Quite a few people are wondering what the PlayStation 5 game cases will look like, and a few artists have been inspired enough by the question to take a stab at creating some concept designs.
Many of the proposed PS5 game box designs simply build from the existing standard established by Sony’s official PS2, PS3, and PS4 cases, i.e. book-shaped plastic boxes that are much bigger than the discs they contain. British graphic designer Dan Tiller, however, decided to take a different approach and created some jewel case mock-ups that hearken back to the days of the PS1.
Tiller’s design eliminates the excess waste of Sony’s game box and instead opts for an economical square with an inner protective sleeve and an outer slipcover, similar to the design used with vinyl records. Besides being aesthetically pleasing, what makes Tiller’s concept stand out even further from the crowd is that the cases are made from cardboard and are therefore eco-friendly.
Sega recently announced that their future physical PC releases would come in fully recycled cardboard packaging, beginning with the release of Total War: ROME II Enemy at the Gates Edition. It’s therefore not entirely out of the question that Sony might follow Sega’s lead and opt for environmentally friendly PS5 game cases similar to those designed by Tiller. Sega has pointed out that not only are the cardboard cases lighter and consequently use less fuel to ship, but they are also cheaper to dispose of because they can be sent to a recycling center rather than a landfill.
In addition to designing mock-ups for the PS5’s game cases, Tiller has also in the past created retro-style covers for PS4 games. These are not full cases, but rather simple squares designed to resemble the ones used in PS1 game boxes. They can be slipped into any CD or PS1 jewel case of the right size, for anybody who still has those lying around.
In the meantime, artists and non-artistic fans alike wait impatiently for Sony to reveal something, anything about the PS5, which is due to come out sometime during the 2020 holiday season. The company recently launched the official PS5 website, which provides precisely no information to assuage gamers’ curiosity. The site states simply that news on the PS5’s release date, price, launch games, and hopefully a glimpse of the game boxes will be coming eventually, which fans already knew.
The PlayStation 5 is slated to release during the holiday season of 2020.