And then there was just one...after 20 years Play magazine goes Digital only

jawafour wrote:Even better, they once included a type-in game based upon Coronation Street. The cover was even dedicated to it! Regrettably, I couldn't use it as the game was for the Speccy and I had a Vic at that time .

That probably wouldn't have stopped me trying, unless of course I considered it wouldn't fit into the 3.5k memory (unless it was during my 16k phase).

I would love to get my hands on a copy of PSNext. It was axed after just 3 issues in 2003, so it must have bombed at the speed of light. I've never managed to lay eyes on it since.

Sam Richards left OPS2 to edit it - and felt more like a continuation of the first 25 issues of OPS2. I think it was the editorial that said PS2 mags in that period has become insular and teenage focused, and this was going to be a step away from that. It would have been nice if it had been given more time as while I still bought it, OPS2 had changed direction enormously in 2003. PSM2 then changed as well in 2004 and I was left with pretty much bugger all I could call 'my own' until OPM returned in a BLAZE OF GLORY in 2006.

NickSCFC

If you were under the age of 13, that was a great mag. It fully understood its target audience. You could even join Club Max at one point (Max was their mascot dog, BTW). It was also very cheap at £1.99. In 2001 they then changed that as well & it turned it into just another PS2 mag, with the price bumped up by a quid, and it was ultimately scrapped in I think 2003 or 4.

Future also had this thing of slapping "from the makers of Official PlayStation magazine" on their unofficial magazines until 2004.

jawafour wrote:
Death's Head wrote:...ripping out listings of games I would later type in, only to find they didn't work.

Man, I used to type in those listings, too. I recall that C&VG, slightly before my time of buying the mag, once came with a free gift of a strip of plastic that could be used to place under the line of text that you were copying .

The late 80s and early 90s 8-bit computer mags were amazing for including (legit) complete retail games as a free gift. Imagine buying OPM today and getting, say, a free copy of Killzone .

I'm working on signing up a one-off game giveaway right now. If it happens it will have taken about 9 months of planning to get off the ground...

Pell wrote:I'm working on signing up a one-off game giveaway right now. If it happens it will have taken about 9 months of planning to get off the ground...

... I hope it comes on a cassette :toot:

.

Seriously, though - this sounds really neat, Pell!

Cvg was the first videogames magazine I picked up years ago, and it eventually got me into buying magazines on a regular basis and i even subscribed to 4 every month, which included cvg, gamesmaster, official playstation 2 magazine and edge. Those days are long gone and i feel i wasted a bit of money there, but in fairness i did read them most of the time.

jawafour wrote:I4) Official PlayStation Magazine (between 2001 and 2004 when it was hilariously anarchic and not really about games)

I decided to hunt down some of these old copies of OPM last night. I'd forgotten how funny & utterly ridiculous some of those last few issues actually were. Maybe they thought nobody else at Future or Sony was still reading the thing so just spent the last year amusing themselves.

NickSCFC

KK wrote:Future also had this thing of slapping "from the makers of Official PlayStation magazine" on their unofficial magazines until 2004.

I think they had another one called PlayStation Underground for the more mature gamer.

I want to know if she turns up in the magazine with her tits out. Because at this point clearly she's more interesting than any of the games. Heck, is she on the disc too?!

Someone must have the answers.

KK wrote:
jawafour wrote:...Official PlayStation Magazine (between 2001 and 2004 when it was hilariously anarchic and not really about games)

I decided to hunt down some of these old copies of OPM last night. I'd forgotten how funny & utterly ridiculous some of those last few issues actually were...

Nice clips, KK :toot:

. They really were good; almost matching the final years of Amiga Power :-)

. I enjoyed the bit where they trashed a game disc by varying means! I may have to dig out those issues from the loft some time.

KK wrote:(XboxGamer cover)

Blimey. Even that 'Duke' pad is barely covering the lady's blushes. Games mags often did ride a bit near the knuckle in the early 2000s.

KK wrote:

I want to know if she turns up in the magazine with her tits out. Because at this point clearly she's more interesting than any of the games. Heck, is she on the disc too?!

Someone must have the answers.

That is kind of embarrassing. I wish they had an article mentioned on the front page "When gaming grew up", would have been perfect.

Maybe she was in True Crime...

A tenuous link.

Found this on ebay.

I guess the old saying about gradually going blind is true.

PlayStation Power went down a similar route, although not *quite* as blatantly as Xbox Gamer.

Does "T3" magazine still feature a scantily-clad girl on the cover?

FAKE EDIT: Yes, it does. I wonder what would happen if they used a photo of a chap on the cover? Meltdown!
REAL EDIT: Hang about - it doesn't seem to anymore!

NickSCFC

jawafour wrote:PlayStation Power went down a similar route, although not *quite* as blatantly as Xbox Gamer.

Was it PlayStation Power who had a free Memory Card on the front cover of one of their early issues?

Thought there would be a couple more Sega Power fans here. For shame!

NickSCFC wrote:Was it PlayStation Power who had a free Memory Card on the front cover of one of their early issues?

PlayStation World mag had the free memory card, with their first issue. The card plastic was low quality but it worked okay!

Buffalo wrote:Thought there would be a couple more Sega Power fans here. For shame!

I'm one, Buff. Of course, that was the follow-up to...

IIRC it wasn't actually on shop shelves; you got it by registering your Master System with Sega / Mastertronic :toot:

.

NickSCFC

Sega Pro was great too. Had their 1994 yearbook which I wish I hadn't parted with.

NickSCFC wrote:Sega Pro was great too...

That sure was decent too, Nick. There was even, very briefly, a Sony Pro mag - it became PSX Pro.

And then there was just one...after 20 years Play magazine goes Digital only

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