The death of EGM and maiming of 1UP

[kingkilburn]

Ziff Davis will sell its videogame media division to Hearst Corporation, which will shutter longtime print publication Electronic Gaming Monthly, numerous sources reported Tuesday.

A story about the sale and closing of EGM went up on PaidContent today, but was taken down. But What They Play's John Davison -- a former EIC of the magazine -- salvaged the text and reprinted it.

GameSetWatch's Kevin Gifford -- former 1up editor -- added the detail that the current issue of EGM on stands (pictured) will be the very last, and that the February issue, which is completed, will be distributed digitally.

Davison finished his blog post by saying that official information should be coming tomorrow. (Update: It's all official now; check below.) Considering the well-placed nature of the various sources, things are not looking too good for EGM. This is a 20-year-old magazine that occupied a very special place in many gamers' hearts -- I can still remember buying my first issue, with spy photos of a prototype version of Super Mario World on the cover, when I was 10 -- and it's sad to think it might not even get a last hurrah of a final issue on shelves.

Update: The acquisition, if not the future of EGM, is now official.

Update 2: Gamasutra has a copy of the email sent out to 1up employees, and it confirms that the January issue of EGM is the magazine's last. Sad days.

Update 3: Sadder than I expected. Looks like the layoffs came down today, and the 1up Show videos are no more. Seems as if the GameVideos team is gone.

From the Wired blog network.

What do you guys think of this? I myself have had a subscription for nearly a decade. I would have liked for them to at least have given the staff a final edition.

It seems like the paper magazine is quickly dieing as of late.

[ryguy]

Newspapers, magazines, they're all going away. The Internet is, indeed, serious business. I used to read the paper at breakfast, but now I don't see the point. I already see whats going on in the world on my Yahoo homepage, as it's happening. Video game news is the same- just pop on over to IGN and see what the news of the day is- no waiting for a magazine.

[kingkilburn]

So why not switch to digital distribution?

[ALTRNTV]

Yup, everything is gong digital and anything paper related will be obsolete. You remember those things that used to come to our front door? Newspapers or something...

[slider2828]

Yah well that is how it is.... things are changing.... look at how huge IGN is now... crazy

[exitspeed]

DAMN NO! That sucks. I have EGM's going all the way back to the early 90's. One of the earliest issues I recall is an issue when SFTII CAME OUT IN THE ARCADES. A lot of people on here weren't even born yet. Lol.

Very very sad.

[LeftNutOfGowd]

Newspapers, magazines, they're all going away. The Internet is, indeed, serious business.


This is true but I can't take the internet with me when I take a shit... So sad I will miss dropping a duc and not reading about the newest games coming out. Oh well I still have game informer lol

[VROOOM]

This is true but I can't take the internet with me when I take a shit... So sad I will miss dropping a duc and not reading about the newest games coming out. Oh well I still have game informer lol

those 9inch screen laptops everyone is making would be great for bathroom reading.

[aznpoopy]

wow. that really sucks. i hope 1up doesn't get changed too much. one of my favorite game review sites.

[LeftNutOfGowd]

those 9inch screen laptops everyone is making would be great for bathroom reading.

Hahaha this is true

[BustedS13]

it's really weird, because i far prefer the print copy of a lot of things.
EGM, though.... i get it, but only because it's free. the info is dated by the time it's in my hands.

[exitspeed]

i get it, but only because it's free. the info is dated by the time it's in my hands.

Ditto.

I sometimes miss the times before the internet. Sitting at the magazine rack at Walgreens for like 30 min reading all the latest news.

[SHIFT_*grind*]

DAMN NO! That sucks. I have EGM's going all the way back to the early 90's. One of the earliest issues I recall is an issue when SFTII CAME OUT IN THE ARCADES. A lot of people on here weren't even born yet. Lol.

I sometimes miss the times before the internet. Sitting at the magazine rack at Walgreens for like 30 min reading all the latest news.

Yeah man. I remember when they had all the coverage on the original Mortal Kombat, the motions for all the fatalities, etc, and I was so excited to just stand at the newsstand for an hour and read about how to get to fight Reptile.

There used to be an SFII Turbo machine at a 7-11 (yes, a 7-11) near my neighborhood. It was far enough that I wasn't allowed to ride my bike there. There was another 7-11 closer to my house. I asked my mom if I could ride my bike to 7-11, and she said yes. I didn't specify which one.... ;) So I rode to the one with the SFII machine with 8 quarters in my pocket and played for an hour, and then my mom's friend happened to drive by just as I was riding my bike away. I got in trouble, but it was totally worth it.


So yeah, this is really sad. Maybe more sad than when I heard Sega would stop making consoles.

[ryguy]

those 9inch screen laptops everyone is making would be great for bathroom reading.

Shit, my regular 14.1 inch laptop goes with me each and every time I go to drop a deuce. That's when I check my email.

[HyperTek]

i currently got one of those free subs...

man i remember back in the 90s they had a lil street fighter comic inside.. and the magazines where way thicker back then and had how tos.. now game magazines dont have those. Remeber gamepro ws teh shit too

[exitspeed]

Maybe more sad than when I heard Sega would stop making consoles.

I dunno...When Sega stopped making hardware a large part of my childhood died that day. While I spent a lot of time reading EGM, it was nothing compared to the wonderful years of memories I have with my Genesis, 32x, and Dreamcast. That was a sad sad time for gamers.

[HyperTek]

yeah i was mostly a nintendo fanboy, but i had a genesis for a while.. i miss sega consoles too, they where always the rivals back than for me.

Whenever i hear sonic 1 -2 and the sound of the rings and stages those bring memories for me =D

[SHIFT_*grind*]

I dunno...When Sega stopped making hardware a large part of my childhood died that day. While I spent a lot of time reading EGM, it was nothing compared to the wonderful years of memories I have with my Genesis, 32x, and Dreamcast. That was a sad sad time for gamers.

It's a tough call for me, I have such fond memories of both.

I was always a Sega kid; I had a Master System when I was ~5 (if the words 'Alex Kidd' don't ring a bell, then you're dead to me :p). Then a Genesis, then I sold my Genesis and all my games for a Saturn. I eventually got a Dreamcast but by then I had kind of moved on to the PC, so it didn't get much attention. I still have my Saturn though. I busted it out a couple weeks ago for the first time in ~8 years and played X-Men vs. Street Fighter, THAT was a weird feeling.

I wanted a Sega CD when those came out, never got one though.

On the other hand, every system I ever owned was accompanied by a subscription and an almost religious reading of EGM. So much informative than Gamepro, which seemed like a pamphlet in comparison.

[HyperTek]

i had a subscription to Tips & tricks, that was just like the cheating mag it was awesome lol..

[Om1kron]

the magazine was cool when I was a kid but with interactive content on the web and them being able to update coverage for a game with screenshots and demo videos it kind of makes the magazine lame...

They used to have these dope ass magazines that had a short lifespan called insider and it had demo discs of new games included. I still have the demo disc with the omikron game somewhere in my room from quantic dreams.

if you think that's bad gamespot and ign also were in the same boat, but ign expanded it's content to survive with the babes and electronics and all of that random crap on their now. But I hate that site, it takes forever to load and the navigation is horrible.

Gamespot is cool but their navigation is just as bad and there just aren't as many video games that can hold my interest, mainly due to that lack of promoting demo's and stuff like that. Since xbox and ps3 have their stores and updates and what not you can get the latest news fix and demo's from the consoles themselves.

pc games are lackluster these days and don't have a lot of new things coming to the table, with the economy as is and games getting shut down halfway through development or pirated all to shit the industry is slowly dying away. And people want to know why EIDOS keeps pumping out tomb raider games.

brand recognition, it's a cash cow... Now that EA has killed the competition in football games with the madden franchise madden just gets more of the same, still looks like a bunch of fleshdolls in pads running around while re-innovating how I do a kick off or punt.

videogames just plain are disappointing. They need to make e3 open to the public with some age discresion to help build hype for their games rather than taking the time to sell their game engine designs.

I used to attend E3 all the time, once the rules got all strict and it became media only, a lot of manufactuers and smaller companies didn't get that foot in the door they needed with that gorilla media exposure and thus have disappeared without a care.

They seriously need to get their shit together (the industry in whole) before they end up being the next arcade industry and people who love videogames and handle them for a living and writing about them are soon looking for an app at the nearest burger king because their editorial skills are no longer warranted or have a place in this business market.

[atom]

I haven't subscribed to EGM in over a decade but I'm kinda bummed. My brother and I had two subscriptions when we were growing up, Nintendo power and EGM. I think I still might have the issue with Sheng Long somewhere at my parents place.

All magazines that are remotely tech related are going to die out except the specialty mags like Make.

[SHIFT_*grind*]

arcade industry

God, don't remind me. There are four arcades I can think of that were, like, established parts of my childhood; they've all been turned into fast food places in the last 5 years.

:(

[Om1kron]

there is a scandia off jurupa by me and there is still a family fun center which has been converted to "boomers" in montclair but the games suck so hard it's not even funny and it always has some ghetto ass cholo's camped out there. Cant even take your girl somewhere to play minature golf or something for fun anymore.

[Gnnr]

They also stopped printing PC Magazine. Just after getting my second issue from my free subscription too! lol

[HalveBlue]

Shit, I remember I used to walk across to the Del Amo Fashion Center when my family first moved to SoCal.

Everyday, I'd hit up either the arcade on the bottom floor near the end of the mall or go play on the display consoles (Sega, Nintendo, 3DO, and Neo Geo) at "The Good Guys" next door.

These days, arcades are depressing to go to.

[Future240]

DAMN NO! That sucks. I have EGM's going all the way back to the early 90's. One of the earliest issues I recall is an issue when SFTII CAME OUT IN THE ARCADES. A lot of people on here weren't even born yet. Lol.

Very very sad.

That sucks I've been a subscriber for 6 years and I recently re-subscribed, which makes me wonder what happens to my money.....

[kingkilburn]

E3 is supposed to be going back to the BIG BIG BIG format this year. It will have public days as well.

I feel like in the past few years all the cool shit from my childhood is falling away. Not do to lack of popularity but to big business screwing it up.

I hope EA gets broken up in the future. They are a huge stagnating force in the industry. As soon as 2K sports put out a better game for cheaper they IMHO cheated to make more money. Instead of making a better game they just bought the soul rights to the NFL. That is just one example of what is wrong with that company.

[origin_s135]

"so if i pay for this, will i get the "E-edition also?"
(how to piss of a telemarketer on youtube) LOL

[HyperTek]

They also stopped printing PC Magazine. Just after getting my second issue from my free subscription too! lol

wahhh ? i jus got my jan 09 issue... guess i didnt read it somewhere that it was the last issue... =( i found this issue nice too with the vista tweaks


I think the internet kills everything as it is now a major contender for entertainment... people buy their movies, music, everything on the net... remember all those mom and pops video rental stores.. well most of em get killed out by blockbuster etc..

I used to work cs at the local newspaper... subscription rate dropped to shit in the last few years, they had to lay off tons of people.. and raise the subscription prices, gas prices went up so they had to compensate the drivers, etc etc

[ryguy]

and the magazines where way thicker back then and had how tos.. now game magazines dont have those.

Has anybody here gotten or seen the January issue of EGM? It's like 40 pages, more of a pamphlet than a magazine. Maybe it's better that they just put it down, because it sure has been fading away. I remember when I was like 13, EGM was as thick as a friggin encyclopedia. Maybe the thinness of the magazine had something to do with the fact that EA owns everything now, and there are fewer games out. That, and the fact that they can only cover GT5 and sony's other long overdue games before it gets repetitive.

[kingkilburn]

I liked the quality of the content though. It could have been bigger but I don't think the editorial quality could be improved much.

I thought it was huge when the Tanaka Bros comic left. Then Dan Shoe left to manage 1UP. Now the whole thing is gone.

[SHIFT_*grind*]

I remember when I was like 13, EGM was as thick as a friggin encyclopedia.

Seriously. I got one issue in the mail, thing was like 400 pages.

[Future240]

I liked the quality of the content though. It could have been bigger but I don't think the editorial quality could be improved much.

I thought it was huge when the Tanaka Bros comic left. Then Dan Shoe left to manage 1UP. Now the whole thing is gone.


Yeah when the tanaka bros left, that was a dissapointment, I guess it was a sign of things to come. This cancellation irritates me all over again since the 13th is usually when I would get my mag