Okay, so I wanted to make a custom cover for UFC 4, ’cause, let’s be honest, the standard one is a little…blah. I’m a huge fan of this one fighter, and I wanted them front and center.
Figuring Out the Size
First thing I did was grab my actual UFC 4 game case and a ruler. Gotta get those dimensions right, you know? I measured the height, width, and even the spine. Just eyeballed it, really, nothing too fancy. Wrote those numbers down on a sticky note.
Getting the Images
Next, I needed some good pictures. I went online and started searching for high-resolution images of my favorite fighter. Found a few action shots, some cool poses, the works. I also looked for the UFC 4 logo, the ESRB rating, all that stuff that’s usually on the cover. Downloaded a bunch to my computer.
Putting It All Together
Now for the fun part! I opened up this free image editing program I have – it’s not Photoshop, but it gets the job done. I created a new image with the dimensions I measured earlier. Then, I just started playing around. I dragged in the fighter picture, resized it, moved it around until it looked good. I added the UFC 4 logo, the rating, all that jazz. I spent a good chunk of time just tweaking things, making sure everything was lined up and looked decent.
The Spine
Don’t forget the spine! I made a separate little image for that, just with the game title and the fighter’s name. Simple stuff.
Printing Time
Once I was happy with how it looked, it was time to print. I just used my regular home printer. It is not the greatest, but it works! I made sure to use some thicker paper. Nothing special, just something a little sturdier than regular printer paper. I printed out the front cover and the spine separately.
Cutting and Pasting
After they were printed, I carefully cut out the cover and the spine with scissors. Took my time with it, didn’t want any jagged edges. Then, I grabbed some double-sided tape and stuck the new cover over the old one on the game case. Did the same with the spine.
- Measure the case.
- Find images.
- Edit in a program.
- Print it out.
- Cut and paste!
And that’s it! Now I’ve got a custom UFC 4 cover featuring my favorite fighter. It’s not perfect, the printing could be better, but hey, I made it myself, and that’s pretty cool.
