Back When Video Game Mags Were Exciting! :-)

[KevInCal]

I remember back in the mid 90's when I was a teenager, I used to get so excited about getting the newest issue in the mail. This was before I had the internet, so all of my gaming news came from mags. I used to be so disappointed with the mailman if he didn't deliver the newest issue when I THOUGHT it was going to come on a certain day.. I used to say a prayer while I was walking to the mailbox.. LOL. And the excitement upon opening the mailbox and seeing a brand shiny new issue of whatever video game mag, was awesome! Even more awesome were the times when you had more than 1 new issue in there!

Then there's another thing I've always wondered if other people had a thing for... That new magazine smell! I could even differentiate the different types of smells to the different magazines! LOL. I guess that's weird, that I liked video game magazines so much that I would stick my face in them to smell them..haha..

Anyway, another thing about magazines in the mid 90's, they were so THICK! Mags in the 2000's are just pathetic compared to the behemoths from the 90's.

I just miss those day... :(

There used to be a lot more crazy rumors back then too. It was just an overall more exciting time to read about video games, imo.

[nickerous]

I always loved getting a new Nintendo Power in the mailbox. I also loved getting the newest EGM when they shipped in bags. Once they cut that out, I'd get some sub-par condition magazines. That always pissed me off. Getting a new magazine that looked 3 years old.

[KevInCal]

Ya that did suck when a mag arrived already beat to hell...

[Kitsune]

Those were the days. Yes, the 90's were a great time for consoles. The mags were fat because there was so much to choose from in the handheld and in the home fronts. Taking into account there were at least 15 consoles - add-ons notwithstanding - to choose from. Hindsight is 20/20, but with so many choices, many were destined to fail.

[E-Day]

They were mainly fat because everyone wanted to advertise in them. More ads gave the editors more pages for content. Sadly, those days are behind us.

I do my part when filling out game surveys by saying I saw and ad for a game or read about the game in a magazine as opposed to a web site.

[triverse]

That EGM your referring to is not the biggest they ever put out (up around issue 65 or 66 they were even bigger at about 350 pages or so).

[kbf_private_joker]

There are 2 reasons I hardly get excited about current video game magazines:

1. When the information arrives at your door, it is about 1 month old. All current gaming news and reviews can be found online. When I was 12, there was no internet so any information that was packed into the magazine was all I could get. Now that the information is everywhere, there is almost no reason to even bother subscribing. Plus, most of the magazines (those still around anyways) have websites that list all the reviews anyways.

2. Tastes and hobbies change as you age. When I was 12, I had nothing but time to burn all summer and even during the year. Now that I am 28 and have a job, the free time I do get is spent on other stuff. The truth is that sitting down and spending 40 hours beating a game isn't something I am interested in doing anymore. I have a tendency to install games and spend 2 hours, then get bored and rarely return to finish them. This is part of the reason I like games on the Iphone. They are instant gratification without the time commitment.

[triverse]

Wasn't one of those the Sonic CD cover? I'm just remembering that one now that you're mentioning it.

I know VG&CE had a holographic pic on their front for Sonic 2 (it was like the Road Rash one on EGM around issue 44 or so). I don't remember Sonic CD gracing EGM's cover though, did it? By issue 66 or so they were featuring Donkey Kong Country and early 32-Bit titles on the cover of EGM.

[Crookedmouth]

For me one magazine today still gives me that excited feeling and that is Retro Gamer. I'm impressed by the quality and quantity of the content of most UK magazines such as Games and Edge but Retro Gamer gives me that same feeling above all.

I'm afraid I've lost faith in U.S. mags such as PC Gamer and let my subscriptions drop off.

[Jibbajaba]

Even though I've been gaming since the NES, the first magazine I subscribed to was PSM, which I subscribed to after the first issue. I definitely looked forward to its arrival every month. I quit reading it after it turned into a PS2 fanboy mag, but it was a great magazine in the PSX days. Gaming mags now are trying to appeal to the masses instead of video game nerds, and I find that I don't enjoy them as much.

[E-Day]

I know VG&CE had a holographic pic on their front for Sonic 2 (it was like the Road Rash one on EGM around issue 44 or so). I don't remember Sonic CD gracing EGM's cover though, did it? By issue 66 or so they were featuring Donkey Kong Country and early 32-Bit titles on the cover of EGM.

Amateur fool! Sonic CD was on the November 1993 issue of EGM, number 52. The fattest EGM I remember is issue 65, December 1994, which was 403 pages or something.

As far as game magazines, a lot of them still get info before the internet, and lots of sites only get the info after the magazine is released. I am happy reading current magazines. I find reading info from a magazine a lot more enjoyable than reading from a website. Plus I am happy to support print media. Sure, the layouts are boring as hell and generic, but I guess it's cheaper for printing that way.

[triverse]

I think the reason that magazines are published in the style they are, the articles at least, is because that is what is accepted and taught and drilled in your head throughout journalism classes. Makes it easier to read, or at least seem that way when you have 3 or 4 columns of short sentences rather than one big page wide column.

[Tony_32]

I think about all of us here have had that enthusiasm when we were younger. I'd suppose they gave us such enthusiasm with the topic and art in the mags that a lot of us hung on to them. And now being confronted with the issues of physical degradation of the magazines and lack of space, we realized digital backups were the best option.

[Duffman]

I remember back when a new game mag got me excited too. The thrill of reading what new SNES game was coming out was awesome.