Another gaming mag bites the dust, but....

[Kakizaki]

Sounds like Play is no more. I don't really buy too many gaming magazines anymore, but I did occasionally buy and read Play. One of the last U.S. game magazines I actually liked.

But, it sounds like Halverson is going to relaunch GameFan (which was my all time favorite gaming mag). I highly doubt it will be the same, but we will see. Will have to wait to see what the staff looks like. This announcement and the new EGM have me a little excited to be honest. I hope they find some success.


http://www.gamesabyss.com/news/1243-dave-halverson-re-launches-gamefan-magazine

[Andy]

I stopped reading EGM when they switched to letter rating reviews. Plus they just stopped having material to actually report on. I have no idea how print publications are going to stay relevant.

[Kakizaki]

It is tough going for sure. I just wish something like RetroGamer could be published in the U.S., but I have read quite a few decent explanations as to why something like that is difficult to sustain in the U.S.

Sad for an old timer like me. I personally prefer printed media. Don't get me wrong. I love the instant gratification that online news provides, but I would much rather read a feature in a print mag.

I also had high hopes for Hardcore Gamer, but the editors were the magazine's downfall.

[Sseklebeast]

Damn :( I liked Play as well so this saddens me. My subby for Play ends in April so I guess I am glad that I got about two years out of it.

This news about Gamefan excites me though!

[TheDoctor]

I liked Play too but did it started after GameFan was cancelled? I remember reading something that Play had some of the same people from GameFan.

[Kain Mare]

Wow. I had no idea Play was kicking the bucket! I've always been a big fan of the magazine, reading it in the store line and purchasing it to read later. It kinda makes me sad.

I'm not sure if I've ever come across GameFan. Maybe before my gaming time. But any game magazine to look, read and be interested in, coming back is good for me.

[Tivor]

http://www.gamesabyss.com/news/1243-dave-halverson-re-launches-gamefan-magazine

Videogame+movie split magazine format, huh............ I wonder how that will turn out.

I hope it turns out well. Like Kakizaki said, there is something about print media that online media just can't replicate.

Maybe I'm just old. :P

[Fuyukaze]

Never read play. Last gaming mags I followed were official dreamcast monthly and gamers republic. EGM was almost always a hated mag to me as it always felt biased twords certain systems. Now days, print mags just dont offer enough content to warrent the purchase price. I can buy 2-3 games for the price of some. I'd rather have new games to play then a mag that tells me the games I look forward to most have outdated graphics that look like last generation games. I dont need a comparison, just what's good and bad about the game itself. I also dont need full page spread shots with one to two paragraph write ups that read more like a press release off the games launch site.

[Vicious1915]

I can't say I routinely read Play but I always thought it was very well laid out. I actually have a keepsake copy of the December 2008 issue with the Persona 4 cover and feature.
It certainly was the prettiest magazine.

[Sseklebeast]

I'll definitely get into Gamefan again...It was one of my favorite mags back in the day and I still look at them from time to time. :)

[Kakizaki]

I liked Play too but did it started after GameFan was cancelled? I remember reading something that Play had some of the same people from GameFan.

Play was started by one of the founders of GameFan, Dave Halverson. Halverson started Gamer's Republic after leaving Gamefan. GR was a pretty decent mag, but it eventually folded. After that, Halverson started Play. There were a solid handful of ex-Gamefan staffers at both Play and Gamer's Republic.

[Delition]

It is tough going for sure. I just wish something like RetroGamer could be published in the U.S., but I have read quite a few decent explanations as to why something like that is difficult to sustain in the U.S.


I don't know if I've told you this already or not, but you should check a Barnes & Noble to see if there are any issues of RetroGamer there. I only have three issues of RG, but I picked up all three from my local Barnes & Noble...one of which had the disc with 40 different older titles on it. Much fun.

[Kakizaki]

^Thanks, but yeah, I am already quite aware of that. That is where I usually pick it up. I usually pick up 9-12 issues a year. It really depends on the articles. I probably have around 50 issues total.

I just wish such a mag could be published in the U.S. RetroGamer is great, but about half of each issue is dedicated to consoles / computers that were Euro release only.

[Soushi_Grapple]

I loved EGM, it was the only magazine that clicked with me and covered what I liked. I prefer online news as I rarely pick up magazines because my interests are limited. I have a few issues of OPM and PSM as well. I have the P4 issue of Play and that magazine that covered Muramasa Demon Blade (I think that was Play too).

[Kakizaki]

Maybe I am the only one around here that doesn't really look to magazines for news or reviews. I enjoy features - stuff about developers both old and new, older series and hardware, and gaming trends. I kind of make a separation between getting my current gaming news online and enjoying features much more in magazines.

I do kind of miss elaborate screen capture layouts in magazines. It seems like a lost art that has never really translated to the internet in the same way. Yes, I understand the functionality and accessibility that the internet provides changes the dynamics of layouts quite a bit, but I still feel there is a lack of creativity and soul to a degree.*

I guess I have trouble sitting in front of a monitor and reading anything more than a few paragraphs long.

*edit - I read this again, and it does seem pretty silly. I probably just should have said layouts in general. Big difference when you can look at a clear image of a screen capture online today as opposed to a small one in a magazine from years ago.

[Sanctine]

Play was the last decent gaming mag around. ...Not that I've bought an issue in years, but still. It's the only one I ever pick up to read nowadays.

[shidoshi]

Play was the last decent gaming mag around. ...Not that I've bought an issue in years, but still. It's the only one I ever pick up to read nowadays.

Didn't buy any copies of Play in years except the issue where I did the Persona 4 cover story is what I'm going to assume that you meant. *heh*

[Olethros]

I had a subscription and was rather confused as to why it stopped coming. Thought maybe I screwed up changing the address after we moved but this makes more sense now. I'll miss Play.


@Shidoshi: What are your plans now, or can't you divulge that yet/publicly?

[shidoshi]

@Shidoshi: What are your plans now, or can't you divulge that yet/publicly?

My plans are trying to figure out what my plans are. *laughs* No idea as of now. Game-wise, if nothing else, I'm looking to be part of a second podcast, one I'll be doing with various ex-GameFan and Play folks, and I'd like to revive the personal site I used to run so that I can occasionally write about the game stuff I'd like to write about.

[Kakizaki]

@Shidoshi: What are your plans now, or can't you divulge that yet/publicly?

My plans are trying to figure out what my plans are. *laughs* No idea as of now. Game-wise, if nothing else, I'm looking to be part of a second podcast, one I'll be doing with various ex-GameFan and Play folks, and I'd like to revive the personal site I used to run so that I can occasionally write about the game stuff I'd like to write about.

^That podcast sounds pretty interesting. Don't suppose I could ask which former GF staffers will be taking part?

[Olethros]

@Shidoshi: What are your plans now, or can't you divulge that yet/publicly?

My plans are trying to figure out what my plans are. *laughs* No idea as of now. Game-wise, if nothing else, I'm looking to be part of a second podcast, one I'll be doing with various ex-GameFan and Play folks, and I'd like to revive the personal site I used to run so that I can occasionally write about the game stuff I'd like to write about.

Well, I've always thought your work was excellent so I hope something will keep you in the games writing arena. Or at the least in the writing/journalism profession.

Keep us updated on that personal site if you happen to think about it. Thanks.

[Sanctine]

Didn't buy any copies of Play in years except the issue where I did the Persona 4 cover story is what I'm going to assume that you meant. *heh*

Uh, no. I didn't even know Play covered Persona 4.

Why would that have made any difference at all?

[shidoshi]

Why would that have made any difference at all?

...because my cover story on Persona 4 was awesome, thus every single person on the planet should have purchased that issue?

[Panzer.Panda]

So this is why Brady Fiechter is over at the new EGM.

I loved Gamefan back in the day, so I can't wait to see it back on newstands.

[Foobar]

Halverson tends to skew into that "games as art" mentality a little to strongly for my liking. Sometimes he'll champion a game that really deserves it and has been unfairly dogged by other outlets, but then he'll praise some crap like Herdy Gerdy after sticking up for PN03. But then, some of the other staff was a bit more consistent without sounding paid-off like so many reviewers today.

I guess that shows you how long its been since I read Play, but I will say they're one of the few to do a good in-depth feature and nice spreads of concept art. I'm sure a bit of that will make its way into GameFan's reboot.

[Kakizaki]

Halverson tends to skew into that "games as art" mentality a little to strongly for my liking. Sometimes he'll champion a game that really deserves it and has been unfairly dogged by other outlets, but then he'll praise some crap like Herdy Gerdy after sticking up for PN03. But then, some of the other staff was a bit more consistent without sounding paid-off like so many reviewers today.



I can agree with this for the most part, but I don't mind the "games as art mentality" that much. I appreciate his enthusiasm, but yeah, sometimes it seems a little misplaced.

[Sanctine]

...because my cover story on Persona 4 was awesome, thus every single person on the planet should have purchased that issue?

Oh, I see.

Sorry, musta been taking a trip back to my home planet when that got published.

[Neveryll]

Color me late to the party on this but I just wanted to throw my hat in on the liked Play magazine pile as well. I hadn't gotten an issue in a while and was surprised to see it kick the bucket. I always thought it brought an interesting view to some of its reviews even if I didnt agree with all of them. And I have to say I enjoyed many of the non-review based articles on gaming culture and the developers. Sad to see it gone. I'll have to see what else I can find to replace it. SIGH :(

[Panzer.Panda]

I'll have to see what else I can find to replace it. SIGH :(

Have you tried GamesTM or Edge?

[Kakizaki]

Supposedly the first issue of the new Gamefan is about ready to go. I am not sure what that means - like if it will be available soon.

Hope so.

[Kakizaki]

I didn't want to make a new thread for this, but anyway.....I just picked up the newest issue of RetroGamer available in the U.S. Gamespite Quarterly was listed in their current top five reads. I thought that was pretty cool. ;)

[dungeon_man]

I happened to be out of town this weekend and stopped at the nearest Barnes and Noble (180 miles from where I live) and picked up an issue of Retro Gamer partially due to this thread. Good stuff. This is the type of magazine I'd subscribe to if I could.