At DualShockers, we are big fans of Nintendo. Only a couple of months ago, we put together our official Nintendo SwitchDualShockers Definitives listwhere all of the staff voted for their favorite Nintendo title. Not only do we love so many of the games, but we also love the culture that surrounds it that include cosplays and uniqueBreath of the Wildbuildsso you may imagine my excitement when I stumbled across these incredible fake Nintendo book covers displaying its gaming characters but with a Pulp Fiction arty twist.
If you are a fan of Astor Alexander’s work, you may remember back in July last year wepublishedsome fantasticThe Witcher 3: Wild Huntartwork which saw Geralt, Ciri, and Yennefer made into a modern, noir detective thriller. This time, we are back with Alexander to showcase even more of his brilliant artistic style but instead of The Witcher, this creative painter with an eye for the unique has taken on some Nintendo classic games that includeThe Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Metroid, Bioshock Infinite,andSuper Mario Bros. Alexander references actual pulp fiction novels for his set of illustrations, drawing from Rudy Nappi’sMan-Killercover art forMetroid, Robert McGinnis’Kill Now, Pay LaterforThe Legend of Zelda, the covers ofNaked Nurse,The SleeperforSuper Marioand also turning Ken Levine’s “Burial at Sea,” the downloadable content forBioShock Infinite, into a pulp cover, too.
There’s no denying that Alexander’s eye for detail is second to none and I especially love how he has turned Metroid’s Samus into a bad-ass gun-wielding woman. He certainly gives the three Nintendo games an entirely different tone that would look incredible on the walls of fans. In an interview onColbert News Hub, Alexander talked about what his inspiration for his distinctive style of art was. “Old school and obsessively figurative…more or less” replied Alexander “Someone whose father worked in advertising during the ’60s told me my paintings reminded him of the ’60s style. That was good to hear because I’m a big fan of the illustration of that time. Those guys were great at making realistic - yet stylish - everyday scenes” continuing on “I wish I could do that but I hate doing backgrounds. Pretty much all of my work is forced on faces and bodies.”
Alexander has been a freelance illustrator for many years with a figurative artist specialized on human figures and characters. Some of his work has even gone viral like hisDragon Ball Zcharacter and, of course, his interpretation ofThe Witcher 3not forgetting his reimagining of Disney princesses as femmes fatales. I’d highly recommend that you check out his work, he’s an incredible artist so head on over to hisArtstationto gaze upon all of his pieces. You can also follow Astor onTwitterand if you fancy buying any of his stuff, check outSociety6.
In some other news, Nintendoreleased a statementrecently about businesses and organizations usingAnimal Crossing: New Horizonsfor political reasons. “We deeply appreciate that so many people around the world are having fun with Animal Crossing: New Horizons” theofficial statement from Nintendoreads. Then it goes into acknowledging that businesses and organizations have found opportunities to promote themselves through the game, and as such, in Nintendo fashion, some guidelines have been set in place. Last month we also saw that Nintendo could have revealed a part of their plans forMetroid’s 35th anniversary inpromotional imagesthat may have offered a glimpse into the future of the game.
In Japan alone,New Horizonson Switch previouslysold more than1.88 millioncopies as of March 23th. The title released worldwide on March 20th, which means it managed to sell1.88 millionphysical copies in Japan in only three days. And overall the game’s Nintendo Switch debutsold 11.77 million unitsbetween its March 20th launch and March 31st, placing it seventh among the console’s highest-selling titles. In barely four months,Animal Crossing: New Horizonshas become Japan’ssecond best selling gameever.
