I like it, but something cooler would maybe be better.

Are there really people who buy games based on boxart..?        I have NEVER done that!   Not even when I were a kid with NES & SNES!   I ALWAYS looked up all the games before buying (I'd be an idiot not to since they were helluva expensive!)

I like it. Fits the pseudo art deco feel of the game.

My only thoughts would be to flip the art. Since we read left to right, psychologically we associate with the future to the right and the past to the left.  So right now it feels like she's reflecting on the past instead of planning future conquest.

Also the sun feels like a sun set. Bumping up the saturation on the yellows n light blues will make it feel a bit more like morning.

That's impressive! But I'd make the dark castle bigger... and have something nasty (many somethings, actually) marching out of it towards you.

To be honest, if I saw that Box Art in a Store the image would give me ideas of a typical RPG, the way it kind of focuses on the Character and the Dragon with the medieval stylings. That may be the intention, as Elemental does focus on the Sovreign quite a bit, in which case ignore me. Civilisation IV had good box art; it didn't show any characters because that's not where the focus is. The focus was on the buildings; the civilisations. My suggestion would be to start there and add some kind of battle; the subtitle is 'War of Magic' after all.

I am really impressed how the little changes you suggested improve the design.  Instead of surveying, it seems the character is now planning.

Other than the constructive criticism's like Drakk's pay no attention to the naysayer's it is a beautiful cover.

Regarding Drakk's flip screen and comments: Wow! Good points. And I had always felt like the character in the original unflipped image was contemplating the cataclysm, pondering the past and also the future. But the flipped image definitely dows have a more frward looking and hopeful tone.

I still think I prefer the unflipped image. I really appreciate your comments though, it is interesting to understand WHY I was having the thoughts about it that I was.

Flipped or unflipped - GREAT box design I love it!

The reversed version seems better, that's really something. How does such a small change make such a big difference?

As for the Mass Effect 2 box... that's for the collectors edition of a sequel. Everybody who is going to buy that version already KNOWS that. The box art could be nothing but black text on a white background and it wouldn't affect sales a whole lot. You'll notice that the standard version has more conventional art.

(And Heavy Rain is going to bomb, so let's not use that as an example of what to do. Worst controls ever.)

Don't forget we don't get to see the back of it, or the fold out flap. Assuming its going with the flapstyle cover that shows more stuff.

Joking! Don't kill me!

I do not like the "Games for Windows" band and the blue Stardock logo on the front.

Beside that I think that it would look better if you used some green leaves or ivy on the cover like on the top of the Elemental website (https://forums.elementalgame.com/Themes/Elemental/images/body.bg.png).

To add to this suggestion:  It would add more implication of what the game is about if you took the current picture and added an attacking army on the plains and the sovereign in the process of casting a spell from the balcony toward the attacking army. 

But still good either way.

Games For Windows?  I thought you were using some kind of custom Impulse based MP system?

Or is it just standard for every game to have the GFW logo on it these days (I haven't bought a boxed game in years)?

It's Games for Windows, not Games for Windows LIVE. No multiplayer based on GfWL. It'd be a mistake for Stardock.