Art Recycling

[Masquerade]

Art is very important to me in an RPG product.

That said, recycled art doesn't bother me in the least. IMO, it seems like too minor an issue to even warrant annoyance. Provided that the art doesn't look out of place, of course.

And we're talking about art from third edition products showing up in fourth edition products? How many RPGs don't reuse any art from one edition to the next?

 

[demiurge1138]

Recycled art annoys me. If it were a small company, I could forgive it more. But WoTC used to be the go-to for books filled with lush, original art... and they're not anymore. Especially since some of the recycled pieces in the MM and DMG were, in my opinion, pretty crappy.

 

[Jadeite]

And we're talking about art from third edition products showing up in fourth edition products? How many RPGs don't reuse any art from one edition to the next?

D&D 3 had very little reused art. They used the cover art of Sea Devils in the Sahuagin entry in the Monster Manual but that's about it. I'm not that familiar with AD&D art, but it if they did reuse such art, it was a lot less obvious than the way they are doing it now.

 

[ProfessorPain]

This bothers me for a number of reasons, and I don't think it is a shallow criticism either. Recycling art sends the message that they don't care about the quality of the product. Just like recycling text or letting in too many typos sends the message they don't care about the quality of the product. It also insults the intelligence of the reader, it implies "they are too stupid to notice we are using the same art over and over." I do understand that budget constraints might force a company to recycle, but Wizards is the biggest RPG company out there. They can at least splurge on original art work. Another concern it raises is that it suggests the company isn't doing well financially. Remember when TSR was going under, and their books started to recycle art work and/or use cheap looking illustrations? Personally i have no idea how well Wizards is doing financially, but it appears that their sales are going well. Why cut corners and end up with a product that looks less polished?

 

[malraux]

A full page of art costs over $500 with most pieces coming in at 1/4 page or 1/2 page illustrations. So if a book is 10% art then 160 page book had 16 pages of art and costs $8,000 in art costs. So if Wizards of the Coast reuses art they can save about $150 per piece of recycled art.

Also note that WotC just got done with some pretty extensive layoffs. If my choice is between workers on other products or additional new art pieces, well, I'd rather new content over new art.

 

[Dausuul]

While I acknowledge that the art they reuse is quite good, most of it being Wayne Reynolds art, it nonetheless feels rather cheap to me.

Ha, my attitude is the exact opposite. I have no problem with recycling good art, but I freakin' hate stuff by Wayne Reynolds, whether it's old or new.

Of course, I have not generally been a fan of the artistic style pioneered by 3E and largely continued in 4E. It's too dungeon-punky and too cartoonish for my taste. I prefer the more realistic, quasi-medieval style of 2E and late 1E.

 

[Lancelot]

I have no problem with a small amount of recycled art.

I don't open up my MM and look at the hags and say "OMG! I've been ripped off. One picture has been recycled from Frostburn, and another from Oriental Adventures!". The pictures in questions are good, evocative illustrations of the creatures described. And 90%+ of the rest of the MM has brand-spanking-new artwork.

I think this is a sensible and acceptable level of cost savings from a company that is facing tough economic times. I think the layout and artistic content of the 4e books is an improvement over 3e. The text is easier to read, I prefer much of the art to the 3e art (more panoramas, more scenery, fewer "single figures posing against white space"), and it's easier for me to find the info I'm looking for.

 

[frankthedm]

Recycled art that is good is fine. Indeed i would be happy if wotc never used a new illo for the rest of 4E and used all recycled MTG artwork.

 

[cignus_pfaccari]

The art is a nice accent, but it isn't a driver for purchasing the book - I guess I lump it into a "general production quality" bin when considering the book.

So, if it is good art, I don't mind reuse, so long as it isn't ubiquitous. Especially since I don't buy every single book, so I will notice reuse less.

Yeah, it really depends on what's being reused.

The thing that really irritated me was the reuse of the dome picture from Complete Psion in the Complete History of the Realms as a tsunami obliterating a city. Despite not being anything near a wave...

Brad

 

[Dire Bare]

And tomorrow you'll complain that "the suits" are gouging you by raising the price of the books...

No, no I won't. But thanks for the flattering assumption, it's appreciated.