward) should be the central character. Apparently covers with women sell a lot less, so we opted for the male. Don’t tell this to Rhianna Pratchett (our friend and writer who worked on Overlord!). Seriously though, we felt the pose with the central large sword better fitted with the male dreadnaught than the female Rogue. The light beyond Age of Wonders logo shines on the lead characters, as if they have a heavenly mandate to protect the arcadian landscape below from the attacking army. Will the player protect the Age of Wonders, or use it for his own evil goals?

The art is a group effort. The initial concept was done by Lennart, subsequently Lead Artist Allert van der Leij did the 3D posing and worked out the page core of the page in high detail. Additionally Intern Chilly Prins (who has a great knack for color and environment) added painterly details, bringing the elements together. Then Len did some final detailing on the characters.

The Characters:

• Dwemus, A Dwarf Theocrat. A jolly Dwarf Priest appearing in the story. He’s got a grudge against the Commonwealth
• Sundren, High Elf Rogue. Daughter of Julia and King Saridas. Protagonist of the Elven Court Campaign
• Edward, Human Dreadnaught. Protagonist of the Commonwealth Campaign.
• Reshkar, Draconian who you’ll help find a new homeland in the the Elven Court Campaign
• Saridas, former Dark Elf, appearing in both EC and CW campaigns

(Elements of) this art will also be used as banners in the digital stores and on the webpage. Hopefully we’ll get some posters printed too.

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TheSHEEEP said:

That is one of the games I really can't wait to play. AoW2 is still the best game of its kind, IMO far better than any Heroes of M&M.

The cover art itself… well, it's nice, I guess. Though I do not really get its significance, given the significance of boxes themselves these days.

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