We recently featured a congratulatory post to our heroes 'GamesMaster Magazine' on reaching their 250th edition milestone - which got us thinking..
250 glorious editions of glossy gaming heaven. 250 marvellous magazines full of tips, reviews, cheats & previews.
But how did it all begin?
Well we happen to have the first edition here at The Games Shed HQ and we thought we'd share it with you.
The year this great magazine was launched was 1993 - January to be precise. A new year, a new gaming magazine.
The magazine was launched exactly one year after the launch of the TV program of the same name. Channel 4 enlisted the comical genius Dominik Diamond to host, who they also dragged along to write a monthly piece for them, comically titled 'Dominik's Big Purple Column'.
The magazine would bring us lucky kids (I was 12 at the time) a piece of the show we could carry around with us in our little Nike rucksacks, rammed between a science workbook & a smelly P.E. kit.
The magazine served a number of uses - firstly, it was our only way to learn about the games which were out there in the big wide world. It also served as a gentle reminder to prod your parents every once in a while and show them the big colourful advertisement of the newest, most amazing game EVER and tell them it was only 231 days until your birthday & 290 days until Christmas.
You see, back in the early 90's we didn't have access to the Internet via a device tucked neatly in our pocket, there was simply no 'need' to use the Internet. We got everything important in our lives from physical medium. Strange huh kids?
If we were stuck on a game we'd wait until the following day at school to catch a friend in the playground who had the same game, to ask them how on earth they beat that big bugger of a boss. If they didn't know then we'd race down to the local newsagent on a Saturday morning to spend our hard earned pocket money buying GamesMaster, in the hope that it would feature a walk-through of that bug bearer of a game. More often than not, it wouldn't. So you'd tune in to the weekly GamesMaster TV show with pen & paper in hand ready to scribble down the tips that Mr GM himself - Sir Patrick Moore, would blurt out.
But why was GamesMaster magazine so popular? Other magazines have come and gone in these 19 years, yet GamesMaster is still as big as ever.
Quite simply because it had characters we could identify with. People we had actually seen on TV doing the very same thing they were doing on the pages of this colourful gaming bible. The likes of Dominik & the Master himself.
The magazine had a cheeky edge to it, much like the TV show. A truthful, no holds barred approach to gaming journalism. Telling us when and where games stunk, giving us tantalising peeks in to what lay ahead. Issue one for example held over 50 pages of new releases.
We've just picked up issue 252 - the July 2012 copy of GM and can honestly say that all these years later, it is still an excellent monthly addition to any gaming enthusiasts hoard. Not only looking at current and future gaming, but also swinging by the retro too. This month looks back at the almighty Neo Geo Pocket Color - and if you don't know what this piece of retro kit is, shame on you.
Issue 1 Vs Issue 252 - Reviews
Issue 1:
Axelay - SNES
Desert Strike - SNES
Pinball Fantasies - Amiga
Micro Machines - NES
Super Mario Land 2 - Game Boy
Issue 252:
Max Payne 3 - Xbox 360
Mario Tennis Open - Nintendo 3DS
UEFA Euro 2012 - PS3
Risen 2: Dark Waters - PC
Beat The Beat: Rhythm Paradise - Nintendo Wii
News
Issue 1:
A possible Sega Mega Drive release of Street Fighter II
Zool tops Amiga charts
EA plan to release 32-bit console
Issue 252:
Wii U - Rayman: Legends reveals toy functionality
PlayStation All Stars Battle Royale: Sony to rival Super Smash Bros?
PES 2013 to not be made for PS Vita
Which pretty much concludes our very brief look at GamesMaster issue 1.
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Great post, that issue 1 cover really brings back some good memories of the mag and show! Would love to find a copy as most of mine we're thrown out without my knowledge.
ReplyDeleteI can't remember which issue it was exactly but it had a massive give away, I want to say it was 25,000 prizes or something like that? I remember entering and winning a Gameboy game Bart and the Beanstalk, first and only prize I've ever won lol.
We have on in stock at Retrogear UK if you are interested: click the link top right of this page or visit: http://www.retrogearuk.co.uk
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