Play Magazine (US)

[Uli]

i always found this a nice and interesting read. like Edge, the Play magazine features consoles and PC games and also some decent anime and tech stuff coverage.

a 1 year foreign subscription is $49.95, which i think is good value for money (my Edge costs me 3 times that much!).

someone already got a Play subscription and/or would like to share some impressions on the magazine quality!?

[Gareth C]

I used to pick it up from my local imprt shop (Raven Games) but gave up after a while. I guess it was OK but the stuff being covered was always old (not helped i'm sure by the fact it was shipped to the UK), on top of that I found the writing a bit hit and miss.

Having said all that, maybe I should give it another go.

[Jusatsushi]

Covers look nice, and the price is right, but gTM, Edge and the intramanet are enough for me...

[son_of_bael]

I always buy a copy when I'm in the US, and have been tempted by a subscription (which is less than an Edge subscription). Its pretty well written, and I like the anime section (as someone who only has a passing interest rather than an obsession with it).

[Uli]

Its pretty well written, and I like the anime section (as someone who only has a passing interest rather than an obsession with it).

think so too. the anime section focuses on the best tv-series and movies and gives a good idea about what's worth purchasing or watching. it's a good addition for me as i like animated movies, especially from japan.

the game reviews often offer a surprisingly different view on the most hyped games and are usually well written.

[gizmo1990]

Well I'll confess I've never read the mag but I find it hard to believe the words 'good' and 'US mag' go together!

Again admitably I haven't read a US games mag for a good few years but each time I have, over the last 15 years, its been a matter of BIG photos, poor layout, awful writing, hype, awful opinions, more hype and lots and lots of ads...

Just my opinion of course and if I see the mag I'll give it a whirl.

I firmly believe however, whatever you think of the current games mag market, that the UK has by far the biggest choice (good and crap) available anywhere, even *maybe* Japan.

[gamerade]

This mag is by the same guys that used to do GameFan ?? The best console mag I ever read.
I dont like PLAY as much, after getting the 1st half dozen from Raven Games I stopped getting it mainly 'cos the post wouly screw it up really bad, due to poor packaging by said company and as a self-confessed hoarder it pi$$ed me off. But I wasn't impressed
it suffered from Edgeitis -- too many big piccies and not enough text/info on the games themselves, taking about 10mins to read. It also seemed to spread itself too thin covering too many niche subjects (manga vids/music/toys etc) rather than concentrating on its main audience GAME fans, but that was probably just me.