Another year, another countdown, another birthday.  And I’m boxing it all up, tying a nice little bow around it, and turning the ripe old age of 32 with a celebration of 32 BRILLIANT examples of FANTASTIC video game box art.  Join me, won’t you?

Resident Evil 2 (1998) – Honestly, the North American box art for Resident Evil 2 is complete rubbish on its own, but when you compare against what was sitting on store shelves in PAL territories, it’s a travesty.  You don’t tend to associate the Resident Evil series with class, but that’s exactly what the cover for the second (and best) game exudes, pure bloody class.  It does what all best horror films do, giving just enough of a glimpse of why you should be on edge, without telling you what should be putting you there.  It’s what makes Japanese horror films so effective while their (largely American) english-speaking counterparts fail.  The fear of the unknown is half the terror, and that’s something that Resident Evil 2’s stunning box art is a masterclass in.  Sadly no game in the series since has reached such dizzying heights.

And that colour scheme, well, that would send young modern-emo kids into a fit of orgasmic pleasure.  But seeing it it here, I can almost understand why.

Miss previous entries in the countdown?

Space Ace (1983) – Transylvania (1984) – Impossible Mission (1985) – Defender of the Crown (1986) – Faery Tale Adventure (1987) – F/A – 18 Interceptor (1988) – Blood Money (1989) – King of the Zoo (1990) – Lemmings (1991) – Pinball Fantasies (1992) – The Ren & Stimpy Show: Veediots! (1993) – Super Mario Land 3: Wario Land (1994) – Primal Rage (1995) – Wipeout 2097 (1996)  – Theme Hospital (1997)