{"id":534,"date":"2009-01-07T18:20:55","date_gmt":"2009-01-07T23:20:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/?p=534"},"modified":"2009-01-07T18:55:27","modified_gmt":"2009-01-07T23:55:27","slug":"electronic-gaming-monthly-1989-2009","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/archives\/534\/electronic-gaming-monthly-1989-2009","title":{"rendered":"Electronic Gaming Monthly (1989-2009)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Electronic Gaming Monthly - May 1993<\/a>In Memoriam: EGM (1989-2009)<\/a>, American video game magazine par excellence.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

As far as I can recall, this is the first issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly<\/em><\/a> I ever bought. I spotted it on a newsstand in a grocery store and begged my mom to buy it for me. Over the next few months of 1993, I bought each new issue from the same source until I convinced my parents that it would be cheaper just to subscribe. So they signed me up, and I’ve been a subscriber to EGM<\/em> ever since.<\/p>\n

Until now. Troubled publisher Ziff-Davis — owner of the 1UP Network and EGM<\/em> — recently announced the sale of its 1UP property to UGO Entertainment<\/a>. Sadly, EGM<\/em> isn’t going along for the ride, but is instead shutting down. January 2009 will be the last issue of EGM<\/em> in print.<\/p>\n

Prior to discovering EGM<\/em>, my only exposure to video game magazines had been Nintendo Power<\/em>, the official Nintendo-sanctioned magazine devoted only to Nintendo products. As a publication, Nintendo Power<\/em> spoke with a sterile, self-censoring voice that was low on speculation and high on propaganda. In contrast, EGM<\/em>, with its edgy style, gossip column, international coverage, and devotion to multiple platforms (including arcade! — that blew my young mind), opened up a whole new side of the video game industry to me and ignited a passion for the field that persists to this day.<\/p>\n

EGM Covers<\/a><\/p>\n

As a writing professional, EGM’s<\/em> closure stings for reasons beyond simple fandom. Since writing for 1UP.com<\/a> and visiting EGM’s<\/em> offices in early 2008, I’ve been fortunate enough to befriend a number of EGM’s editors and staff. As news goes around that over 30 employees’ jobs<\/a> fell victim to the shakeup, I find myself wincing and hoping the best for all of my colleagues in writing and publishing. Those that met the unsparing axe of nickel-and-dime economics will likely find new jobs elsewhere in time — hopefully sooner rather than later. Until then, I wish them the best of luck, and I’d like to thank EGM’s<\/em> staff (past and present) for twenty years of incredible, inspiring work.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In Memoriam: EGM (1989-2009), American video game magazine par excellence. As far as I can recall, this is the first issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly I ever bought. I spotted it on a newsstand in a grocery store and begged my mom to buy it for me. Over the next few months of 1993, I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,42,21,27,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-534","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-video-game-info-and-history","category-memorials","category-news-current-events","category-regular_features","category-retrogaming"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=534"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=534"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=534"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagecomputing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=534"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}