The One Ring is a beautiful game, and we’ve heard a lot about the illustrations. An often overlooked, but integral part of building that stunning appearance is the graphic design. Cubicle 7’s graphic designer Paul Bourne is responsible for all the intricate and beautiful graphics that populate the rules.
Paul had this to say about creating graphics for The One Ring: “Before starting on The One Ring I did 3 or 4 days of research, not only looking at the various cultures of Middle-earth, but at anything that would be useful. Viking and Anglo-Saxon design were particularly useful in getting a handle of things thematically. We presented six Middle-earth cultures in The One Ring, so I researched each one to see how they could be represented graphically, not only with the culture's 'icon', but with the page borders.”
These emblems and others feature in the headers that top each page:
“I really enjoyed creating the Cultural icons, but my favourite piece of graphic design are the maps, although at the time they were quite a challenge.”
http://www.cubicle7.co.uk/wp-content/up ... ersMap.jpg
These have numerous little touches that bring extra flavour and atmosphere to The One Ring:
“I think graphic design matters a great deal. I suppose the most important factor is that they both help present the information in a clear and interesting way. But in regards to The One Ring, Tolkien's work has a huge fanbase, so to work on a game based on his writings demanded a really worthy and considered approach. I felt that is was really important, not only represent the 'feel' of Middle-earth accurately, but to do something that would compliment the art.”
Every One Ring cover features the frame that Paul created with that famous piece of poetry:
Paul also revisited the main logo of the game for the new edition. Beautiful stuff!:
http://www.cubicle7.co.uk/wp-content/up ... W-Logo.jpg
Jon Hodgson, Cubicle 7 Art Director: “We’re absolutely blessed to have a designer as talented as Paul working on The One Ring. His attention to detail and grasp of atmosphere are unrivalled. We’re a really tight team and I think that shows in the outstanding level of atmosphere the visuals create in concert with the game text. It’s all about evoking that Tolkien feel.”.
The One Ring won an Ennie Award for Best Production Values in 2012.
Do you speak Black Speech?
