I'm a solo dev making a pixel-art bullet-hell game about telemarketing. A freelancer reached out to me after my Steam page went live, and I ordered a package: key art + 4 store capsules (main, small, vertical, header), with the final in pixel art, for $320.

This is the first-stage sketch I got back (attached). I asked for a first-person view with just two hands, one holding the phone and one holding the heart, with the office turning into a bullet-hell battlefield.

Two honest questions:

1. Is $320 a fair price for this scope, based on the sketch?

2. Something about it feels AI-generated to me: the perfectly even, clean line weight, no construction lines, a handset with a keypad on both ends, a cord that doesn't connect to anything, and customers wearing call-centre headsets. Am I being paranoid, or would you be suspicious too?

I've asked for the layered working file. Any other way to check before I approve the next stage?

Any opinions of the new one?
How it looks live https://store.steampowered.com/app/4967580/Battle_Bot_Tactics/

Here is our main capsules, the wide header and the main one. The game in one line: you build a deck, place your creatures, the board fights on its own, and between runs you rebuild a grey ink kingdom that gets one colour back for every act you clear.

Three quick questions:
1. At a glance, what genre would you guess?
2. Does the title still read at the small size?
3. Would you click it in a Steam list?

Steam page link if you want the full context: Steam page for context: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5244390/Beyond_Realm/?utm_source=reddit&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=gamecapsule

My game is like Noita and risk of rain 2, super chaotic co-op spell crafting roguelite, I added a photo mode to my game and posed all the models and what not. Wonder if it pops enough or if it’s too cluttered.

I recently decided to completely rework my Steam capsule because I felt the old one didn't really represent the genre or atmosphere of my game.

I created the new one directly in Unreal Engine using assets from the actual game!

I also took a lot of feedback from people on Twitter and Discord, and tested different versions using Steam Capsule Analyzer to improve the final result.

Now I'm curious about your first impressions:

• What genre do you think the game is?
• What kind of gameplay would you expect?
• Does the capsule catch your attention?

I'd love to hear your thoughts! : D Thanks in advance (i'll put the old version too in second picture)

I’d love to get some feedback on this capsule art for my memory roguelike deckbuilder game. It’s joining Next Fest so I want to get the most out of it.

In the game you’re traveling the cosmos, collecting all kinds of cards as you go. It plays like memory, but with special card combos and items that create energetic synergies and unique strategies.

Do you think the capsule is engaging? And does it fit the game? Or doe you think something is missing?

Hey everyone!

I'm a solo indie developer working on my game, One More Shake, and I'd love some honest feedback on my current Steam capsule art.

I'm not sure whether it's good enough to attract players or if I should invest in hiring a professional artist.

What would you improve? Does it look professional enough? Would it catch your attention while browsing Steam?

Please don't hold back, I'd really appreciate some honest criticism!

Went with a retro/vintage sci-fi/horror comic book aesthetic for my game and so I redid the capsule art in the same style.

What do you think?

Working on a wizard game with procedural destructible/burnable environment, and thought about commissioning art vs. using in-game scenes. Does it work with in-game graphics?

Just did another design, taking some feedback in to account. I think the logo felt too far away from the corporate look, and the image behind the main character didn't really communicate much.

Trying to make it more engaging, and more representative of the game.

What do you think of this new version?

Hi Everyone!

I'm looking for feedback on the latest revision of the capsule art I've been designing for my upcoming game. Any and all feedback is appreciated!

My steam page finally got approved (yipee!) and I am super excited to share the capsule I got help with.

With my old capsule, I put it together and quickly realized - there is no way I am hitting Steam, or any type of promotional post, with a logo like that.

I started doing some research on some artist who could help bring my vision to life and I am so happy I found Frost Earth Studio. The catalog and style of capsules they made was like a perfect home for me.

I got to work with Camilo and he was FANTASTIC. A lot of my game's inspiration came from Courage the Cowardly Dog and it actually turned out to be one of his favorite shows too. The back and forth we had was so much fun and I could not recommend him, and this studio, enough. Super professional, efficient, and I got all my capsule art assets bundled up by the end of it. Smooth process and I loved the end result.

Wishing them nothing but the best and wanted to make sure they got their credits around!

Trying to figure out whether I should replace it, or is it good enough

Hey! We've been working on Hexplorando since last year, and we were wondering if this artwork could catch the attention?

This is a pretty relaxing game made similar to Dorfromantik but where people rebuild real locations across 40+ puzzles. There will be also a Sandbox mode.

Hey everyone!

Wanted to share something I learned while working on my Steam page.

My game, Rulebound, is a surreal horror incremental game where you're trapped in a strange place, playing a disc-merging game on an old CRT TV while trying to keep an eye on whatever might be lurking in the dark.

When I first made the capsule, I threw together some in-game assets and screenshots and did my best with the image editing skills I had. At the time, I genuinely thought it was good enough.

Looking back now... how the hell did I think that was okay?

The old capsule got the CRT vibe across, sure, but you could barely tell it was a horror game. The new artwork does a much better job of capturing the atmosphere, and honestly, that creature creeps me out.

So I finally bit the bullet and spent $300 on a professional artist. And yeah, the difference is insane. The moment I saw the new artwork, I knew it was the right call. There's really no defending the old one anymore.

I launched my Steam page back in August, and things have been feeling a bit slow lately, with around 350 wishlists. Now that I've revamped the capsule, I finally feel good about how the page looks and ready to give Steam Next Fest a proper shot.

Honestly, this might be the best money I've spent on the game so far. It's easy to underestimate how much that first impression matters when you're an indie dev trying to get people interested in your game.

If you're making a game and wondering whether hiring a professional artist is worth the investment, I'd say it's definitely worth considering.

What do you guys think? Was it worth it?

We love it! €700 for all the iterations, the logo design and the PSD file separated in layers so we can compose all the steam variations is great!

The artist's name is Hobblin and she's great! We would recommend her any day!

You can check our bingo inspired roguelike: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5089770/BINGONE/

The old ones felt a bit empty and you could barely read the name on the small one.

Made the logo bigger and added one of the inspection ships you run into in-game. Wanted to show a bit more of the game itself. The ship model is by Quaternius.

The ship and planet use the game's current textures and lighting, so it does match how the game looks right now.

https://quaternius.com/packs/ultimatespaceships.html

Old on the left, new on the right. Which would you click? Anything you'd keep from the old one?

VOID PROFIT on Steam:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4687990/VOID_PROFIT/

So, after working on multiple custom capsules in search of a catchy one, i was curious and played with AI a bit. For research purposes. This is the state of it:

Original ones (2 first ones)
AI generated ones are after (iteration with 1970's sci fi cover instructions + separated logo).

I'm pissed, but they do look way better, granted I worked on the instructions to specifically position elements in more perspective and placement, and "though" more about it that my previous manual attempts.

I'm leaning towards re-drawing them by hand. One can tell there were AI generated, but i'm still wondering to what extend would they be acceptable if I used them as is on steam).

Advice and feedback welcome (please keep it polite, i'm not strongly opinonated for or against AI either).

I'm looking for an artist to create the full Steam capsule art for our upcoming PC game, Who Heckled?

Colourful, playful and comedic. It's stylised 3D with a slightly low poly look. I already have mockups and reference images, and I want you to recreate them in a polished final form.

I'd like to see a few different versions or suggestions to pick from before we settle on a final direction. I also need you to be open to revisions until I'm happy with it.

The budget is $350 USD.

For payment, all work goes through Upwork, Fiverr or another platform with payment protection. If you know of a better one, suggest it and we can use that. I won't pay outside a platform.

To apply, comment below with:

Your portfolio, with Steam capsule or key art if you have it

The payment platform you'd like to work on

I'll send the mockups and full brief to the people I shortlist. All DMs will be ignored, so please reply in the comments

Hello, I'm looking to build a portfolio and I'm willing to take 2 free commissions to draw your game's capsule art! I am pretty versatile with my style. I'll attach some random drawings I have. Please comment your game and what its about and add some images or whatever visual guide you have. Ill pick my 2 favorites from the comments!!

I was told that because the game takes place in the body I needed to have a red background. I changed it up and made it red. I am not sure about my feelings between the two. I like the blue better for a capsule because it grabs your attention more in my opinion but I understand the sentiment.

Would you mind giving me your thoughts, and would you suggest any other major changes?

Steam page to view everything else: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5188430/We_Will_Die_For_You/
Let me know if it isn't okay to share the page...

Edit: Sorry I used two separate images rather than one.