Issue 53 (July 2008) of Retro Gamer - The coverart features Konami's Track & Field. |
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| Editor | Darran Jones |
|---|---|
| Categories | Computer magazines |
| Frequency | Monthly |
| First issue | 1 January 2004 |
| Company | Imagine Publishing |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Website | www.retrogamer.net |
Retro Gamer is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Although launched (in January 2004) as a quarterly publication, Retro Gamer's soon became a monthly. In 2005, a general decline in gaming and computer magazine readership led to the closure of its publishers, Live Publishing,[1] although the rights to the magazine were later purchased by Imagine Publishing.[2]
Contents |
The first 18 issues of the magazine came with a coverdisk. It usually contained freeware remakes of retro video games and emulators, but also videos and free commercial PC software such as The Games Factory and The Elder Scrolls: Arena. Some issues had themed CDs containing the entire back catalogue of a publisher such as Durell or Llamasoft.
On 27 September 2005, the magazine's original publishing company, Live Publishing, went into bankruptcy.[1] The magazine's official online forums described the magazine as "finished" shortly before issue #19 was due for release. However, rights to Retro Gamer were purchased by Imagine Publishing in October 2005 and the magazine was re-launched on 8 December 2005.[2] The magazine is now £1 cheaper, but lacks a cover disc. The website was relaunched with a new forum, which can be found at www.retrogamer.net/forum.
Retro Gamer is now available as an iPhone app and can be downloaded from both iTunes and an iPhone. The first issue is purchasable for £1.19 with back issues and future issues costing £2.99.
Editor Darran Jones has his own YouTube channel where he regularly posts new videos. In addition to a monthly look at the magazine, he also covers Dreamcast, Amstrad, Lynx, and other popular systems. He also has several recurring videos including Same Name, Different Game, Clash of the Titans and It's the Same Bloody Game.
March 2010 (issue 75) saw John Romero collaborating with the popular gaming magazine Retro Gamer and taking on the role of "Guest Editor". Taking charge of the magazine's editorial and splashing his own unique style to a number of his favourite articles and subjects throughout the magazine it's a world first for both John and the videogame industry in general. The issue is already proving to be extremely popular among Romero's fanbase.
Highlights of the magazine included interviews with leading 1980s programmers including David Crane, Matthew Smith and Archer MacLean. Regular columns included Next Level Gaming, Desert Island Disks (what games would a gaming celebrity take to a desert island) and Games That Weren't (a look at unpublished and unreleased titles for computers and consoles).
An anthology issue, collecting together articles from the first six issues with new content (including a comprehensive look at the game Elite), was published in December 2004. Two further anthologies of material have since been released, along with two eMags.
In June 2004, a tribute to Zzap!64 was included, "The DEF Tribute to Zzap!64", celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Commodore 64 focused magazine.[3]
One of the lesser-known features of Retro Gamer's CD-ROM was the Easter egg, introduced in issue 5. This file was hidden on each disc inside the "adverts" directory, and included a Super Mario Bros. speedrun video and the infamous "Leeroy Jenkins" clip from World of Warcraft.
Issue 48 (February 2008) contained a rare exclusive interview with Manic Miner creator Matthew Smith, written by free-lancer Paul Drury after a visit to Smith's family home in Liverpool.
One of the magazine's most popular recurring features are its 'Making Of's' in which well-known developers are interviewed about the creation and design process behind their games. Classic titles covered in past issues have included Breakout (Steve Wozniak), Dungeon Master (Doug Bell), Smash TV (Eugene Jarvis), Starfox (Jez San), Rescue on Fractalus! (David Fox/Charlie Kellner), Prince of Persia (Jordan Mechner), Berzerk (Alan McNeil), The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Steve Meretzky), Crystal Castles (Franz X. Lanzinger), Tetris (Alexey Pajitnov), Sheep in Space (Jeff Minter) "Out Run" (Yu Suzuki)
The magazine is currently run by editor Darran Jones, who has been overseeing the magazine's return since issue 19, and staff writer and one-time freelancer Stuart Hunt.
Despite being a relatively recent title, copies of the early issues (especially issue 1) have become collector's items in their own right, and often change hands for prices that are many times their original cover-price on auction sites such as eBay.
Recently, Retro Gamer binders have also attracted high bids as they are no longer available from the publisher. Other merchandise included T-shirts with slogans such as "Waggle my joystick."
Fortunately for fans, most of the articles for the missing issue were complete, and the freelance writers quickly got together to publish the otherwise lost work on the Retro Survival CD magazine.
Retro Survival is a commercial CD retro games magazine put together by the freelance writers of Retro Gamer when Live Publishing collapsed. The CD was published in November 2005 and contains articles that would have appeared in Issue 19 of Retro Gamer, as well as several extras including a foreword by celebrity games journalist Mr Biffo.
The magazine has an internet forum in which the editor and writers regularly interact with the readership. Certain questions are posed on a monthly basis with select answers from forum members appearing in the magazine.
Retro Gamer overcame regular winners a gamesTM and Edge to win the award for Best Magazine at the 2010 Games Media Awards.[4]
The majority of Retro Gamer's content is supplied by a core team of regular freelancers. These include:
Through imports and subscriptions, Retro Gamer has become some what popular in the US.