In the era of digital purchases, video game cover art has become largely obsolete. While modern fans have access to a plethora of reviews and gameplay footage before purchasing a new title, an awesome cover was once one of the few ways to grab a customer’s attention. During its heyday, the PS1 games had some of the strongest covers around, and it’s still easy for most fans to call to mind classic PS1 covers likeFinal Fantasy 7.
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Unfortunately, a gripping cover couldn’t always guarantee a game would make it off the shelf. There are countless examples of games that fans probably wouldn’t include in theirdream PS1 collectionthat still boast absolutely stunning cover art. Whether they were critical failures or simply forgotten to time, these titles should at least be remembered for their cover art.
10Vandal Hearts
Vandal Heartsis a turn-based tactical RPG that is still beloved by a small group of loyal fans. While it doesn’t receive as much praise asFire EmblemorShining Force, it was many players' first exposure to the genre.
The cover ofVandal Heartsis as epic as it gets. It shows the party having a showdown with a massive dragon.
9Hexen
Hexenis aclassic run-and-gun gamethat just never quite reached the popularity of contemporaries likeDoomorDuke Nukem 3D. Hexenoffered more complexity than other run-and-gun titles in that it allowed players to choose from three classes that each came equipped with their own unique kit.
While it just didn’t click with customers in the way that other id Software products did,Hexen’s art is an absolute win. Its dark,Diablo-like cover perfectly communicates what the game is all about in an instant.
8The Simpsons Wrestling
Not only isThe Simpsons Wrestlingone of the worst PS1 games out there, but it’s arguably one of theworst video games of all time. It paired terrible controls and exploitable mechanics with chunky, unfinished graphics. There’s basically nothing that redeemsThe Simpsons Wrestlingbeyond its cover.
The image of an angry Groundskeeper Willie hoisting Homer Simpson above his head as a crowd of fan-favorite characters looks on is hard to overlook. Unfortunately, anyone that picked upThe Simpsons Wrestlingoff the shelf was met with major disappointment.
7Primal Rage
Primal Rageis another example of a title that was simply outshone by its peers. It’s not a terrible game by any stretch of the imagination, but it was up against some of themost influential fighting games of all timelikeMortal Kombat 2,Street Fighter 2, andVirtua Fighter.
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Before Best Buy pulledPrimal Ragefrom stores for its controversial finishing moves, it boasted one of the most awesome covers out there. While the North American version is great in its own right, the PAL region cover that featured a close-up of Blizzard roaring is undoubtedly one of the most menacing covers for titles on the PS1.
6Clock Tower
To horror game aficionados,Clock Toweris far from forgotten. It’s considered justas scary asResident Evilbut never enjoyed nearly the same commercial success. It was buoyed mostly by its sales in Japan and remains a relatively obscure title for most North American fans.
The cover features the terrifying serial killer Scissorman brandishing, unsurprisingly, a pair of giant, bloody scissors. Since the game itself is downright scary, the cover is a perfect way to prepare would-be players for the horrors to come.
5Dune 2000
Dune 2000failed to do anything imaginative with the source material. At the time, it was considered just satisfactory, and that has ultimately been its legacy. Like others on this list,Dune 2000was competing with what are now considered to be the gold standard of RTS games in theAge of EmpiresandCommand & Conquerfranchises.
Despite its shortcomings,Dune 2000had a fairly wicked cover, with two fully armored soldiers carrying miniguns under an orange desert sky. It also managed to set the stage for future games likethe newDuneRTS,Dune: Spice Wars, which is set to enter early access in a few days.
4Metal Gear Solid: VR Missions
Metal Gear Solid: VR Missionsis aMetal Geargame that most fans forgot about. It was released as an expansion to the originalMetal Gear Solidbut was ultimately fairly repetitive and surprisingly boring.
Its cover, however, might be the only improvement over the original game. Gray Fox is undeniably one of the coolest characters in theMetal Gear Solidfranchise, so using a close-up of the character as the cover was a recipe for success.
3Bloody Roar
Bloody Roaris one of themost underrated fighting games of all time. It had smooth controls and engaging characters but never managed to get a solid footing in an oversaturated market. Still, for fans that got the chance to playBloody Roar, the game is remembered fondly.
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The black and red color scheme on the cover is incredibly eye-catching, and the drawing of Yuji Ogami transforming into a wolf helps prepare fans for a super unique fighting game experience.
2Heart of Darkness
Heart of Darknessis a quirky platformer that suffered from issues during its development. It follows Andy as he tries to rescue his dog, Whisky, from the clutches of shadowy, evil beings. It never captured much commercial success and fell flat with reviewers after nearly six years of development.
For what it’s worth,Heart of Darknesshas an absolutely stunning cover. From Andy’s determined expression to Whisky’s terrified reaction, the emotions on the cover are perfectly displayed.
1RPG Maker
While usingRPG Makerto create unique and interesting games is certainly still relatively popular, the PS1 version ofRPG Makernever quite caught on because it’s difficult to use. It’s no surprise that nearly all the well-regardedRPG Makerhorror gamesand other creations were made on the PC.
It’s hard to imagine a better cover than the one forRPG Makeron the PS1, though. It’s an awesome drawing of a creator hard at work with a myriad of frightening fantasy creatures gathered around their drawing board.
