If you already have Photoshop or other image editing software, you are already ahead of the curve here. If not, some free software that I would recommend becoming acquainted with would be GIMP and IrfranView.
GIMP is a free open source Photoshop alternative. I use it a great deal for image editing, and it has good print options as well. Well, mostly. Lately, my print previews don’t match my print output on GIMP, and according to my google searches, I’m not the only one seeing this issue. So currently, I use GIMP to edit and save images, but I don’t print from it if I need anything other than the default options.
IrfranView is a multiformat graphic viewer, and its print options are also robust. I can open my GIMP created files here and have good control of the print. Of course, my A4 paper solved most of my need to alter the default margin settings.
Paint.net is a good, free editor as well, but it seems to use the standard Windows print dialog instead of having its own bespoke printer interface. For that reason, I wouldn’t recommend printing from it in this context.
What other software do you recommend to print from?
Amazon links to A4 paper:
Be sure to check for inkjet vs laser to suit your print needs.
A few more to consider:
Search Amazon for A4. Use caution. In the US Amazon store, a lot of listings for letter-sized paper come up even when you search for A4. Again, look specifically for inkjet or laser paper, depending on your needs.
The Cover Project Homepage
Helpful Forum posts:
The Cover Project’s TEMPLATE PAGE
How to fit different games into different cases
Case cover dimension diagram reference images
FAQs, Guides, Templates and Vector Logos
Special mention to VGBoxart.com. Let me know other cover communities and websites so I can feature them here.
Test Print Case Templates
As mentioned in the video, these templates are blank except for the border, name, and measuring indicator.
| Case Type. They are each different sizes. These are the most common video game cases with widely available cover art. |  |
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|---|---|---|
| DVD Sized (DVD Movie, PS2, Gamecube, Xbox, Wii, Wii U) |  |
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| PlayStation Portable (PSP, UMD Video) |  |
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| PlayStation Vita (PS Vita) |  |
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| PlayStation 3 (PS3-Slightly longer than Bluray cover) |  |
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| PlayStation 4 (PS4) |  |
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| Xbox One |  |
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| Nintendo DS (US) |  |
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| Nintendo 3DS |  |
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| Nintendo Switch |  |
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| Universal Game Case (NES, SNES, Genesis, N64, Disc based, many others) |  |
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Here’s a printable ruler to see how far down your printer can print on 11″ paper. (Clicked image opens full-sized in a new window. Save from there.)
Mock UPC’s
Save these and use them in your projects.
And because I was asked to share it, here is the Pac-Man Vs cover I show at the end of the second video. First is the original. I have no idea from where I found it, I’m sure the cover site is came from is no more. I wish I could credit the original editor but none of the information on it lead me to anywhere. I can tell you that there were two versions of the same cover posted, one with this rounded ‘rendered’ Pac-Man on the cover, and another one the exact same but with the flat cartoon Pac-Man that I used for my cover. I only seemed to have saved the rendered version as seen below. Again, this file is at a lower resolution than covers are created now, and not sized correctly so don’t print it without making some adjustments.
And here is my re-edited version with all of the mentioned adjustments. I was only just learning image editing back then, so there are a lot of rough areas. I replaced the GameCube logo on the spine and front cover with a less blurry scan, but the area surrounding the logo doesn’t match the background! I couldn’t notice this on my old monitor, it all looked black. It looks pretty embarrassing now, but these flaws didn’t really show up in the print which was the most important part. I have resized this so that is should be printable without needing any further adjustments (click to open in a new tab).
Thanks so much!
TopSpot123 