Gifts for gamers, made out of their own game
Gifts for gamers nearly all fail the same way. The shops sell objects that refer to a game — a logo, a character somebody else drew, a slogan — and the person receiving it already owns the game. What they do not own is anything made from their own hours in it.
Walk into any shop aimed at this and you will find the same three shelves: branded mugs, branded shirts, and a light shaped like a controller. All of it points at a game. None of it points at the person playing it, and that is the whole problem with the category.
What they already have that nobody sells
Anyone who has played something seriously has made things inside it, and kept some of them.
- Character art. A commissioned portrait, a piece they drew themselves, or the art they use as an avatar everywhere. It is usually sitting in a folder at screen resolution and has never existed as an object.
- A screenshot they kept. Not a random one — the one they took the night something went right, which they have shown people since.
- A figure they painted. If the game has models, the one they finished and were pleased with is the obvious candidate, and it photographs better than they expect.
Any of those three is a gift nobody can duplicate, because the source file only exists on their machine.
Gifts for gamers, sorted by where it will end up
Decide the destination before the object, because that is what determines whether it gets used.
The poster page lists every size, and the mug has its print area, which matters more than you would think.
The resolution problem, and how to dodge it
This is where gamer gifts go wrong technically. A screenshot is captured at screen resolution, and a screen is not a wall: 1920 pixels across is fine at A4 and thin by A2. Character art commissioned for an avatar is often worse, because it was delivered at the size a forum needed.
Two ways round it. Ask them, casually, whether they still have the original file from whoever drew it — artists usually deliver something much larger than the version that ends up online. Or choose a size the file can actually carry: the paper sizes pages give the pixel count each size wants at 300 and 150 dpi, and the upload step here withdraws any size your file cannot hold, so you cannot accidentally order something that prints soft.
Nerd gifts and geek gifts: the same trap, one level up
The wider categories have the identical failure. Something that signals an interest is weaker than something produced by the interest. A shirt with a reference on it says "I like this". A print of a thing they made inside it says "I did this", which is a considerably better thing to have on your wall.
It is also the reason this approach survives the recipient's taste changing. Branded merchandise ages with the game; a picture of something they made stays theirs after they have stopped playing.
Ask for the file without giving it away
You need the image at its original size, and if somebody else drew it you need to be sure they are happy for it to be printed. Neither conversation spoils a surprise: asking to see the art again is an ordinary thing to do, and it tells them nothing about what you are planning.
What you should not do is take it off a profile and hope. A commissioned piece belongs to an arrangement between them and an artist, and printing it is a use that arrangement may not have covered.
If they play at a table rather than on a screen
Everything above applies, with one addition: a photograph of a painted figure needs taking properly or it will not print well. The photography guide covers the three things that go wrong — light behind the camera, a phone that cannot focus that close, and a cutting mat in shot — and all three are fixable in ten minutes.
Compare the available sizes and prices before ordering. Free UK delivery is included in every price.
Print something from their own game
Compare miniature art mugs and art prints. Our tabletop gift guide helps match a single character or army scene to the available print area.
Good to know
What do you buy a gamer who already owns everything?
Something made from their own play rather than about the game: their character art, a screenshot they kept, or a figure they painted. No shop stocks it, because the file is on their machine.
Will a screenshot print well?
At A4 usually, at A2 often not. A screen capture is around 1920 pixels wide, which thins out at larger sizes. The upload check withdraws any size your file cannot carry.
Do I need permission for commissioned character art?
Check. The arrangement between the player and the artist who drew it may not cover printing, and asking to see the original file is not a suspicious question.
