Now, Obama has released to new logos for other government initiatives the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act  and DOT’s TIGER plan :

I am actually not a huge fan of the TIGER one (U.S. Department of Transportation’s TIGER (Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery)  but, Obama understands that design is essential to positioning an idea successfully  in consumers minds or in this case, the minds of the American populous.

The logos were designed by Mode Project

Normally, I am pretty chill about magazines when reporting on subjects they do not understand. But, I feel like I need to comment on this article by Forbes, because

a) Forbes is a respected (and well branded) magazine.

b) They seem to have missed the point, since they take advantage of such creative services themselves!

I first saw this on David Airey’s  blog, a fantastic logo designer in his own right.  I am reiterating a lot of what he posted and most of the design community agrees with.

Essentially, this is not a new problem. Speculative work has been an issue in the design industry for sometime. see the NO!SPEC movement.

Forbes has posted a poorly researched and unbalanced look at the subject.  Are we supposed to be okay, with people telling us that design and development is easy and that anyone can do it? As many have said similarly, having Microsoft Word does not make you a writer anymore than having Photoshop makes you a designer. The design business is an industry that requires expertise and skill to excel in, and it is highly valuable. Why is it ridiculous to ask a fair price for it?

Look at Forbes themselves, I guarantee that did not get their brand, commercials, and website for a couple hundred dollars or before they signed a contract and retainer. It’s almost a double standard.

This article states that

“Now if you live in India or Peoria you can buy a computer and sophisticated software for a little bit of money and compete with big agencies–and they don’t like that.”

That’s amazing, I would love to know how you can get sophisticated design software for “a little bit of money”.

We are not a “big agency”, but I can tell you that I don’t like it either. CrowdSpring is based on the concept of essentially hundreds of designers working and 1 getting paid.  I apologize, agencies like us are definitley at a disadvantage because we pay our designers for their work.

I am mostly reiterating posts made by the design community but I think it is important that people realize that this is not an acceptable way to do business.

Here is a great post on the Logo Factory’s blog

Allow me to start with the main title. The text is a slight variant on Alternate Gothic/ Futura Condensed with the subtitle in a Caslon or Garamond. At first glance, the texture on the main title is a bit sloppy and uncontrolled; it does not really convey what it is supposed to be.  I also, feel like the abrasive red lens flare was shoe-horned into the bowl of the “O” in “Lost”, it creates an uncomfortable tangent and the overall inner padding is cluttered; which makes it harder to read. I can see the thought behind it, but It seems like the designer had the idea, but did not dedicate the craft and time needed to execute it in a solid manner. The subtitle feels thrown in; there seems to be no consideration for the spacing or alignment, and the serif all caps seems like a nonsensical choice, given the subtitle’s content and the game’s theme.

Next, we can see the cliche A(“V”) as I like to call it. This is generally a fallback for less experienced designers; essentially an easy way to imply futuristic themes or content, I believe Capcom’s design team/or designer are above this sort of convention. Many great logos and distinct marks are great because the convey abstract or themes with little associative imagery with quirkiness, distinction and originality. Even though the red line completes the bridge of the “A”, it does not read properly and feels more like an accident than a design decision. Based on where the lens flare line hits on the ascenders of the other letters, it leads me to believe that every letter was inconvenienced in terms of layout and tangent for the sake of the “A”.

I believe, the only thing that is somewhat successful is the planet shape itself. However, I think the designer simply needed to but more time into creating the contour of the planet, because when you look at it, it feels like a blue half moon, not an eclipsed frozen planet. Plus, the tangent with the planet to the “S” seems more like a mistake than an intentional call.

To me, It just feels somewhat bland and uninteresting in comparison to some other rather well done and distinct logos by Capcom.  In my mind, Capcom has always created
some of the most memorable and appealing marks for game franchises and releases. Look below, and many of you will recognize and remember these games without even actually reading the logo.

Capcom has never had to rely on using crazy or busy typefaces; many of their logos
use classic typefaces that we all love. So, it disappointed me that Lost Planet’s logo was so uninteresting and forgettable…

True to their reputation, Capcom has restored much of my confidence in their logo designers. Behold, Lost Planet 2 comes with a new logo, not a huge deviation from the previous.
Its actually quite  subtle. But, subtle makes all the difference, I believe this new logo falls right alongside the rest of their distinct and memorable games (the game looks excellent as well.)

Lost Planet 2 New Logo!

Gorgeous.
Notice, in the type the designer has removed that goofy and cliche A(“V”) shape and replaced it with an aligned, properly kerned type setting. The alignment is controlled and intentional. Notice, the top descender on the “2″ aligns with the top of the “T” and the bottom of the “2″ draws a comfortable parallel with the thin lens flare line.

The new metallic texture is smooth , more delicate and controlled. What do I mean by controlled?
Well, notice how it has subtle outlines, implication of shadow, and the reflection and light makes sense. It creates a nice dimensionality that was not present in the previous logo.
This also allows the type to have solid contrast, making extremely readable and effective.

The planet silhouette shape is much more elegant, it uses the orange color to imply heat and the planet shape without using a generic looking clunky blue beveled edge. It’s great, it reads immediately as a planet, not a moon or a crecent shape.

Lastly, the lens flare is a subtle alignment through the middle, it creates a slight symmetry, it doesn’t smash you in the face with a hard circle forced into the O’s bowl or a hard red line that throws off the contrast. Instead, the lens flare line is thin and unobtrusive, and is aligned beautifully to the bridges throughout the title text, not just to the “A”.

Overall, the entire logo is much more subtle, elegant and appealing. However, I think the change in type and alignment considerations did most of the heavy lifting here.

Nice Capcom, very nice.