Rockstar revealed the official box art for Grand Theft Auto IV today, albeit in a manner we’re not very used to seeing. A video clip on GameTrailers shows several artists constructing it piece by piece on a wall until we’re given the full picture at the end.

The final product doesn’t stray too far from its pedigree, but the painterly style does shy away from the flat, cartoon-styled covers we’ve seen in the past. It really fits in with IV’s classier, more mature aesthetic.

Looking back at the art for previous GTA games reveals some pretty interesting trends, from each depicting a helicopter in the top-left to the “frames” becoming more and more dynamic over the years (GTAIII looks like The Brady Bunch, in comparison to recent fare). These are nuanced details, to be sure, but they serve as a small marker of the series’ evolution from the third on.

As neat as the box art is, perhaps the most exciting bit of the trailer comes at the end, revealing a new trailer entitled “Move up, ladies” to be released on December 6. Citing frame rate and other graphical woes as part of the reason for delaying GTAIV’s release, we can only hope the new teaser shows some progress.

To watch the unveiling please go to this link at GameTrailers.

Tags: 360, box-art, cta4, grand-theft-auto-four, PS3, trailer, Xbox

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