WARNING: MAD PROPS WILL BE GIVEN OUT IN THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE, AD NAUSEUM.
What does Electronic Gaming Monthly mean to me? It means over a decade of spastically collecting and subsequently losing a massive cache of reading material. It means one long, frustrating, and ultimately futile week of trying to unlock Sonic and Tails in Super Smash Brothers Melee. And most of all, it means the funny and engaging piece or work that not only helped to shape me as a gamer, but encouraged me to be more than that and drove me to dig deeper into the the industry and the culture.
EGM is the best magazine in the world. It's one dedicated to games as well as the everything else that can be ever be accused of being associated with games. They do reviews, interviews with the game makers, and awesome commentary and insight into gaming culture. They began their rise to greatness around 1989 as a young and upstart publication diving into a new and exciting genre of entertainment that had yet to prove it's worth as a respectable medium. Back in the day they detailed the hot new combos for arcade games like Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat. They also handled all the quick and dirty rumours like the reveal of "Project Reality". Through years of what I imagine to be endless toiling over worn out typewriters (Or R2-D2's, or whatever they used to write in the freaking 80's) they earned the right to plaster "World's #1 Gaming Magazine" across their front page. And you know what? I don't care if statistically, it's not true at all. It was true for me. There was no competition. They continued like this for a number of years until in early 2009 the magazine was discontinued due to a buyout of the parent company Ziff Davis by UGO Network. At least I think that's how it happened. Or was it the 1up network that UGO bought? Or maybe the other way around? Or maybe it was the Skrulls...
Look, I never claimed to be an expert on EGM's history, even after just reading the first 10 years of their history. That's not the point here(Damn it Jim, I'm a doctor not a historian). What I'm trying to say is I was hardcore dedicated to this magazine. Probably more so than any young boy should be to a stack of bound paper pages. Sure I could have been exercising, or getting a girlfriend or doing algebra. But I chose to spend my free time sprawled on the floor of my suburban home reading about this year's E3. And no, I wouldn't change that.
I've been collecting the magazine since about 97' and I feel like I grew up with those guys. Indeed, I look back fondly and realize that the voices of writers such as Dan "Shoe" Hsu, the Quarterman, and Seanbaby were very prominent ones in my childhood. I kind of tried to model some of my writing based on theirs. It was only the writers in EGM that I felt had mastered the art of infusing humor into the written word. It's easy to SAY something funny. You could just put on a funny accent or accentuate a certain word. But to write something down and leave it to someone else to read, interpret, and translate into their own inner voice and still get laugh-out-loud results? That takes skill.
There was so much to enjoy about every issue. I waited for each April issue with extra anticipation as I would scour the pages for the traditional April Fools joke. I almost never found it. Even though they eventually dumped it, I love the Hsu and Chan comics. It was always a light and funny way to cap off each issue.
But it wasn't just the entertainment value of each issue. I think the heads of the magazine worked really hard to maintain a sense of integrity around the entire operation. They gave out honest whuppings in previews and tough titties criticism in reviews. And they doled it out in equal measure. I didn't mind other mags like Nintendo Power and Official Xbox Magazine. But I could never commit to such openly biased coverage. Or if you don't want to call it biased it's at least ignorant to large sections of industry. And I'm all about exploring the spectrum. But lots of gaming mags cover more than a single name brand in gaming, I can't possibly credit EGM as if they did this exclusively. I'll pull back a little of my praise to please the general populous who may enjoy other publications(But personally I'm still giving you full points on this, go EGM!). I also remember various editors explaining how they actively attempt to stay out of the "Rat Race" of bowing to certain advertisors or companies to get a slight edge on competitors. They're adamant about remaining unbiased in order to best serve the reader. And even if they failed a few times, which I wouldn't know about, it's nice to know that someone on the inside at least tried. That kind of pride in one's work is inspirational to me as someone who may want to write as a job in the future. And of course I credit Dan "Shoe" Hsu and Crispin Boyer for carrying this same integrity on the to their post-EGM endeavors including the now Defunct blog Sore Thumbs, and the currently up and running Bitmob. I don't get the chance to check up on too much of their stuff(Or any of the old editors/writers) nowadays. But when I do catch a glimpse of their stuff, they still shine.
I'm sure some of you are disgusted by my complimentary words, so glowing they're practically neon. I'm a little dissapointed in myself as I particularly loathe almost all forms of fanboyism. Maybe my view's obscured by the rosy glasses of nostalgia. But EGM was a good thing for me. I have a lot of feelings about it and I got a lot of different things from it. I was pretty upset when they killed it off.
And now the magazine is being revived by it's original owner Steve Harris and I'm all on board. The initial return issue is a bit akward. The layout is a bit scattered and the content is a bit skimpy. But what more could you expect from the zombie issue? As of now it's merely a jumble of slightly rotted limbs shuffling awkwardly down the hallway towards me, legs relearning the concept of walking, eyes attempting to refocus. With time I'm sure they'll get back in the groove. A few issues put behind them and they'll be on the ball again. I'm really excited about the tentative return of a handful of veteran writers. And I'm intrigued as to how they'll implement and evolve EGMi which is looking to be an electronic extension of the magazine accessed via the world wide web. I don't feel that EGM's legend is threatened by this new addition. I'm okay with a little change. They gotta do what they have to to survive in this world of quickly diminishing markets for the classic paper and print combination.
So go on EGM, keep on trucking. As long as my trust in you isn't betrayed, I'll follow you to the bitter end. I'll endure the fires of hell itself if it means I can enjoy one more section by the review crew. So continue in your never-ending quest to inform the people. Go on, and god speed.
Oh man, I feel so dirty after writing such unreasonably nice things for so long. This must be what it feels like to be one of those stupid kids that can't be talked out of liking the Jonas Brothers or Hanah Montana. Ugghh. I'm gonna go take a hot shower. Then maybe I can finish this new issue of EGM.
