Official PlayStation Magazine Discontinued

Citing the advent of downloadable game demos and an inability for the magazine to 'fit into our integrated media network or afford us digital media opportunities', Ziff Davis' Official PlayStation Magazine will be closed out in January of next year. From the Gamasutra article: "According to the firm, Sony Computer Entertainment America will remain a key content and marketing partner for Ziff Davis Game Group, which will cover SCEA's PlayStation 3 and first-party games extensively across all of its media outlets, including EGM, 1UP.com, and GameVideos.com. The Game Group editorial team will also 'work closely with SCEA in the development of digital content for the PlayStation Network, accessible only through the PS3.' Due to the long-term decline in the magazine advertising market, Ziff Davis has been gradually transitioning away from print for some time, aggressively building up 1UP.com as its central website portal." 1up is carrying a story with the official announcement and some low-key commentary. If you're interested in how much this had to do with subscription numbers, GameSetWatch has a run-down on subscribers for many of the large gaming rags.

Comments

The age of game magazines is over

[earthbound kid]

Game magazines as a place where game publishers show off screen shots from upcoming games and reviewers give scores no longer make sense as a business model. No one who is really interested in games is without an internet connection, so they can go to the game publisher's website themselves or get them from other sites that totally ad supported and thus free. The web also has videos, which are superior to screen shots. The web is also more timely. Furthermore, the web is full of average people who will give their opinion on games. Go to GameFAQs.com, and you can read a lot of average people's opinions. Yes, they only ever score things 10 or 5 (love it or hate it), but you can still figure out what kind of game it is when they explain why.

No, the only reason for publishing a monthly game magazine now is to talk about news that says new: that is to talk about games as a medium, instead of hyping big upcoming game X. As gamers get more mature, there are more people who want to read New Yorker-style intelligent breakdowns of what gaming conventions mean and what the role of games is in society. Things like the Escapist and Gamers Quarter may seem too on the fringe right now to make much money, but the fact is that in the future, that kind of content is the only thing gamers will be willing to actually spend money on. Everything else we can just get for free*.

*With ads, of course. But at least no cover or subscription price.

Re:The age of game magazines is over

[Aladrin]

Because not everyone has an LCD monitor on their bed?

They're both magazines, but the USE of the magazine differs substantially. It's like saying 'Pickup trucks can do so much MORE than cars, why does anyone buy a car anymore?'

Re:I know what you mean... sort of

[Psykechan]

Gaming magazines died for me when they discontinued Next Generation magazine.

Whereas every other video game magazine at the time tried to treat gamers as if they were pre-pubescent boys, NG spoke to readers as if they were intelligent adults, at least most of the time.