It seems like everyone is saying "print is dead" lately, especially when it comes to videogame magazines. Even though I write for a gaming Web site, I really enjoy reading gaming mags -- even the sh*tty ones. Does anyone remember Gamefan? That magazine was both terrible and awesome at the same time.
But print is not dead yet, and things are starting to look up... for the UK pubs, at least. Future Publishing's numbers say that they're actually reporting growth for their gaming rags.
Future has released the results of the ABC audit (whatever that is) of its print products, which showed growth in their nine gaming publications. Their Official Nintendo Magazine saw an increase of almost 28% over last year's sales numbers. The Official PlayStation Magazine and Xbox 360: The Official Magazine also saw increases of 12 and 2.2% respectively.
James Binns, publishing director of games, says that this growth may have something to do with their specialized focus. He says that "what people don't want is general interest stuff."
Binns on Web sites: "Web sites are so good at first access content. You've really got to play to the strengths of the media... If you want to know about a great game first, probably, the web's the best place to go... [but] our readers have always said in surveys that the main reason they buy us for is for reviews - reading a review in print is still quite nice and print has such a legacy of respect which is one of the reasons we keep coming back."
I wonder how our US magazines are doing. EGM is looking (and reading) pretty thin these days, while Game Informer gets better by the month. And Play? That's like an ugly girl under a lot of makeup. Pass.
What do you read? Is print dead? Wouldn't a Destructoid mag be the worst thing ever?
Contest:
5:31 PM on 08.14.2008
| 
I too wonder how Nintendo Power is doing, especially after Future US took it over. I miss the old haphazard design with more colors and such, as recently noted in one of the 20th anniversary retrospectives they've been doing.
In the pre-internet age, Gamefan was solid fuckin' gold. Today's mags are printed on really crappy paper 'cause they want you to go to the website and increase their hit count.
Game Informer is just a waste of my time since I dont even buy anything from Gamestop anymore except new games.
Wait, what?
Ugh, I think the only reason I love to write today is because of everything I ever read in GameNOW. It really makes me sad that G4 and the whole media shit storm is really the primary feed nowadays. I didn't have cable or internet until I left for college, so magazines were the only way for me to get ANY news on video games, except of course for the whole blame game that happened once in a while in the Free Press or the craptastic local news.
I hope that people realize that reading is a lot better than the shotgun blast of noise that is G4 and most internet sources.
Also, print mags give me news exclusives and some very well written features that I can't get on the internet sometimes by some of my favorite games writers.
I like magazines. I want them to stay. Fuck you internet (excluding Destructoid <3)!
I love EGM and the features and such that they have are enjoyable to read.
Plus, I don't like taking my laptop to the toilet with me.
Asus' Eee PC and wireless router = wonderfullness on the can. I swear, they should use that ad campaign.
http://eeepc.asus.com/global/
I buy PC Gamer Mag, because their internet site sucks shit, but the mag is still pretty decent.
If people stop needing to take dumps, then watch out print media.
The more the merrier when I'm pooping.
I miss Coconut Monkey.
EGM is good, but I don't care for reviews of Tonka Truck Madness for the DS. I wish they would focus on only the major titles core gamers care about. EGM's interviews can be hit or miss with their fanboy-enthusiast approach. I remember the E3 05 interview with Peter Moore was particularly frustrating. Here I thought I was going to hear Moore talk about the impending Xbox 360, but instead Shu decided that 15 of the 20 questions should be about the Wii, what Moore thought about the Wii, what Moore thought about the price of the Wii, the controller of the Wii, the market the Wii was aiming for, should people buy a 360 and a Wii...etc. Shu can sometimes be great, and other times he can be infinitely frustrating.
GameInformer is generally a very good read with some industry related articles throw in, and some good professional interviews. I would like it if the exclusive reveals on the cover would include more Japanese games though.
Play is better for learning about the niche games EGM and GI usually skip over. But their reviews are worthless. They score everything high, even the bad games.
I'm about to cancel my subscription to Hardcore Gamer Monthly. It is near worthless now. It's has gone quarterly but hasn't increased the size of each issue to compensate and many of the pages are quite bare of text or content. It used to specialize in niche titles from Atlus and NIS that were overlooked by the major magazines. However, since the reorganization the quality of the mag has plummeted. The last two issues have been almost entirely dedicated to the mainstream games Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Metal Gear Solid 4. Not bad games, but I can get info on those games from a thousand different sources on the web and much quicker than a magazine that comes out once every four months. I come to HCG for info on niche titles. Even worse, these issues both came out mere days before the featured titles released, which means every other magazine had already covered them and reviewed them months earlier. In fact, I think I'll go cancel this one right now.
Edge is worth the pricey subscription. Each issue is packed full of content. Highly recommend.
To the editors of these magazines:
1. Most casual gamers do not read gaming magazines. So focus on the games the core gamers care about.
2. Have more interviews with the big names in the industry. Notice I said BIG names. I don't care what the developer of Third Wire studios has to say. Even if they agree to an interview, I don't want to read it. I do want to hear from David Jaffe, Hideo Kojima, Will Wright, Cliff Blizenski, Ken Levine, Shigeru Miyamoto, Sam Houser, Ted Price...etc.
3. Have more long in-depth articles covering the industry written by experts. I enjoy articles comparing and contrasting Western versus Eastern sensibilities in gaming and whatnot.
4. Reviews should be more text and less pictures. I can get screen-shots elsewhere. But I can't get your thoughts elsewhere.
5. And lastly, the average age of gamers is rising but no one could tell from the front and back cover art on gaming magazines. I'd like to read your magazine on the airplane or in the doctor's office, but not if you've got some cartoonish, half-naked, big breasted woman or a repulsive, grotesque monster on either cover. I'm not 13 anymore. I'd like my magazines to exude taste, dignity, and maturity on both of their covers.
And secondly because OXM's really well done and comes with a free demo disk every month!
Amen brother! My choices while in my special place are EGM and OXM and occasionally Gamer Informer when I'm out of TP
I use to read Gamepro, EGM and Play, all 3 are terrible now with EGM being the worst, I love how they paint themselves so unique and the real gamers mag and "WE ASK THE TOUGH QUESTIONS" and all they do is come off as pretentious douchebags, loved how they said "We won't review MGS4, just roundtable it" and they did review it, especially after all the press they got, hypocrites.
I'm happy getting my news from D-toid and exclusive stuff from GI(I ignore the reviews).
Why pay for month's old gaming news, when you can get it free on the internet?
http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=8828983&publicUserId=4549175
"And ads. Yeah, ads. Trust me. When we had 13 ads a couple of issues ago, I was very concerned. But then the next issue had 33, which is good, because it's not the subscription fees that keep us in business. They help keep the ship afloat, don't get me wrong, and I loooovve our subscribers, but ads indicate the health of the issue. It takes a LOT in order for us to be able to convince the money guys to ad more pages to the book. In order to add more pages to the mag -- and you have to do it in increments, you can't just arbitrarily add 1 or 2 or 4, you have to do it in 8 or 15 page chunks -- you basically have to sell at least a third of that in ads. I don't wanna drone on about the logistics of it, but it takes a lot to move these kinds of mountains, and with ad dollars moving online, it's not the easiest thing to conjure up additional pages. Believe me, it's not an editorial decision. That said, the next issue of EGM, for the first time in a long time, got bumped up a notch. So it'll be a little thicker, hurray, but expect more ads too. One has to happen before the other, I'm just putting that out there."
@Kyousuke Nanbu
""We won't review MGS4, just roundtable it" and they did review it, especially after all the press they got, hypocrites."
They never said they were flat out refusing to review 'MGS4.' In reality, EGM was not comfortable reviewing the game under the constraints Konami had outlined for pre-launch reviews.
Game Informer, on the other hand, needs to go. They are biased, mal-informed, unfunny clods. I mean, they gave No More Heroes something like a 7.5 in part because they thought the games sexual and violent contest was too offensive.
What did they give GTA IV? That's right, a 10.
Yikes. That's either a pay off or just a blatant double at work. Probably both.
Nowadays, I love EDGE. I read Play only for the games covered there which aren't usually touched in other magazines, such as obscure Japanese games and platformers. I hate pretty much every editor that isn't Nick though, especially Dave-CG-GIRLS-GET-ME-OFF=Halverson. I hated EGM during the Hsu era, but I'm starting to get back into it with the Milky era.
I have a Nintendo Power and EGM Subscription, but apparently neither one knows how to get their mags into my mailbox. If Mad, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, and WWE Magazine can do it, why can't they?
you are an idiot. magazine publishing doesnt work that way. All your advice would never work in the real world. eat shit and...dont die...but i hope you get a paper cut and it stings really badly all day.
Now i read destructoid.
Excellent editorial work will always pay, be it online or offline. And I cannot read websites on my toilet. I'm not that kind of a nerd that has a toilet laptop.
Do you? :)
I remember the old days of reading his articles on Channel 4 teletext, right after I watched my recording of Cybernet from 3am while I getting ready for school.
My sub runs out next Spring, so if it doesn't get any better, I may just let it run out. Though, I did get a pretty cool poster book for renewing recently. But, they use to let you choose what you'd get for renewing, when Nintendo ran it. I got a Super Mario Sunshine shirt and a Twilight Princess guide with music CD through that deal.
What so special about it, is that while those reviews and previews everyone wants to read are good, the articles, interviews and features are the real meat of the mag. For those of you monkeys who don't give a damn who makes their games, I feel its you guys who lose out, because getting inside the head of your favourite games creators will answer a lot of your question. If you dig that, Edge is a great mag to read.
I'm from the U.K, and the best U.S mag I used to read was GameFan (it had its moments), but apart from that, most U.S mags don't cut the mustard for me. Its clear that the subscription model still used out there is what's always hurting them too.
So yeah, check Edge out, which is now designed as an international games mag and also Edge Online website. I'd be very surprised if you didn't like it.
I've been proudly subscribed to EGM since early 2002, they did recently hit a major slump, but they seem to be making a comeback (they're still not as good as they used to be though)
I was subscribed to OPM from fall of 2001 to their death
and I'm als currently subscribed to gameinformer, sure some of their reviews may be suspect, but their cover stories always kick ass (and are exclusive)