[[quoteright:337:[[WesternAnimation/Sealab2021 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/packaged_as_other_medium_6250.jpg]]]]

-> ''"Welcome to ''Dictionarium'', the video game that's pretending to be a book!"''
-->-- '''The Dictionary Keeper''', ''VideoGame/TheJackboxPartyPack 6''

A physical release or copy of something is designed to look like it's from another medium; for instance, a DVD case that looks like a comic book cover. Common examples tend to involve covers designed like comic books or movie posters. This practice is especially prevalent with music albums, due to the packaging often being the only visual accompaniment they have.

Sometimes it's a specific homage to something or other, but it's this trope if the image has the trappings of a typical cover for that other medium, such as credits at the bottom of a "movie poster" cover for a game.

----
!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* The Japan-only 2009 reprint of ''Manga/AzumangaDaioh'' is designed to resemble a set of school textbooks: the covers feature characters on a minimalist background with nothing else beyond the title and author's name, while the interiors feature a similarly standardized design style throughout.
* The English version of the manga ''[[=STONe=]]'' has covers that present it as a movie poster, "presented in Mangascope", with the writer/artist getting a production credit and the characters listed as actors at the bottom.
* Creator/FUNimation has a couple examples:
** Their release of ''Anime/ArmitageIII'' has a sci-fi pulp inspired case, including blurbs for stories inside.
** Funimation's Blu-ray release of ''Manga/PopTeamEpic'' indulges in the show's Kaufmanesque style of comedy with [[https://twitter.com/schmullus1/status/1045085345392381952 the disc art:]] the first disc is perfectly fine, but the second is designed to look like a homemade BD-R, complete with faux handwritten sharpie on the label. Given the show's nature, most buyers were in on the joke already, unlike the similar case with ''Film/{{Borat}}''.
* The box art for ''Manga/PopTeamEpic''[='=]s Japanese anime releases are themed after specific movie posters, reflecting the series' ReferenceOverdosed style. The DVD releases depict the characters in their usual PuniPlush art style, while the Blu-ray releases have them [[MediumShiftGag drawn in a much more detailed and realistic style]]. This is itself a CallBack to [[https://external-preview.redd.it/pop-team-epic-the-anime-adapted-the-blu-ray-version-joke-v0-Kq8nBvAND9lQTvHtXmJAtTw3dFSmKu5xFFMSfasVzwU.jpg?auto=webp&s=adb77663ffe3b120d8011db67d78950cecbeecb0 a similar joke]] in the manga.
** The first season's cover art is, hilariously enough, [[https://preview.redd.it/b6xok6zy0yh21.png?width=1080&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=5624272f4ca774c9b2eeba73f7518157bccb7f64 themed after the posters]] for the ''Film/DieHard'' films; the first volume is themed after [[Film/DieHard the original movie]], the second is themed after ''Film/DieHard2DieHarder'', and the third is themed after ''Film/DieHardWithAVengeance''.
** The TV special's cover art is [[https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BZjgxMjVmMWYtZGJiYy00OTFjLWIwNDUtZmQ2ZDFhZTNiYjY2XkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTk2MDc1MjQ@._V1_.jpg themed after]] [[https://images.static-bluray.com/products/20/85059_1_large.jpg the poster]] for ''Film/FirstBlood'', as a significant portion of the special is a Rambo parody.
** The second season's cover art is [[https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FkMXIZCacAAjx0g?format=jpg&name=large themed after]] the posters for the ''Franchise/BackToTheFuture'' trilogy. Unlike the others, they didn't keep up the "realistic art style for the Blu-ray releases" gag (since this season wasn't released on DVD), though the third has Yuichi Nakamura depicted in live action to match a certain gag in the last episode of the season.
* The covers of collected volumes of ''Manga/{{BTOOOM}}'' are based on Platform/XBox360 game cases.
* ADV's English release of the ''Manga/KekkoKamen'' [=OVAs=] has a cover based on your typical EC Comics ''Vault of Horror'' cover.
* ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'' occasionally makes its chapter title pages look like the cover to an American comic book.
* The original English [=DVDs=] of the ''VisualNovel/ComicParty'' anime has disc cases that look like manga, complete with the "You're reading the wrong way!" warnings.
* Various home media releases of ''Anime/CowboyBebop'' style the front covers after '50s and '60s jazz albums, with the Blu-ray release further designing the disc labels to resemble vinyl records, tying in with the show's nature as a homage to the 1970s.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Audio Plays]]
* The cover for Creator/CheechAndChong's ''Big Bambú'' is designed after the packaging for its namesake, a real-life brand of rolling papers. Accordingly, the original LP release comes packaged with a [[{{Feelies}} feely]] in the form of a 12" x 24" sheet of rolling paper, which gets incorporated into a skit on the album about encountering the biggest joint known to man.
* ''AudioPlay/TheMontyPythonMatchingTieAndHandkerchief'': The initial pressings were packaged with a real tie and handkerchief, implying the record was merely a free extra.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''ComicBook/Gen13'' vol. #1 shipped with 13 different covers; of these, five fit this trope. Two were based on magazine covers (one ''Magazine/RollingStone'', the other ''Heavy Metal''), one on a movie poster (that of ''Film/PulpFiction'', complete with a real live model), one on an ad for a TV show (namely ''Series/TheBradyBunch''), and the last one on a Victoria's Secret catalogue. Whew!
* Every issue of ''ComicBook/TheIntimates'' (except #6 and #12) has a cover made to look like that of a magazine for teen superheroes, with headlines either to that effect, or about characters or events in the comic.
* The short-lived ''ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}}'' revamp that ran from #76 to #81 featured covers styled after men's magazines like ''Stuff'', ''FHM'', and ''Maxim''. For [[http://x.annihil.us/u/prod/marvel/i/mg/6/90/4bb71d82f3494/detail.jpg instance]].
* The cover of ''X-Men Legacy'' #10 looks like a pharmaceutical print ad or pamphlet promoting a mutant cure, [[http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20130214143959/marveldatabase/images/a/aa/X-Men_Legacy_Vol_2_10_Textless.jpg as you can see]].
* The covers of ''[[http://graphicpolicy.files.wordpress.com/2012/12/the-fearless-defenders-2.jpg Fearless Defenders #2]]'', ''[[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100408141711/marvel_dc/images/5/53/Batman_Gotham_Adventures_Vol_1_3.jpg Batman: Gotham Adventures #3]]'', and ''[[ComicBook/BuffyTheVampireSlayer Angel & Faith]]'' [[http://littlestuffedbull.com/images/2012/ten/angel26.jpg #26]] are all designed after action figure cards. The ''Fearless Defenders'' cover is the most dedicated to the illusion, as artist Mark Brooks wanted to make it look as real as possible.
* The cover of ''[[ComicBook/TheMultiversity The Just #1]]'' resembles the kind of celebrity-interest magazine sold at supermarket counters.
* Some variant covers for the Creator/IDWPublishing miniseries ''ComicBook/Revolution2016'' are modeled after action figure cards, with two or three of the characters on it (using their toys if possible- all the characters are based on toys from Creator/{{Hasbro}}). IDW's also done this with ''[[ComicBook/GIJoeARealAmericanHeroMarvel G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero]]'', which continues from the Marvel series and is an AlternateContinuity from the ComicBook/HasbroComicUniverse.
* After Marvel regained the ''ComicBook/StarWars'' comic license, most of their output has received an action figure variant cover, making them appear to be toy packaging reminiscent of the original Kenner line.
* Marvel had many [[https://comicbookinvest.com/2020/06/22/cbsi-marvel-hip-hop-cover-variant-comic-guide/ variants inspired by hip-hop album covers.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Film]]
* The packaging for ''Film/{{Borat}}'' made it look like a cheap, foreign bootleg rather than a polished official DVD release. The disc itself looks like a blank disc that was recorded over, with the movie's title written on it in marker and the logotype & slogan parodying those of Memorex (i.e. "is live? No. Demorez," in place of "is it live or is it Memorex?"). [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nT7WfbdK4IQ The DVD menus also look like they have been whipped up in five minutes with no budget.]] It serves to highlight the film's {{Mockumentary}} status. This infamously resulted in a swath of confusion among consumers who weren't in on the joke, leading to retailers receiving a number of complaints from buyers who thought they had purchased an actual bootleg.
* Like ''Borat'', ''Film/TheGirlWithTheDragonTattoo2011'' also styled its DVD release after a bootleg (to fit Lisbeth Salander's hacker background), but with official Sony iconography; this also led to confusion and complaints among buyers who mistakenly felt as if they were duped into buying a phony copy of the movie.
* The poster for ''Film/PulpFiction'', and by extension the cover for its DVD and VHS releases, is designed to look like a worn pulp fiction book (including the 10¢ price).
* From Creator/TheCriterionCollection:
** The essays and reading material for ''Film/AceInTheHole1951'', a film about news reporting, are designed to look like a newspaper.
** The disc case of ''Film/TheCelebration'' made it look like it came straight out of a home CD burner, being nothing more than a blank transparent case with a printed plain-text sticky label on it - fitting for the first film of the minimalistic MediaNotes/Dogme95 movement.
** The essays and reading material for ''Film/DrStrangelove'' are packaged in a miniature envelope designed to look like the top secret documents seen in the film.
** ''Film/GhostWorld'''s disc art is made to look like the label on an old jazz vinyl record like the ones Creator/SteveBuscemi's character collects (notably with the "genre" written as "Angst, Teen").
** The disc art for ''Film/TheGrandBudapestHotel'' is designed to look like a drink coaster from the titular hotel.
** Fittingly for a movie focusing on Music/TheBeatles, ''Film/IWannaHoldYourHand''[='=]s disc is designed to look like a Creator/CapitolRecords 7" record from the 1960s[[note]]ArtisticLicenseHistory is involved here, as the song the film is named after was never released as a single in the United States until 1989, and as a mini CD to boot; the original 7" release was on Creator/ParlophoneRecords, which used a markedly different label design[[/note]].
** The packaging for ''Film/ThePrincessBride'' is designed to look like a hardcover storybook.
** ''Film/RepoMan'''s disc art is designed to look like the generic labels used on background products in the film: a blue dotted line on white with a label that says "DISC".
** Similar to ''Ace in the Hole'' above, ''Film/TrueStories'''s reading material is printed on cheap pulp newspaper resembling the tabloids that served as inspiration for the film's setting, with a few of the actual tabloid stories from director David Byrne's collection mixed in.
** The reading material for ''Film/UncutGems'' is an in-universe catalogue for Howard Ratner's jewelry store, including photos of the jewelry Howard sells, photos of Creator/AdamSandler in-character as Howard with his clientele and his family, an order form, and the requisite (out-of-universe) essays of a Criterion release.
** The disc case for the DVD and Blu-Ray of ''Film/{{Videodrome}}'' is designed to look like (and be the exact same size as) a Betamax tape, as a MythologyGag.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheMitchellsVsTheMachines'' plays with this, as the film's Blu-ray menu is designed to look like a homemade version of Creator/TheCriterionCollection's menus. The disc looks like the art was doodled on with a Sharpie by Katie Mitchell herself, and even comes with an essay written in character by her, who basically notes that "if Criterion won't release this, then I'll do it myself!"
* The DVD releases for ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' [[ReCut Extended Editions]] were designed to look like aged books. The [[LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition Middle-Earth Limited Collector's Edition]] included ''Film/TheHobbit'' trilogy, which had the discs of each film in literal books that were grouped in a wooden bookshelf.
* The poster for ''WesternAnimation/WaveTwisters'' is based on Platform/Atari2600 game packaging, specifically ''VideoGame/{{Pitfall}}''[='=]s.
* [[https://gfx.videobuster.de/archive/v/cvD2Q1dlVPZopVyhuEVEZ-Qcz0lMkawpiUyRqglMkZpbWGZJTJGanBlZyUyRmLP1zdj6u1jY2IyZec0ZGIxZmLMy7gwOS5qcGcmcj1opjAw/die-hamburger-krankheit-dvd-full-cover.jpg One DVD cover]] for the 1979 German disaster flick ''Film/TheHamburgSyndrome'' is designed to resemble a newspaper article on the titular disease outbreak, with the paper given the [[BlandNameProduct generic title]] ''HH'', which in real life is a license plate abbreviation for vehicles registered in [[UsefulNotes/{{Hamburg}} the eponymous city]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* Frequently used by author Grady Hendrix:
** ''Horrorstör'' is about a haunted Ikea knockoff built on the site of a horrific prison, and is thus packaged as a chichi furniture catalog.
** ''My Best Friend's Exorcism'' looks like a yearbook in the hardcover edition (complete with signatures and messages on the inside covers) and like a VHS tape as a paperback and audiobook.
** In ''We Sold Our Souls'', the protagonist is a heavy metal guitarist, so it's packaged to look like a parody of ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, complete with headlines that hint at the plot of the book.
* Several editions of ''Literature/TheAmazingAdventuresOfKavalierAndClay'' have cover art reminiscent of a battered old comic book, with the back cover resembling the ads.
* The original Swedish covers of the ''Literature/MillenniumSeries'' are styled like a crime magazine.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:LiveActionTelevision]]
* The limited edition DVD release of ''Series/StrangerThings'' is packaged like an old 80s VHS release, right down to the cover being artificially aged to look like vintage cardboard.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* Album and single covers that look like advertisement pages:
** ''Music/TheWhoSellOut'' by Music/TheWho
** ''Music/SomeGirls'' by Music/{{The Rolling Stones|Band}}
** The covers of ''Music/TheManMachine'' by Music/{{Kraftwerk}} and of Music/FranzFerdinand's ''Music/YouCouldHaveItSoMuchBetter'' look like a Soviet propaganda poster.
** ''Music/UnconditionallyGuaranteed'' by Music/CaptainBeefheart
* Album and single covers that look like art objects, paintings that mimic a particular famous style, galleries, etc.:
** The cover of Music/EmersonLakeAndPalmer's ''Music/PicturesAtAnExhibition'' looks like an art gallery.
** Music/FrankZappa's ''Music/ThePerfectStranger'', ''Music/ThemOrUs'' and ''Music/FrancescoZappa'', all designed by Donald Roller Wilson, all resemble a baroque painting.
** ''Music/{{Tonight}}'' by Music/DavidBowie features an album cover designed to resemble a stained-glass window.
* Albums covers that look like book covers:
** Some of Blackmore's Night's albums are made to look like books instead of CD cases.
** Music/JoyElectric's ''The White Songbook''. Externally, it looks like a standard CD jewel case, but the liner notes were designed like an actual book--complete with a book-style page of copyright and printing information, and a table of contents.
** Music/ElvisCostello and Music/TheRoots' collaborative album ''Wise Up Ghost'' has cover art modeled after the cover of ''[[Literature/Howl1955 Howl & Other Poems]]'' by Creator/AllenGinsberg, the fourth book in the City Lights Pocket Poets Series. And the Special Edition of ''Wise Up Ghost'' actually is a small paperback book, with the CD tucked into the back cover.
** Music/PearlJam's ''Vitalogy'' is styled after an old medical textbook.
** Music/{{Radiohead}}'s ''Music/{{Amnesiac}}'' is made to look like a forgotten old library book. The front and back covers are of the front and back of an actual book; the back cover and the back of the CD booklet both feature mock-checkout cards on them (complete with the back of the booklet having a "spine damaged" notice); the liner notes are made to look like pages of a book that have been torn up, scribbled on, and yellowed out; the second page is made to look like the title page to 18th-century writer and politician Edward Gibbon's ''The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume II''; and the last page features instructions for [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stripped_book stripping]] the book. This is taken to an even greater extent in the [[https://www.discogs.com/Radiohead-Amnesiac/release/835328 special edition]], which actually ''is'' the book pictured on the cover, complete with more faithful replications of library checkout cards.
** Music/BillyJoel's ''The Nylon Curtain'' looks like it could be the dust jacket for a circa 1982 "important" LitFic novel.
** While not exactly inspired by traditional books, Music/RoxyMusic made it a tradition to have every one of their album covers look like a fashion magazine, hence the bold logotypes and scantily-clad women. The practice was successfully kept up from their first album all the way up to their last, and continued to inform the direction of frontman Bryan Ferry's solo album covers as well.
** that dog.'s ''Totally Crushed Out'' is meant to look like a 1980s YoungAdultLiterature novel somewhat along the lines of the ''Literature/SweetValleyHigh'' series, with a colorful illustration of a young girl waiting pensively by her phone. This extends to the back cover, which works all of the song titles into a blurb for a fictitious story about a teenager with a crush, and the [[CreditsGag credits]], where the band members are listed in an "about the authors" section with brief biographies for each member.
* Album and single covers that look like they came from a comic book:
** The now iconic album cover of ''Music/CheapThrills'' by Big Brother & The Holding Company looks like a comic book image. It was even designed by underground comic artist Creator/RobertCrumb.
*** ''Series/SesameStreet'' of all things designed the artwork for the now rare 1994 cassette ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwKbwxRkCEs Cheep Thrills]]'' as a {{homage}} to ''Cheap Thrills'' (hence the name).
** Many album covers of [[Music/GeorgeClinton George Clinton/Parliament/Funkadelic]] look like comic strips.
** The original US cover for ''Music/TheManWhoSoldTheWorld'' by Music/DavidBowie looks like a comic strip.
** The album cover of ''Music/SongsAboutFucking'' by Music/BigBlack looks like a {{manga}} panel.
** Music/FrankZappa's ''Music/CruisingWithRubenAndTheJets'' has cartoon versions of Zappa and his band, complete with text balloons. ''Music/ShipArrivingTooLateToSaveADrowningWitch'' is a droodle.
** Music/SchoollyD's ''[[Music/SchoollyDAlbum Schoolly D]]'' looks like a series of doodles.
** Aivi and Surasshu's ''[[https://aivi-surasshu.bandcamp.com/album/the-black-box The Black Box]]'' is drawn up to look like a ''[[ComicBook/TheAdventuresOfTintin Tintin]]''-style album. It even came with a few pages from the "album" itself to give a bit of backstory.
** ''True Love Stories'' by Music/JiltedJohn is designed to look like a teen romance comic.
* Album and single covers that look like postcards:
** ''Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.'' by Music/BruceSpringsteen
** ''Music/{{Lodger}}'' by Music/DavidBowie, complete with the address for the UK division of Creator/RCARecords.
* Album and single covers made to look as if they were a different musical genre or different musical artist:
** ''Music/SgtPeppersLonelyHeartsClubBand'' by Music/TheBeatles has a cover that makes them look like some kind of fanfare band.
** ''Meet the Residents'' by Music/TheResidents is an exact replica of Music/TheBeatles' ''[[Music/WithTheBeatles Meet The Beatles]]'' only with all kinds of doodles scribbled over it.
** The clean version of the cover of ''Music/BeggarsBanquet'' by Music/{{The Rolling Stones|Band}} makes the album appear as a classy record, which it isn't.
** ''AudioPlay/{{Omaha}}'' by Creator/StanFreberg is done in the style of a Broadway musical album, but is in fact a parody of it.
** ''AudioPlay/AnotherMontyPythonRecord'' looks like it was originally a ClassicalMusic album, with the title and images crossed out.
** ''The Miracle Of Sound And Motion'' by NoiseRock band Steel Pole Bathtub is designed to look like a "demonstration record" from the 1960s - in other words, a record designed to demonstrate the capabilities of a high fidelity record player. They actually licensed an image that was originally used for one such record, titled ''The Sound Of Sounds''.
** The layout of Music/ElioELeStorieTese's orchestral covers album ''Gattini'' was identical to the covers of the Deutsche Grammophon records. It was hastily changed, probably in fear of a lawsuit.
** ''Cunning Stunts'' by NoiseRock group Cows is designed to look like a jazz record, using design elements favored by jazz label Blue Note Records: Namely a blue-tinted [[FaceOnTheCover photo of the lead musician]], all-caps text, and a list of individual musicians on the front -- the font choices and placement of the text specifically seem to be a nod to Eric Dolphy's ''Out To Lunch!''. The fact that Shannon Selberg is depicted playing a trumpet adds to the jazz record concept, but actually is accurate to the album's contents: Selberg is primarily a vocalist, but also plays discordant trumpet on some songs.
** ''Sound Affects'' by Music/TheJam is made to look like one of the many records of sound effects released by the BBC: Such records tended to have [[IdiosyncraticCoverArt an identical collage of stock photos for cover art]], with only different colors and a volume number under the title to distinguish them. The Jam used different stock photos, but formatted them in a very similar way, rendered "JAM" in the BBC font, and put the text "No. 80" after the title, probably referencing the fact that it was released in 1980.
** ''20 Jazz Funk Greats'' by Music/ThrobbingGristle is made to resemble an easy-listening compilation, featuring an unassuming photo of the band in a green field (actually Beachy Head, a notorious suicide spot). According to Cosey Fanni Tutti, the idea was to make the album look like something from a bargain bin, so that unassuming buyers would grab a copy and get "decimated" by the harsh {{industrial}} material within. The compilation ''[[GreatestHitsAlbum Greatest Hits]]'' takes on a similar concept, using retro 60s-style fonts and a tasteful pin-up style photo of Cosey in a bikini.
** ''The Texas Jerusalem Crossroads'', a religiously themed concept album by the [[UsefulNotes/DFWMetroplex Denton, Texas]] based PostRock / {{Shoegazing}} band Lift To Experience about God starting the apocalypse and moving the Holy Land from Jerusalem to Texas, is packaged to look like [[StylisticSuck a really cheap hand printed demo CD for a struggling Texas country band]], as seen [[https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/17/Lift_to_Experience_-_The_Texas-Jerusalem_Crossroads.jpg here]]. (The cover for [[https://i0.wp.com/ayearofvinyl.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Lift-to-Experience-The-Texas-Jerusalem-Crossroads-vinyl-review.jpg?resize=676%2C676&ssl=1 the remaster]], meanwhile, changes it into a fairly spot on parody of 90s SouthernRap album art designs by the Houston-based Creator/PenAndPixel design studio)
* Album and single covers that look like newspaper articles
** ''Music/SomeTimeInNewYorkCity'' by Music/JohnLennon and Music/YokoOno.
** ''Music/HeartattackAndVine'' by Music/TomWaits.
** ''Music/GNRLies'' by Music/GunsNRoses.
** The 1958 British reissue of Music/TomLehrer's ''Music/SongsByTomLehrer''.
** ''Music/CheekToCheek'' by Music/TonyBennett and Music/LadyGaga
** ''Music/ThickAsABrick'' by Music/JethroTull, which in its original release had the record wrapped up in an ''actual'' newspaper. The idea also carries over to the album's solo sequel by frontman Ian Anderson, which is packaged to resemble a news website by the same outlet.
** ''Genuine Imitation Life Gazette'' by Music/FrankieValliAndTheFourSeasons
** The infamous Music/ElvisPresley compilation bootleg ''ELVIS' GREATEST SHIT!'' is styled to look like a tabloid article, complete with a photo of Elvis lying in wake. The legitimate 1987 compilation ''The Memphis Record'' (a complete collection of his 1969 [[Music/FromElvisInMemphis Memphis recording sessions]]) plays it more straight.
* Album and single covers that look like 7" singles or, in the case of a CD, look like an LP:
** Mini LP [=CDs=] are CD reissues that exactly replicate the original pressboard LP packaging, shrunken down to CD size. A lot of them are made for the Japanese market, though they have risen to prominence in the west in recent years as a cheaper alternative to jewel cases and digipacks. Other releases will mimic the layout of an LP from the '60s or '70s for a {{Retraux}} effect but with a standard jewel case and booklet.
** Music/{{Starflyer 59}}'s album ''Gold'' (specifically the original edition). The pages of the liner notes had fake gramophone record labels for every song on the album, as if they were all 45 rpm singles released by a variety of fictitious record labels.
** Diablo Swing Orchestra's ''Pandora's Piñata'' was sold in a CD digipak which was meant to look like a record album. Every panel of the package had fake ring wear, and the inner panels resembled paper sleeves with fake record labels visible through center holes.
** Some ''really'' esoteric examples can be seen [[http://www.kmuw.org/post/10-great-album-art-fake-outs here]]. Of particular note are the packages that look like a ''[[Music/{{Horslips}} concertina]]'' and a ''full size boom box''.
** The cover art of Music/TheBeeGees album ''[[GreatestHitsAlbum Their Greatest Hits]]: The Record'' looks [[http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9b/Bee_Gees-Their_Greatest_Hits-The_Record.jpg like an LP.]] The same theme continues on [[http://www.tomamusica.com/caratulas/B/Bee-Gees-Their-Greatest-Hits-The-Record-Disc-One-CD.jpg the actual CD discs themselves.]]
** The cover for Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings' ''100 Days, 100 Nights'' looks like it came out of TheSixties. This could really be said for any of the band's albums -- or anything from Daptone Records, for that matter.
** Similar to mini LP CD covers, some reissues of albums on CD from the vinyl era will replicate the LP label on the CD label from the original release. Some examples include remastered albums on Creator/AtlanticRecords from Music/{{Yes}} and Music/LedZeppelin, the reissues of Music/TheDoors on Creator/ElektraRecords, and Creator/ParlophoneRecords' remasters of the Music/DavidBowie catalog up to ''Music/BlackTieWhiteNoise''.
* Album and single covers looking like common day objects:
** Music/{{Spiritualized}}'s ''Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space'' was designed to resemble medicine. The packaging has a minimalist design of blue text against a white background. The liner notes list the musicians under the heading "Active Ingredients" and includes information about the intended dosage and possible side effects. Some of the [[LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition Special Editions]] go a step further: the album is divided into 12 [=mini-CDs=] (one for each song) and each is in a medicine-style blister pack.
** The cover of Music/CaptainBeefheart's ''Music/StrictlyPersonal'' looks like a letter.
** Music/BobMarley's ''Music/CatchAFire'' is designed to look like a lighter.
** The original LP cover of ''Music/StickyFingers'' by Music/{{The Rolling Stones|Band}} looks like a pair of pants, complete with a real zipper. Their cover for ''Music/EmotionalRescue'' looks like a series of X-Ray images.
** Similarly, the banana on the original cover of Music/VelvetUnderground's [[Music/TheVelvetUndergroundAndNico breakthrough album]] can actually be peeled.
** Music/PublicImageLtd:
*** ''Metal Box'' was originally packaged in a 16mm film canister; CD re-issues since the '90s manage to translate the original packaging to the significantly smaller disc size by using an identically designed 8mm canister.
*** ''Album'' is designed to resemble a generic product from Ralphs; the concept also carries over to the single releases of "Rise" and "Home", the title card for the former single's music video, and the home video release of ''Videos''.
** The initial copies of Music/BodyCount's debut album ''[[Music/BodyCountAlbum Body Count]]'' were shipped out in black body bags.
** German pop punk band ''Music/DieArzte'''s album ''Jazz ist Anders'' is styled like a (CD-sized) pizza box.
** Tying in with the song's lyrics about unhealthy living, [[https://www.discogs.com/Dire-Straits-Heavy-Fuel/release/418710 the limited-edition UK single release]] of Music/DireStraits' [[Music/OnEveryStreet "Heavy Fuel"]] came packaged in a foldout hamburger folder, with the mini CD's label being a photo of a tomato slice.
** Plastikman's ''Sheet One'' had a perforated cover made to resemble a sheet of LSD tabs. This actually ended up getting a fan arrested -- He was pulled over for speeding and the officer mistook the CD case in his car for the real thing.
** An unusual example occurs with the soundtrack album for ''Film/TheFlintstones'': the CD is packaged in a plastic clamshell, which would be more of a common-day object in the ''Flintstones'' universe than in the real world.
** Music/SteveTaylor & The Music/{{Danielson}} Foil's ''Wow to the Deadness EP'' is available as a digital edition, pre-loaded on a USB stick. It's packaged inside a miniature coffin (made of real wood), and the USB stick itself is shaped like a flower.
** Music/{{Primus}}' GreatestHitsAlbum ''They Can't All Be Zingers'' is designed to look like a package of processed cheese slices. This extends to the track-listing and credits on the back, which are formatted to look like the "nutrition facts" on the back of food packaging, and the CD case comes wrapped in cellophane like a cheese package would be.
** All releases issued by digital-only electronic label Allergy Season run with the label name by using cover art in the style of over-the-counter medicine packaging. Some even go so far as to list what the "drug" should be administered for -- for instance John Barera and Paul Morse's ''Pantheon'' EP is "fast acting" and "numbs away pain", while the charity "protest compilation" ''Physically Sick'' is said to "alleviate symptoms of fascism, bigotry, violence, and demagoguery".
** The Music/RodStewart compilation ''Sing It Again Rod'' is designed to look like a glass of whiskey, complete with the sleeve being die-cut in the glass shape. It still included Rod's FaceOnTheCover - he's seen through the other side of the glass, as though the listener were seated across from him at a bar.
** The layout of Toy-Box's ''Fantastic'' album is [[https://img.discogs.com/ZZ2C41paoQ9vqds1DWFP32TRH1U=/fit-in/472x472/filters:strip_icc():format(jpeg):mode_rgb():quality(90)/discogs-images/R-2101855-1264103544.jpeg.jpg made to look]] like a Platform/PlayStation game case.
** Juice WRLD's ''Death Race for Love'' has a cover that resembles a Platform/PlayStation game.
** Soccer Mommy's ''Color Theory'' is a downplayed example, but still goes for an early 90s video game console feel, which is further enhanced by the fact that the first part of the liner notes is styled like a console instruction manual.
** Music/BlindMelon's ''Soup'' is designed to look like a diner menu.
** The inner sleeve of Music/{{Supertramp}}'s ''Breakfast in America'' is also laid out like a diner menu.
** The cover for the 7" release of Music/JoyDivision's "Love Will Tear Us Apart" was designed to look like a tombstone. Infamously, this didn't become apparent to the cover designer, longtime collaborator Peter Saville, until ''after'' frontman Ian Curtis killed himself.
** Flipper's ''Gone Fishin''' is laid out like a paper model of the band's tour bus-- the record sleeve actually functioned as such, and packaging included a free mail-in offer of a second, empty cover; this way fans could cut up and fold together the tour bus model and still have a functional cover for the album.
** The cover of Music/NewOrder's "Blue Monday" 12-inch single is designed to look like a 5.25-inch floppy disk, complete with die-cuts for the holes. Later, ''Music/{{Brotherhood}}'' and the single releases of "Bizarre Love Triangle" & "State of the Nation" would get covers designed after sheet metal.
** The artwork for Music/DavidByrne's ''Music/{{Feelings}}'' is designed to resemble a package for an action figure in the musician's likeness, right down to the back advertising the (nonexistent) toy's various features.
** Music/TheSmallFaces' ''Music/OgdensNutGoneFlake'' was originally packaged in a circular metal container like a very large tobacco tin. This proved AwesomeButImpractical as the tins tend to roll off shelves, and the packaging was changed to a circular cardboard gatefold sleeve. A limited number of the CD version was sold in metal tins.
** The album cover for Music/DrDre's ''Music/TheChronic'' is designed to resemble a box of rolling papers, accentuated by the giant pot leaf on the disc label.
* Future Bible Heroes' ''Memories of Love'' looks like a children's activity book -- this is down to the liner notes, which make the listener have to solve simple word puzzles to find out song lyrics, credits and even the album title and artist name.
* ''Steal This Album!'' by Music/SystemOfADown is styled after a CD-R, complete with a total lack of liner notes. Unlike the DVD releases of ''Film/{{Borat}}'' and ''Film/{{The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo|2011}}'', which were so accurate that buyers believed that they were actual bootlegs, the disc art for ''Steal this Album!'' made enough deviations from actual CD-R labels to ensure that consumers understood the joke.
* Pere Ubu's CD reissues on Rough Trade were styled to look like a classic Platform/AppleMacintosh program.
* The original release of ''Music/StrongBadSingsAndOtherTypeHits'' is designed to resemble an amateur home recording. The cover art depicts a sketch of Strong Bad in blue pen on white college rule paper, and the disc label mimics a cheap CD-R, with the album title written at the bottom in Sharpie.
* Fitting with the game's late-nineties Internet pastiche, ''The Sounds of Hypnospace Audio Tour'' -- a bonus mini-CD packaged with ''VideoGame/HypnospaceOutlaw'' -- is designed to resemble a free trial CD for an online service. It comes in a cardboard sleeve that advertises it as "year 2000 ready", and the disc art is printed directly onto the disc in monochrome, like older [=CD-ROMs=].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* Fantasy Games Unlimited's (FGU) game ''Daredevils''. The covers of the game and its supplements were designed to look like old pulp adventure magazines. There were even fake price markers reading "NOT 10 Cents". Also, some supplements had wording like "Vol. 2 #3" as if they were magazines.
* Not exactly another medium, but the 1st edition supplement on the Kolat, an evil secret society in ''TabletopGame/LegendOfTheFiveRings'' was released under the title ''The Merchant's Guide to Rokugan'', complete with a fake first few pages about economics and rice merchants before admitting on the next page that it was really the Kolat book and going on to talk about the conspiracy and its members.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Toys]]
* Two box sets featuring Film/{{Bumblebee}} from the ''Film/TransformersFilmSeries'' were packaged as "Retro Rock/Pop Highway Vol 1/2." These exclusives were packaged as giant cassette tapes, fitting the 80s setting of Bumblebee's solo film, the fact that each set came with two microcassette transformers, and the fact that both versions of Bumblebee were vintage automobiles.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* The ''VideoGame/HaloReach'' Legendary Edition box is designed to emulate a metal UNSC crate.
* ''VideoGame/TheHouseOfTheDeadOverkill'' has a cover meant to look like a movie poster. The whole game is presented as a movie, with each level having its own poster (complete with credits) and a "missing reel" in the final boss fight.
* ''VideoGame/FreedomForce'' is an homage game to the [[MediaNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks golden age of superhero comics]]. This is plainly apparent from the comicbookesque cover, storytelling (complete with comic book boxes and narrative style) as well as the loading screens which portray the 'issue' of the next level, often in the misleading way of comic book cover gimmicks to boost sales.
* Meta-example: In the LiveActionCutscene opening video of ''VideoGame/BrutalLegend'', Creator/JackBlack presents the game to the players as if it was on an old-school LP rather than DVD. That LP doubles as the game's main menu.
* ''VideoGame/{{Through the Looking Glass}}'', being inspired by [[Literature/ThroughTheLookingGlass the book of the same name]], came packaged in a BookSafe.
* An alternate cover for ''VideoGame/BioShockInfinite'' is designed to look like the cover of a cheap dime novel from the era. Unfortunately, the logo is identical, somewhat ruining the effect.
* The alternate cover on the DVD version of ''VideoGame/StrongBadsCoolGameForAttractivePeople'' is designed in the style of an Platform/Atari2600 game cartridge box.
* ''VideoGame/SonicMania [[UpdatedRerelease Plus]]'' has a reversible cover that mimics the packaging of a latter-era Platform/SegaGenesis or Mega Drive game (depending on region). ''Sonic Origins Plus'' has a similar reversible cover that mimics earlier Genesis and Mega Drive games, again varying depending on the region.
* Creator/BandaiNamco released a trailer and a printable alternative label for ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'' that makes it resemble a low-budget direct-to-VHS horror movie from TheEighties.
* The PC versions for ''Franchise/TheElderScrolls'' games (starting with ''[[VideoGame/TheElderScrollsIIIMorrowind Morrowind]]'') [[IdiosyncraticCoverArt each feature]] a [[MinimalisticCoverArt symbolic emblem]] from the game in question and the title as though it were printed on the cover a leather-bound book. ''The Elder Scrolls Anthology'', a CompilationRerelease of the first five games in the series, also follows this pattern and even opens up like a book to reveal the disks within.
* While they're digital-only, ''VideoGame/TheJackboxPartyPack'' had individual games in the first 3 packs appear as board game boxes in the main menu. However, they got more creative afterwards:
** ''Party Pack 4'': ''Fibbage 3'' is a 70s vinyl record cover, ''Monster Seeking Monster'' is a wooden coffin, ''Survive the Internet'' is a CD-Rom in its jewel case, ''Civic Doodle'' is a spray paint set, and ''Bracketeering'' is a Nintendo 64-esque game cartridge.
** ''Party Pack 5'': ''Split the Room'' is an old analogue TV, ''Mad Verse City'' is a toy robot package, ''Patently Stupid'' is a recruitment poster with stubs where the phone number goes and ''Zeeple Dome'' resembles the box of an Platform/Atari2600 game from Creator/{{Activision}}. {{Averted}} with ''VideoGame/YouDontKnowJack: Full Stream'', which is the Jack Head mascot in a [[MegaCorp Binjpipe]]-branded space helmet.
** ''Party Pack 6'' does this on top of a bathroom theme: ''Trivia Murder Party 2'' is a bottle of pitch-black complimentary lotion from the [[HellHotel Murder Hotel]], ''Dictionarium'' is an actual dictionary with bat wings, ''Push The Button'' is a bathtub drain with alien tentacles slithering through, ''Joke Boat'' is a toy replica of the S.S. Sea Minus, and ''Role Models'' is an inflated rubber glove.
** ''Party Pack 7'' changes it up by portraying the games with massive parade-style balloons resembling characters or themes from the games. ''Quiplash 3'' has the yellow three-haired avatar alongside the title, while ''Champ'd Up'' has the purple champ with the fish on his head and the title on his belt.
** ''Party Pack 8'' does it differently again, presenting the games as different styles of cake. ''Job Job'' doesn't seem to follow this at first, looking like a regular briefcase, until you squint and realize that the metal casing is actually chocolate.
* Inverting the practice of album covers imitating other media, early Creator/ElectronicArts games used LP-style sleeves complete with gatefolds to stress that they considered their game designers like "rock stars."
* ''Bodycon Quest I'' is an unlicensed action RPG game for the Famicom Disk System (an "erotic" ''VideoGame/DragonQuest'' sort-of parody) whose packaging was shaped like a [[https://dvdtranslations.eludevisibility.org/bodyconquest/box_and_spine.jpg VHS tape case]], probably imitating the style of hentai anime tapes of the era.
* In the years after MediaNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983, Nintendo and Sega attempted to reassure American consumers wary of consoles by taking design cues from home video of the era when launching in the US. The original Platform/NintendoEntertainmentSystem inserted cartridges like a front-loading VCR, while Platform/SegaMasterSystem and Platform/SegaGenesis games came in plastic clamshell cases similar to those used for video tapes.
** Similarly, when the Famicom Mini was given a special ''Magazine/ShonenJump'' edition with 20 games based on the magazine's properties in 2018, the said mini console was packaged like it was an issue of the said magazine.
* While a {{freeware|Games}} FanGame, ''VideoGame/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesRescuePalooza'' models its character select and unlocks screen after the back packagings of the original ''Franchise/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles'' toyline from 1988 to 1992, right down to the clipouts for the Pizza Point loyalty program.
* The packaging design for games in the ''VideoGame/StyleSavvy'' series are made to look like fashion magazines. For example, the first game's Japanese [[https://www.mobygames.com/images/covers/l/737116-style-savvy-nintendo-ds-front-cover.jpg box art]] and [[https://www.mobygames.com/images/covers/l/737119-style-savvy-nintendo-ds-manual.jpg manual]] both feature models surrounded by bold logotype and "headlines" advertising the game's content. This design style was carried over into the [[https://assets-prd.ignimgs.com/2022/02/16/sstrendsetters-sq-1645044197766.jpg international localizations,]] though more subtly.
* ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'': The Japanese box art is designed to resemble a traditional Paulownia wood box, which in Japan is typically used to package high-quality alcohol and silverware. The idea came from Creator/ShigesatoItoi, who felt that it would convey the game's "richness."
* The front cover of ''VideoGame/FinalDoom'' is modeled after an ammunition cartridge for the [[{{BFG}} M242 Bushmaster autocannon]], albeit upside down compared to the design of its inspiration.
* The retail release of the first ''VideoGame/{{Postal}}'' game was modeled after an actual mail package, albeit shot to pieces.
* ''Rezerwowe Psy'' - a [[VulgarHumor vulgar]] turn based tactics game from Poland - was firstly packaged in [[https://www.mobygames.com/game/42767/rezerwowe-psy/cover/group-198713/cover-530541/ a literal wooden box]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Animation]]
* ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'' has done this a few times with CD/DVD releases:
** ''Strong Bad Sings and Other Type Hits'' is printed on a CD that looks like a CD-R from Videlectrix, a company usually known for {{Fictional Video Game}}s (and they take credit for non-fictional ''Homestar'' games too.)
** ''Everything Else, Volume 3'' is packaged like an Creator/{{Activision}} Platform/Atari2600 game, complete with {{Retraux}} menus and screenshots depicting the included cartoons as Atari 2600 games.
** The LimitedSpecialCollectorsUltimateEdition of ''VideoGame/StrongBadsCoolGameForAttractivePeople'' has a reversible cover reminiscent of Atari's own 2600 games, and a DVD that looks like another Videlectrix CD-R, this time one for the game's source code.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Webcomics]]
* The ''Webcomic/DinosaurComics'' book ''Your Entire Family Is Made of Meat'' is meant to look like a package of fresh steaks, with the book title written on the fake price sticker.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Video]]
* ''[[WebVideo/ClassicGameRoom The Best of Classic Game Room]]'' was originally intended to be released on Platform/LaserDisc, but series creator/host Mark Bussler could not find a way to make it happen, so as a compromise he released the series as a 4-disc "Laser Hyper Vision Blu-Ray Album Set", including a Blu-Ray of the compilation, a DVD version split into two discs, and a DVD copy of the series' "Making Of" documentary ''The Rise and Fall of Classic Game Room'', all packaged in a [=LaserDisc=]-size sleeve.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Creator/AdultSwim loves this trope.
** The DVD case of ''WesternAnimation/TitanMaximum'' is based on a comic book cover, including top left corner inset. It seems specifically inspired by 1980s Marvel toy/TV cartoon tie-in comics.
** The second ''WesternAnimation/Sealab2021'' DVD's case is styled after a comic cover, in this case one in particular, ''Uncanny X-Men #100''.
** ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBros'' third season DVD is presented like an Platform/Atari2600 game box. This extends to the DVD menus, which feature Atari graphics.
** The ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken'' Creator/DCComics special DVD has a cover in the style of a 1960s DC comic, complete with the checkered bar on top.
** The DVD cases for ''WesternAnimation/HarveyBirdmanAttorneyAtLaw'' are all made to look like legal texts.
** ''[[WesternAnimation/AquaTeenHungerForce Aqua Unit Patrol Squad 1]]'' doesn't do the "credits at the bottom" thing, but its DVD cover is non-specifically a movie poster.
** It's only natural that ''WesternAnimation/{{Minoriteam}}'', with its comic-inspired art style, would get a comic-style DVD case (at least in Australia), complete with a parody of MediaNotes/TheComicsCode approval stamp.
[[/folder]]
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