35 years ago this October, British publisher EMAP launched Mean Machines magazine, a console-focused spin-off of CVG, its leading multiformat monthly.

Spawned from the CVG 'Mean Machines' section created by Tony Takoushi in 1987, the magazine would become one of the most commercially successful of its era. It lasted 24 issues before the decision was made to split the magazine into Mean Machines Sega and Nintendo Magazine System. A few years later, Mean Machines PlayStation would be the final publication to use the name.

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Tue 28th Jan 2025

If you live in the UK, then chances are you're familiar with the high-street retailer WH Smith.

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Last year, we were gifted ON, a video game-focused tome from Hybrid Publications, penned by some of the biggest and brightest names in the game media business.

That fine publication is getting a second volume, with features on topics as varied as PlayStation, '90s horror titles, Pokémon, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, Zelda and music games.

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As we've noted before on this site, print media is having a moment right now—however, we're not talking about magazines on the newsstands here, but fan-made publications created by enthusiasts.

If you're a fan of grassroots media, then you might want to take a look at the second volume of Yokoi Kids. This fanzine is focused on Nintendo's million-selling monochrome portable, and spawned from a game-playing collective of the same name, established in 2017.

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Zzap!64 is considered to be one of the most iconic video game publications in British history, and launched the careers of people like Jaz Rignall, Gary Penn and Ciarán Brennan.

What you might not know is that the magazine spawned an Italian version—known simply as Zzap!—which ran for 73 issues from May 1986 to December 1992.

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Former Your Sinclair and Amiga Power staffer Jonathan Nash has passed away, we're sad to report.

Nash's work will be instantly familiar to readers of those magazines. Like so many publications of the late '80s and early '90s, the personality and humour of the writers really shone through, and Nash's brand of comedy has resonated with fans across the decades.

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Don't worry – you're not suffering from déjà vu. If you feel like you've read this before, it's because we're republishing some of our favourite features from the past year as part of our Best of 2024 celebrations. If this is new to you, then enjoy reading it for the first time! This piece was originally published on June 10th, 2024.

The lovely folks at UK outlet

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Update #1 : Well, there you have it! The Electronic Gaming Monthly Compendium has already managed to smash its initial Kickstarter goal of $35,000, raising over $130,000 in less than 24 hours. As of right now, it is currently on $215,995, with 27 days left to go before the end of the campaign.

What this means, for those who have backed it, is that the campaign has already managed to accomplish several of its stretch goals. Now, for instance, the book will be expanded in size to 9 inches x 12 inches, will come with an additional ribbon bookmark to keep your spot, and will contain a bunch of additional pages. These pages will include features on the 1000 greatest video games of all time and the most shameful games/ hardware to ever grace the pages of the magazine, as well as a Hsu & Chan comic, and expanded coverage of both licensed games and popular franchises (to be voted on by backers).

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We've been spoilt for choice when it comes to long-form video game discussion recently. We've got Lost in Cult's Lock-On and The Console Chronicles (the latter of which was a collaboration with this very site), as well as APWOT, a long-running periodical which takes deep dives into video game culture. Then there are the likes of Bitmap Books and ROM, both of which produce lavish coffee table tomes packed with information and artwork.

Adding yet another voice to this mix might seem like a daunting prospect, but when you look at the crack team assembled by Hybrid Publications for the debut volume of ON, then you realise that it's a venture that is almost assured of success.

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We've been fans of the "new age" video game fanzine Forgotten Worlds ever since its inception, and we're pleased to report that its fourth issue is shaping up to be very special indeed.

Currently on Kickstarter, Forgotten Worlds #4 "takes a deep dive into five classic magazines from the golden era of print" by speaking exclusively to some of the most famous names of '90s video game journalism, including Julian 'Jaz' Rignall (Mean Machines, CVG), Richard Leadbetter (CVG, Maximum), Wil Overton (Super Play) and Dan 'Shoe' Hsu (EGM).

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Generations, a new premium magazine from some of the talent behind and Switch Player, hits Kickstarter today, with the goal of celebrating every gaming generation from 1972 to today.

The magazine is the work of GameBound, which is a new magazine and premium print publisher that includes the involvement of Paul Murphy (Gamebook Color, Switch Player Magazine) and Andrew J. Dickinson (the former Editor-in-Chief of and current Editor-In-Chief of Debug Magazine). It is being designed in collaboration with DayOne and will feature illustrations from Sean O'Brien.

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Last week gave us the not-at-all-pleasant news that Game Informer – a magazine that has been running for 33 years – has been shuttered by its parent company, GameStop.

The news was broken with a rather lifeless statement on social media, which was followed up by a message from the magazine's freshly laid-off staff – which was then deleted, along with the Twitter account.

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Last week gave us the shocking news that Game Informer – one of the most popular video game magazines in the world – was being closed down by its parent company, GameStop.

The mag's 13 staff were immediately let go, and the next issue – which was apparently close to being complete, was canned. The closure was conformed on the official Game Informer Twitter account in a statement which curiously read like it was formulated in a GameStop boardroom.

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The GameStop-owned magazine Game Informer – which began life back in August 1991 as FuncoLand's in-house newsletter – has abruptly been closed down, signally the continued decline of print media.

"After 33 thrilling years of bringing you the latest news, reviews, and insights from the ever-evolving world of gaming, it is with a heavy heart that we announce the closure of Game Informer," says the statement issued by the publication.

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There is always time for another Legend of Zelda. And, for certain, any new Legend of Zelda always needs time to appreciate. Well, for the first time, genuinely coming soon, we’ll spend the whole time on a new adventure in the company of 'HRH' Zelda herself.

Princess Zelda’s starring role is momentous news, catching everyone by surprise. The game still has a lot to prove, even when this is Nintendo, but after scrutinising the trailer (along with 5.3 million other fans), I am now counting the days.

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Last week, we reported on the sad news that legendary games journalist Andy Dyer had passed away at the age of 55.

Dyer's career in video games began back in 1990 on Commodore Format, a position he switched to after working in insurance. "I still shudder when I look back and think what would have happened had I not," he told Commodore Format Archive in 2014.

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It is with a heavy heart that we bring you the news that '90s games journalism legend Andy Dyer has passed away.

Dyer will be famous to anyone in the UK who read video game magazines in the '90s; he began his career on Commodore Format as a staff writer before helping Steve Jarratt launch Total!, the UK's first magazine devoted to covering all of Nintendo's systems.

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Mean Machines is a magazine that is near and dear to many 40-something UK gamers, and evolved out of a section within the pages of Computer & Video Games which was focused solely on console gaming.

However, despite the amazing success the magazine would have, its publisher EMAP had to be convinced that the concept had commercial merit – hence the creation of a 'dummy' issue which could be shown to prospective advertisers to gauge interest.

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Everybody makes mistakes, and, when it comes to video game journalists, we're probably at the top of that list. But with the arrival of online publishing, it's become easier than ever for us writers to issue corrections whenever we do screw up, thanks to the ability to constantly update and alter our work.

Unfortunately, though, this wasn't really the case for our predecessors working in print back in the '90s, who often had to live with their mistakes — no matter how bad or embarrassing they could be.

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One of the History of Games 2024 conference talks, by Jaroslav Švelch, was on British game developer and journalist Mel Croucher. As Švelch describes it, he has become Croucher's biographer, interviewing him in his home and having access to his large archive of materials.

Croucher is perhaps best known for the games Pimania (1982), Groucho (1983), and Deus Ex Machina (1984) - the last one included an audio tape to be played alongside the game. In later years, Croucher moved into journalism and activism, writing for Crash magazine. Švelch's talk included archive photography, gameplay video, and detailed how Croucher was opposed to censorship but advocated self-regulation, was for nuclear disarmament, and, in many ways, was an outlier in the British games industry and press.

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It's been quite some time since the Sega Dreamcast had an 'official' monthly magazine – and with good reason; the console is no longer in active production, and Sega is now a third-party publisher with little need for its own magazine.

However, if you feel the need to scratch that particular itch, you might want to check out Dreamcast Extreme, an unofficial publication from Poland that is so slickly produced it could almost pass for the real deal.

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UK media outlet The Guardian has ranked the 15 best UK video game magazines of all time, and Future's long-running EDGE has come out on top.

Penned by acclaimed journalist and author Keith Stuart – who has actually written for several of the publications in the list – the feature ranks some of the most beloved and influential mags of the past few decades.

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Back in the early late '80s and early 1990s, the NES / Famicom dominated living rooms in North America and Japan, but the situation was a little different in the United Kingdom.

Home computers like the ZX Spectrum, C64, Amstrad CPC, Atari ST and Commodore Amiga had been the main gaming platforms for quite some time, with Japanese-made consoles being more of a niche proposition. However, that was all about to change with the arrival of the PC Engine, Sega Mega Drive, Nintendo Game Boy and Super Nintendo – machines that would drastically change the gaming landscape in the UK beyond all recognition.

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Incredibly, March marks the 20th anniversary of the UK's Retro Gamer magazine, one of the first mainstream publications to truly celebrate the incredible legacy of classic gaming.

Issue one arrived back in 2004 under the banner of Live Publishing, which sadly went bankrupt the following year. Thankfully, Imagine Publishing stepped in and took over the magazine, installing GamesTM retro editor Darran Jones in the editor's chair – a position he has now held for almost 19 years.

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Final Fantasy VIII had a tough act to follow. Final Fantasy VII had turned the series into a global megahit, making JRPGs mainstream all over the world in the process. Its sequel would need to be bigger, better and bolder – and while it remains a solid example of the genre, few would try to argue that it is truly superior to the game that went before it.

Even so, it has its fans – one of which is Video Game History Foundation library director Phil Salvador, who we've spoken with in the past.

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