I asked Dan Proctor, Goblinoid Games president and co-writer of Mutant Future, about the work-in-progress cover used prior to the first public release. He described the playtest cover, explaining that it was only printed for four initial concept proofs. The set of rules sent to playtesters did not have this cover, rather it had an interior title page with a simplified version of the initial cover design.
As he and I traded emails about what the original Mutant Future cover design entailed, I realized he described an image I had seen before -- but couldn't quite put my finger on where I had seen it. I explained to him that I recalled seeing an advertisement for both Mutant Future and Labyrinth Lord somewhere that had that exact cover concept in place. Dan then confirmed that the ad I remembered appeared in Scribe of Orcus, Vol. 1, Issue 1! The ad featured an earlier version of the Labyrinth Lord cover and the original mock-up for the unreleased-at-the-time Mutant Future rulebook. So, with Dan's OK, here is the ad from Scribe of Orcus 1-1:
And here is the Mutant Future cover from the ad -- the work-in-progress precursor to the first public release:
I always find the earlier days of a game's formation, art design, and construction fascinating, and I appreciate Dan's help in shedding a bit of light on this mystery.
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That's a cool cover! I know that its public domain science fiction art but I do love that! It certainly has a more serious edge to it. Maybe they wanted to go for the gonzo bit but still that rocks!
ReplyDeleteI like that cover a whole lot more than the new one. Wish G Games would offer an alternate cover version, just like the old Lab Lord edition had.
ReplyDeleteLooks like the playtest cover with a textured background and fancier type.
ReplyDeleteYup, according to Dan, that's what it basically is. The playtest "cover" sent via PDF to playtesters is actually the interior title page. This color version was the one printed up for the four initial mock-ups for Dan and Ryan Denison, the other co-author.
ReplyDeleteActually I misspoke! I forgot about this one. This one in the ad is actually my first concept and was not printed. It only really existed as this ad. I created the metal and rust in photoshop but larger it looked too "artificial" to me. So the cover that was actually on the 4 printed copies was similar but the background instead was a Photoshopped photograph of rusted metal.
ReplyDeleteAh, I thought the background as shown here WAS the "rusted metal" background you mentioned. So it turns out that this really was a "first concept" cover, which is just as cool! Thanks for swinging by and clearing that up, Dan!
ReplyDeleteThat's cool, but I'm always a fan of original art too. Thanks for sharing Snidey!
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