Poll: Box Art Brawl - Operation C / Probotector (Game Boy)

US. That very 80s style of game art that fell out of fashion some time in the 90s is just so nostalgic to me and looks fantastic. Reminds me of my old Commodore 64 game covers.

Of late I have been disagreeing with the majority on these box arts,
so I might get upset about it.

Not decided yet,
I'll keep you updated.

NA this time around, that dynamic scene really sets the mood. Japan is beautiful and the monster in the background is a nice addition, but without knowledge of Contra it could come off as a bit generic. Or not? I'm not an expert

Europe looks like a cover for a different game. Not bad, just different

Japan for the obvious Arnie homage. 😂

Having said that, I do like all covers in this round and that doesn’t happen often.

I went with Japan. That’s a nice Arnie portrait, it’s the only one that says “Konami” outright, and it’s okay to call the game “Contra.” I don’t think we gamers back then would have confused the game with Oliver North.

N.A
There is something far more 'Gameboy' era about this art.

I love the NA cover... but I love Arnie more, much more, so Japanese.

I voted Japan. They all have their qualities, but Japan just works the best. Europe doesnt give the feel of the game (despite me being a sucker for the robots in Super Probotecor, love both versions equally) and US is just a little messy, still very cool in an 80's way

@Princess_Lilly
I’d be interested in hearing about your avatar pic - isn’t that a photoshop of the twin towers on 9/11? That could be triggering for some people.

Looks like a rare win for NA

I picked Europe because I liked the robot 🤣

The North American one is too weird for me, with the guy putting his foot on the scorpion's pincer (or just kind of holding it in the air in front of the pincer?). It screams 80s/90s "gosh, action poses sure are hard" artwork.

Probotector > Contra

NA version just looks more vibrant and cool in my opinion

Gotta go with NA, that's just badass. The JP one while well rendered, looks like a framed family photo you'd see sitting on someone's dresser haha.

One pick for the giant sodding scorpion with the action/comic book layout. Can't say I dislike any of the covers in this round though.

I like the Japanese version because it gives off the late 70s and early 80s action b movie 🎬 vibes to me and also any early contra game with an Arnold look a like is just pure classic contra design right there.

@Princess_Lilly It kinda is a different game, with all humans swapped for robots..

Japan. The left and bottom edges of the border with the slimy stuff is so good, and the monster in the background. Badazs

I like anime robots, so the change for Europe doesn't bother me. I think the cover is missing something. It could be more dynamic than it is. Composition is also a bit messed up, especially with how the second robot is covered by a logo. Japan's cover is fine for what it is, but it doesn't do much for me. I prefer the dynamic approach of the NA box. Dynamic doesn't always work, but this one looks well executed to me, so that's my vote.

I can say if they released it as Probotector with a robot on the cover, I probably would’ve owned this game as a kid. This has less to do with graphic design and more to do with liking robots way more than army guys.

Europe definitely wins here. Robots are cool and would have got me to play the series much earlier in life. I avoided the series (and this game specifically) growing up because the box art was super lame to me, lol.

US is the weakest of the bunch imo. It's very generic and that pose is kind of absurd to be honest.

On the other hand I actually really like that the EU one is a POV of some alien monster you have to imagine for yourself.
I voted for that one.

Box Art Brawls Current Total:

Europe: 106

Japan: 102

North America: 123

Australia and New Zealand: 1

Ah Europe, gotta love the swapping for robots. They renamed the ninja turtles cartoon also. Teenage mutant hero turtles uggghhh, but maybe they had a point...

I voted for Europe's. They're all good this time, but the lighting on the JP cover is weird and the shots from the gun in the NA don't look right. Meanwhile, Europe gets the lighting right and has a cool robot.

@Teksette yeah it's a parody. There is a funny story behind it, I had to change it because the previous one was even worse and this was the first thing I stubled across taht NL accepted for format and width XD I'll change it now thanks for the warning!

UPDATE:
I'm over it.

@Princess_Lilly
Yeah it could hit pretty close to home for some people here. Thank you 🙇🏻‍♀️

NA one is definitely the best. No idea if it's the most accurate or not considering the vast difference with the EU version

@DennyCrane

Love that Terminator Vibe they give on the Super Nintendo

I like how the scorpion in the NA cover is just kinda chilling there. "For you human, this is a fight for your very life. For me, it's Tuesday."

Why is his foot on the scorpion’s claw? It’s a fun but terribly constructed image.

I don’t really know this game so went for the robot.

japan, easy, captures the t80s rambo feel

NA cover is rad. I hope that dude is careful around all that expensive looking scientific equipment.

NA is so stupid. Why stand in reach of the monster if you’re shooting it with a gun?

I'm not impressed with any of them. So tired of the NA style with a weak, over the top, miss the mark, art depiction (I know, it's part of the charm). Probotector keeps it simple and to the point for me, so that's my pick.