Here's the BioShock Infinite Game Informer cover(s)

Next month's Game Informer cover isn't revealing a new game – unlike last month's Batman: Arkham City cover – but it's still got plenty to offer. Behold! Three separate BioShock Infinite covers, crafted by Irrational artist Rob Waters, that ape the old-timey, Norman Rockwell aesthetic of "The Saturday Evening Post." Unveiled during a PAX panel titled "From Concept to Cover: The Game Informer Selection Process," GI Editor-in-Chief Andy McNamara shared not only the final three covers, but the many revisions that went into each one. We've got some galleries below of each cover and its various revisions, including some commentary from both Game Informer and Irrational.


This version of the "Murder of Crows" cover sports a 1903 date, subsequently changed to the game's 1912 setting, and the placeholder title of "BioShock 3." Evidently, most of the staff at Irrational didn't know the game's final name until just before the big press reveal. Oh, and that crow getting down on an eyeball sandwich? That was removed from the final cover – the goal is a PG-13 "rating" and, evidently, eyeball eating doesn't fall within those confines.
Lead artist Shawn Robertson specifically pointed out that they didn't want to show Handyman (get it?) in some kind of action pose; instead, he's shown, arm extended, retrieving his hat. It's an unusual presentation of the massive villain, but it certainly fits the aesthetic.
The Game Informer favorite, "She and Him" shows the game's heroine Elizabeth and the massive bird-like creature featured at the end of the gameplay demo, whom they're simply calling "Him." This cover went through the most variations, which you can peruse in the gallery below. Most notably, it wasn't mentioned until later in the process that the red circle behind the characters looks like the Japanese flag so, at the last minute, they replaced it with a ring of stars.

Other notes: The back covers were made to emulate old-timey advertisements of the era. One, for Marlowe's Patented Vigors, was actually modified from a public domain image used in many older ads. The team at Irrational also requested to hyphenate "video-game" because they felt it was more period appropriate. Find the final versions, many iterations, and even the back covers in the above galleries and look for the October issue of Game Informer soon.