And we're back! Welcome to the third edition of Box Art Brawl, the series where we ask you lovely people to decide which lucky territory got the best box art of a certain retro classic. Last week we looked at Contra (or Probotector as it was known in Europe) and it was decided that the North American muscle-bound variant was the pick of the bunch. The gun-toting robots of the European version picked up a respectable third of the vote with the Japanese original suffering an overwhelming defeat.
This week we're generation hopping once again, jumping from the NES all the way to the GameCube era for Capcom's hugely influential Resident Evil 4. A radical departure from the static camera gameplay of the previous survival horror games, RE4 would shape the third-person action genre for many years to come and cast a shadow in 2005 that the series had a hard time escaping from until very recently. Originally a Nintendo exclusive, it would famously make its way to every platform under the sun. We've included a few bonuses here for fun, but we'll be sticking to GameCube version for the actual poll.
So, sit down, take the weight off for a while and peruse the wares on offer...
Japan
Beginning with the Japanese version this week, the cover reflects the dour greys and browns of the actual game nicely, although the information and warning labels at the bottom arguably detract from the mood. Placing the '4' before 'biohazard' might have confused players new to the series, but by 2005 Resident Evil / Biohazard was big enough to get away with it.
North America
As with the Japanese version, we're once again in the cemetery outside the church, although this time there's a pinkish-red hue in the air and the graveyard's been filled with Ganados. Chainsaw Man and Leon are plonked in front with a little highlight around them, although we're not convinced by the perspective. Maybe Leon's hopped on a box or something.
Europe
Chainsaw Man is back on the PAL cover, although here he's ominously silhouetted between trees against a blood red sky with crows flying overhead. The logo text is white to make it pop against all that darkness. It's certainly understated compared to the other two, with only the various logos at the bottom disturbing the mood.
Thanks to Capcom’s platform-hopping ways, there are a host of other box art variants out there which run the gamut in terms of quality. We're keeping the poll strictly to the GameCube release, but here's a look at the versions for the Wii and PS2 ports of the game:
So, you've seen your three options this week (along with a host of bonus comparisons) and it's time to pick your favourite. Take a look below, click the pic you're down with and hit the 'Vote' button to exercise your democratic right:
Which region got the best Resident Evil 4 box art on GameCube? (743 votes)
- Japan
- North America
- Europe
Please login to vote in this poll.
That's all for this week. Feel free to chat about the variants - do you prefer any of the Wii or PlayStation 2 options? Did we miss any versions? Did you ever get that highly impractical but awesome chainsaw controller? Let us know below and we'll catch you again next week.
Comments 72
I live in the U.S but must say i like the Europe cover the best. It's very reserved in its' art (IMO) and leaves a lot to the imagination like a good Horror movie poster or book cover. Sometimes less is more.
I like the European cover for how simplistic, yet creepy it is and I'm not the biggest fan of the style of the other covers, like the NA cover has the same style as Dead Rising's NA cover and it's just a bit too crowded and overdone IMO.
Wow, the others look kinda tacky compared to the PAL cover which I know the best. It’s pretty cool seeing these differences though, loving this series.
My favourite is the switch icon /s
I think the Pal Wii version is my actual favorite, but the Gamecube one is really good as well.
Don't play Resident Evil, but the European one truly is the best out of those three.
As a huge slasher/horror fan, the European GC/Wii covers give off 70's movie poster vibes! Less is more, great choice everyone!
EU cover by far, the other especially the JPN cover are too busy. Sometimes the more simplistic approch is best, especially for a horror title.
Not even a contest. The PAL Gamecube box art for RE4 is probably the best box art ever.
I voted for EU. That unsettling silhouette is so understated, yet against a blood red sky is so brooding. Love it! The U.S version is far too busy. 'Everybody is here!' lol. Totally kills any tension. The Japanese cover is pretty plain by the numbers archetypal composition, with the arm drawing your eye from the top right corner yada yada. Pretty boring. The only thing I can think of worse is that spate of PS2 covers that were literally just face. But Leon still looks good!.
Really love the black and white UK Wii edition cover
You could take out the game rating box and text @Mycroft but most people would recognize the art from their region so you can't take out patriotic pride completely.
With NA's box art, Leon is clearly concerned about something other than the hoard of zombies behind him, or he's completely oblivious to it.
the Wii Europe black&white edition is my favourite though
@KayFiOS He's too busy trying to remember which dumpster he left Ashley in.
Easy one this week, the European version without a shadow of a doubt.
@Mycroft Most people in the US think the PAL version is the best as well, so I doubt the vote would change all that much.
I like the art and actionny vibe of the North American one, but also the eerie vibe of the European version. Can't really choose!
I voted US because I love that box art, but I think Europe got the better one.
I'm from the US, but I picked the PAL box. It's clearly the most artsy & "mature" one of the bunch.
For both GameCube and the Wii, the PAL cover is the clear winner this time around. So far, I've voted for and agreed with the previous two voting rounds, so here's hoping we're going for a three for three...
On a side note: I've always severely disliked the name "Bio Hazard", because it doesn't remind me of zombies at all. More of toxic/nuclear waste, so both Europe and the US also got the superior name as well. Resident Evil is so much more creepy and horror-like, as it should be.
Ps2 steel book is up with the three on the similar theme... loving the white wii one. I own this game far too many times
American bias aside (as an American), I'm baffled that the European box art is the most favored. It just seems so minimalistic compared to the American and Japanese box arts.
I will admit, though, it is very creepy and definitely has that horror-slasher vibe to it compared to the other box arts.
The European Box Art for the GameCube is the best one. It gives a creepy atmosphere. The Wii version probably has to go to the European version too.
PS2 STEELBOOK!!!! I had the original GCN one here in the U.S. I think the European one for the GCN is the best ofor those three. I will say I think each cover is best suited for selling the game in that particular territory.
Re4 pal cover is one of the greatest of all time. Up there with the original mgs2 cover for me.
European.
The Japanese edition looks like a preview in Famitsu, you know, with bad quality visuals and whatnot. The American version looks stupid, with all the enemies gathered in the background like a family photo at a wedding — and Leon's really weird position. So the European visual can only look better than the other too — but it's actually a really good one in my opinion.
Both Gamecube and Wii PAL covers were brilliant, i liked the Wii one for its almost seamless blend from the Wii logo to actual cover, and in some respects the GC cover was the same type of thing, it just worked without any real clashes.
Even though it's not eligible, my favourite is the North American Wii cover. Regarding the ones that are; even though the EU one is (from an artistic/graphic design perspective) beautiful and creepy, I do tend to prefer boxarts that have the characters on the cover, and even though the EU one isn't quite a "just the logo" cover (which I hate, and which RE has an annoying habit of on EU covers), I would still go for the North American GC one for that reason, even if it is slightly less cool looking.
Europe cover is the best by far this time.
I’m going for the European one because that’s the one I bought and loved. That game was an experience, I’d never played anything like it, truly blew me away.
The European cover gets my vote... AND my envy. 👍
Maybe the US box art tells more about how the game is more of a action horror than a horror horror, but man the EU box art just makes it look so ominous and scary.
I'm a sucker for simplistic and artistic box art, so the clear winner for me was the PAL versions. It would've been a slightly harder choice between the three if it weren't for the Japanese and North American covers using a white outer glow, completely decimating any sense of artistry. Leon looks like he was just slapped onto the covers of those boxes, and it frankly doesn't look that great. Though the NA Wii box art doesn't look all that bad, that's actually the version I own.
Europe, no question. I kinda like the PAL Wii version/PS2 variants as well.
I will take 5 copies please
I will take them with my knees
I will take them through the trees
I will take 5 copies please
I voted NA. I like how it symbolizes the chaos of that first village fight.
Voted Europe because its the one I grew up with and still sits on my shelf. Minimalist suits the cover nicely, especially if you are not aware of the plot before playing the game for the first time.
I'm from the US and RE4 is one of my all-time favorites, but both the US and Japan covers are bad in my opinion; Europe's cover is fantastic
Biohazard 4 (Japan) cover all the way for me. That’s what I bought at the time living in Japan, so I’m far too biased to vote for that superior looking EU cover. 😅
Plus I’ll never like the title “Resident Evil” for the series. I’ve known it as Biohazard from the beginning.
I actually think the white Wii cover is the best and always springs to mind when thinking of good covers.
While the PAL cover is the best artistically, it honestly has very little to do with the game itself. ResE4 isn't really a creepy horror game like its predecessors, it's an action game. And I think the US version does that best, personally.
Wii Edition is top tier.
EU is way better than anything else. I love the mystery and horror implied in that picture. The NA art is pretty iconic, but it's not actually good art - perspective is all kinds of messed up, the elements all clash with each other, and the portrait of Leon looks too clean and unfinished, lacking the nice details and textures that the Japanese version has.
Golden rule of horror #1, the less said the better.
Golden Rule #2, the MVP is the setting.
Europe's box may be simple, but it establishes You're in a place YOU don't want to be. Not showcase the highly capable sod who's canonically going there.
This is what happens in my Wii days of gaming, when my brother told me to buy him a Resident Evil game for his Wii. Well I end up buying him the REmake of the first game for him and he was disappointed saying that is not the game he want, he want A Resident Evil with the capital "A" in the logo. I told him that is not an A, it's a 4. I went back and traded REmake for RE4 Wii Edition instead.
The European version looks the best. It’s simple and has a good scary atmosphere. It looks more ”Hollywood” compared to the other looking more cheap B-style film stuff.
I immediately disliked the Europe one but the longer I looked at it the more I liked it.
Though the NA cover will always be near and dear to my heart, there is no doubt the European cover wins this. Not only is it the best RE4 variant, I would argue that is a top ten video game cover art of all time.
Imagine knowing nothing about RE4 and seeing that cover on a store shelf. How could you NOT buy that instantly? It's next-level mysterious and ominous.
Also, this is my new favorite feature on this site. Keep these coming!
I live in NA, so that's the one I am used to, but now that I see the European one, I think it's much better. It's very well suited to a horror genre (even tho this entry was a turn for it to more action than anything else). Less is definitely more in this case.
The European Wii and PS2 versions are also better in those cases as well, for the same reason.
European version is freaking scary
Europe all the way!
Also, the undoubted best of the whole bunch is the Wii EU one: it’s simply amazing!
Definitely the European cover with the Japanese one coming in second, though I agree that the Japanese version would look a lot better without all of the text at the bottom. I didn't care much for the US version at all it just seemed a bit too crowded/busy for my liking.
I didn't have any of these, but that red and black PS2 cover is the best one. Of the Gamecube ones, the European one is the best.
So, thus far, I've been in the majority opinion on all three. I preferred the JP Super Metroid (or Suupaa Metoroido), the NA Contra, and the EU Resident Evil - which also means the three regions are tied so far with me at one apiece.
I'm an American, so almost without exception, the NA versions are the familiar and nostalgic versions for me, of course. But I don't tend to have a very strong bias either way as it concerns familiar vs novel. I tend to go more or less down the middle on that, favoring each in turn about evenly.
This manifests in other ways too. On my show, once a year, I'll do a "this version [of a piece of video game music] vs that version" episode (such as the Super NES version vs the Sega Genesis version, etc). In my nomenclature, these episodes are called "FaceOff Friday" episodes, and my most recent was actually just his past Friday (this one was guest hosted and curated by someone else). But my picks between familiar and novel versions in these have all been pretty even across the board.
As such, I am not surprised that I have not overwhelmingly preferred American versions just because they're what I grew up with. What does surprise me a little, though, is that I have been so in step so far with the rest of the community. I'm used to being a little less tuned into the pulse, shall we say.
Anyway, these are fun. Keep them up! Maybe Mega Man 2 or Super Mario Bros next time!
Cheers!
Silhouettes and horror go together really well. I wouldn’t necessarily say the European cover better represents the game (NA art looks more like an action game cover) it is better designed.
I went with the European version although the U.S. version does a better job of depicting the actual game with the infected hordes and the implied action based tone.
US here, but that European is a WAY better cover. Side note, i love the Wii's black and white cover as well. I'll always prefer artwork vs just characters or dudes with guns on a cover.
I still have the European Steelcase Special Edition for Playstation 2 at home, was the first Steelcase I had.
Just couldn't finish the game as I kept on shooting the woman you are supposed to protect.
Definitely the European version, especially the Euro Wii edition which has by far the best cover art, in fact I would say that is good enough for a poster. It just has a nice clean look to it.
The American cover looks too busy and the Japanese one is just kinda whatever.
PAL for me, hands down. It has an incredible atmosphere to it, it feels tense and ominous, sparks imagination (you can almost hear those crows against minimal ambience) and really has a horror media vibe which I'm missing from its US and JP counterparts. Those seem to be more along the lines of "grey, also you shoot things", makes me wonder whether they'd stand out on a shop's game shelf though I can't judge how the situation was back then around release.
The Wii box art is the best
@BacklogBlues That's pretty much what I was thinking. I love the colors of the NA release, and I probably have a nostalgic connection to it, but you're right, the EU version is one I would want hanging on my wall.
I like the Gamecube Europe cover the most, even if it looks a bit too much like cover for texas chain saw massacre remake little too much.
EU then US then Japan, for sure
EU boxart is one of my favourites ever. It just screams "come here, if you dare".
I remember getting it day one on Gamecube, and being hyped through the roof. The PAL boxart created an amazing atmosphere, while the others are way too focused on Leon. Leon is already in your face the entire game, and far from the most interesting part of this masterpiece. That forest, the birds, and the outline of a chainsaw wielding maniac with a bag over his head... Now that's inviting!
European Wii Cover art is extremely slick in my opinion and my personal favorite of the bunch.
For the Gamecube the European cover is the best too, the ones featuring Leon and co just feel generic to me.
Europe, simple and effective.
Japan cover is closest to actual game so i pick this one
European one here. Captures the horror and tension of the game in a simple and arty way.
(An all time great. One of the very best 3rd party games on Nintendo consoles of all time if not THE best. The Wii version is the definitive version imo).
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