PSM Magazine - grrrr

[cutmymilk]

Just to extend the debate, what gaming mags do you guys read?

The UK mags I read regularly are PSW, Gamesmaster, Cube when it was about and Play (same as Cube).
I'll probably get hung, drawn and quartered for admitting reading GM when its target audience is about 10 years younger than me but it's a mix of always having read it since I was a kid and there's some decent coverage.

PSW is decent too but they have to do away with that free DVD - it's got to the point where all their vids are trailers off Gamespot or the like and **** quality aswell. Plus friggin jewel cases. I swear, I have a stack of about 50 DVD boxes taking up valuable space from all these mags and their DVDs!

I did get Famitsy every week for a while but ?10 after postage each week isn't worth it. I stopped my Famitsu Wave sub recently too but they're both great quality overall IMO.

I've tried Edge and to be honest found it a bit, not pretentious so much as boring

The other day I picked up a big stack of coverdiscs from music magazines and just dumped them in the bin. I never listen to them and they were bugging me. May do the same with the coverdiscs for games mags. Demos etc (Ive bought the games of teh good demos!)

[Leon Retro]

What about those PS mags stuffed full of ' Dodgy 3rd rate models ' ???

My Brother was given a stash of these a few months back, and I was shocked to see a mixture of: Essex Girls, Crack Whores and Prostitute looking women filling the pages. It really was scary


Most magazine people are trying to make an impression on their readers. The guys that write these mags aimed at the 12-18 age range are just trying to be ' in with da yoof ' by laughing at 2D and original style games. They think the readers want endless drivel about Need For Speed and Grand Theft Auto, so that's what they focus on.

At the end of the day all magazines have a mission-plan, and a market they are trying to appeal to. The only magazines I buy now are Edge and Retro Gamer. Both magazines have their weak-points, but at least I enjoy them!

[muse hunter]

the simple fact is that the people who write for these mags aren't proper gamers, they are the people who go to GAME to pick up a copy of FIFA street. If you can't kill, and blow things up in a dark, poorly photo rendered environment then they don't want to know.

The days of real passionate gamers writing games magazines is over, welcome the new cool kidz on the block

[Concept]

I just wish there was a magazine version of NTSC-uk. The answer is to of course go with fanzines, because at least then it's gamers speaking to gamers. From a personal perspective, I just feel 99.9% of the magazines out there aren't in touch with their readership... you could argue that the likes of OPSM2 are directly giving what many of their readers want, but that isn't the same thing as being involved with your audience.

There's an arrogance and sense of superiority that comes with sections of gaming journalism which I find a complete turn off. You could say it's essentially the same for elitist, snobby and exclusively-minded gamers though.

The problem I have is the way in which the press sometimes looks down on its readership.

That's why the forums on here work so well - everyone's in the same boat. Doesn't matter who you work for or what you're doing with yourself, the impressions are all on equal footing in the likes of first-play and general gaming.

[Wools]

I just wish there was a magazine version of NTSC-uk. The on its readership.

What about EDGE, GamesTM and Retro Gamer?

[muse hunter]

What about EDGE, GamesTM and Retro Gamer?

edge has been poor for ages, the collector series i found was the last hurrah for them, Gamestm is poor, it is aimed at the mainstream though. Retro gamer still thinks that the 8 bit computers are great and almost ignores everything from the japanesse home consoles, so is **** by default

[Darwock]

Retro gamer still thinks that the 8 bit computers are great and almost ignores everything from the japanesse home consoles, so is **** by default

Look who's talking!

[Concept]

I respect them for what they're doing but they're not for me. I think Edge still looks down on the majority of its readership, GamesTM is certainly more in tune with this place but last time I read it was a mess in terms of design, and Retro Gamer I haven't read enough issues of to properly assess.

Like I said in an ideal world, you'd have a place like this. Simple in design, to the point, clear, concise and writing to gamers by gamers. I'm not naive and dismissive enough to say that a large portion of game journalists aren't gamers at heart themselves. Of course they are. There does often seem to be a difference though between the audience and the people who write for them.

Just pop over to World of Stuart for example - and it's awful... completely ends up fulfilling all the preconceptions you can have over the snideness and elitism of certain journalism.

The bane of gaming has always been elitism and that "I know better/ I am better than you attitude". More than other media forms, it's something which really is an affliction. Whether that's expressed in old-school journalism, straight up no-frills journalism, new games journalism, gamers attitudes to each other... on the whole I find gaming's main problem in terms of audience and writing is the way each part dismisses the next. I suppose the way I've stopped reading game magazines could be considered dismissive - the reason isn't that I think the few that are okay aren't worth the bother... I've just come to rely more on in-depth discussion on games with people I know, as opposed to those I don't.

Now, the reason I prefer a forum such as this towards the traditional magazine format is simple - there's obviously more communication, interaction and immediacy. A completely different form, and obviously the presentation, research and depth of the likes of Edge and GamesTM can't be reached, but there's a sense (for me at least) that there's less barriers in the way.

For the record, out of those five publications worth taking note of, I'd include Edge and GamesTM. If you feel part of their audience then they're certainly worth reading.

[Wools]

edge has been poor for ages, the collector series i found was the last hurrah for them, Gamestm is poor, it is aimed at the mainstream though. Retro gamer still thinks that the 8 bit computers are great and almost ignores everything from the japanesse home consoles, so is **** by default

For me EDGE are the only source I trust with their reviews and prefer their recent editioral change. GamesTM is less "prestigious" than EDGE but I like their features and retro section. Retro gamer is simply sublime and is one of the only magazines I look forward to buying. Their recent issue with Biffo, Tomb Raider series retrospective, Neo Geo pocket colour guide, look at RARE and brillant reviews was one of the best, most feature laden magazine issue's I've read in years

It's a shame some people don't appreciate them

[Leon Retro]

There are at least a couple of people at Edge that seem to try and make things interesting, but it's obvious there are some really dull pretentious types working on it too, who need to be shown the door asap!

GamesTM is soooo dull, I often have a look at it just before bed.

Retro Gamers is a nice friendly magazine, that at least has some character and warmth. The magazine is far from my dream retro-mag, but the people working on it try hard and deliver quite a lot of enjoyable features etc...

I could easily give-up buying mags though, but then eating my lunch at my computer is a bit messy, and reading a magazine more relaxing!

[SuperDanX]

They all need a radicial rethink imo. All of them. There all following the tried and tested gaming mag blueprint and are afraid to try anything out of the ordinary and mediocre, hence the massive fall in sales which most people,i belive, wrongly attribuite to the rise of the internet. Mags used to be written and read by enthusiasts and those days have gone and look unlikly to return. Though having said that, they could return if only anyone had the balls but at the bottom line is profit and while they can keep churning out this **** and continue to make one, mags are doomed to a slow, lingering death.

[Johnny]

What about those PS mags stuffed full of ' Dodgy 3rd rate models ' ???

My Brother was given a stash of these a few months back, and I was shocked to see a mixture of: Essex Girls, Crack Whores and Prostitute looking women filling the pages. It really was scary

I know. I fear reading them on the bus or at work incase anyone thinks I'm (more of) a perv or something.

On a semi-related note (i.e. porn ads and gaming mags), anyone remember the name of that Playstation (don't think it made it into the PS2 era) magazine that regularly featured semi-nude models within it's pages?
I think it was Playstation Max but I'm not sure. IIRC there was a whole load of controversy over it and it ended - funny story but about a week after one particularly saucy issue came out my dad innocently enough asked me if I read the mag in question to which I responded no of course 8) (hey, I was about 14. That was the closest I got to porn before Channel 5 and then the Internet!). Apparently he heard some radio phone in with outraged parents etc

[Wools]

PlayStation plus

[knight_beat]

>The problem is that people who write for mainstream gaming magazines just dont have >the same kinda love for videogames that you, i, or the people who used to write for the >16bit mags.

I disagree. There have always been writers who are in it for the money. However, there is less incentive to write good reviews and features nowadays. Most magazine content can be found on the Internet, with the exception of exclusive (costly) interviews or behind-the-scenes footage. Game magazines have changed in response to the demands of the reader. Why wait for a game review when it has been released and reviewed by some guy on NTSC-UK? It is also difficult to review a game without revealing major plot points. I imagine many people would be shocked to discover a character dies halfway through the game. Instead, magazines emphasise game previews. The problem is, the staff only have a shaky video, screenshots and a press release. As a preview, they do not wish to endanger their chances of receiving a review copy, so they regurgitate the promo blurb.

I often buy a magazine for hardware I do not own, just to enjoy the 'ambiance'. A few magazines are getting it right. Imagine's 360 magazine is well written (ignore UK Resistance's review of the first issue, its improved alot); Future's Official Nintendo magazine has got off to a good start; and there are always the old favourites (GamesTM, EDGE, Retro Gamer). PURE and Go>Play look interesting. However, I cannot think of any comparable PS2/3 mags that I would buy every month.

I seem to have strayed onto the subject of my requirements for a magazine. I would like to outline a wish list for any new games title

1) A picture may say a thousand words, but it does not replace it. Seek a balance between screenshots and text.
2) Features - cover a different topic every issue and mention it on the cover. We've read dozens of game previews & reviews. Give us something unique that will set you apart from the crowd.
3) Allow multiple reviewers to look at a game and identify them by name. Zzap! 64 and Mean Machines are fondly remembered because we understood and identified with the interests of a certain reviewer.
4) Give reviews to a person who enjoys games of the genre.
5) Treat each game as an adventure. Examine the unique qualities and identify how the reader can expect to spend their time in the game. Don't be afraid to give away minor plot points if it helps to explain why the game is so good.
6) Ignore the technical accomplishments of a game. Is it fun? Will it appeal to people who have earlier games in the series?

[Big Seany]

Just to add more fuel to my burning rage, had a quick look this morning whilst feeding the baby, and noticed that they gave Driver 3, one of the most universally acknowledged turkeys in modern games history, 90%. Which, along with Total Overdose, which scored the same, ranks both games above Devil May Cry 3 in the opinion of the esteemed journal.

I shouldn't have bought it, I should have known it would make me cross. At the end of the day, who is the biggest **** of all? Me - that's who - for buying it.