RetroDefense

I'm curious as to what the indicia states for this magazine. Is it formally named Computer Games Strategy Plus? Did this name stick throughout or was it formally changed over the years? If not, and this was only a running masthead change, this would be an easy way to differentiate between this magazine and the short-lived Computer Games from the 80s.

As Areala mentioned, Gamestop is re-embracing retro in limited fashion. And if it works out, they may expand their retro program further by adding retro inventory to their stores. Either way, I don't think retro retail is going away anytime soon. It may become more and more obsolete thanks to the direction video gaming has taken lately - buying a used Steam key is as dumb as it sounds - but I think there's plenty of physical, usable media for new and old gamers alike. Prices will climb and generations will age but I expect retro gaming Mom & Pops will be around for quite a while. We'll see. But in the meantime, retro game stores will continue even if Gamestop decides retro isn't worth it.

The term has a different meaning for different gamers, but for myself - technically - it begins when something is no longer supported at mass market retail by hardware manufacturers and software publishers. Neo-retro, basically. Then you have various levels of retro from there. Video gaming is a young hobby and still maturing but I'm sure we'll eventually see generally agreed upon "divisions" of retro eventually. We already do if you consider hardware generations to be the defining factor. That said, I expect the personal definition of "retro" to be whatever a gamer grew up playing.

My biggest problem with current PC gaming is the lack of ownership - the platform is far too DRM-heavy for my tastes. I like to collect games and replay them. Today's PC gaming doesn't really allow for that. But for indie gaming I've been considering the PC platform more and more lately. Whenever an indie game is made available on consoles, I always check to see if it is also available DRM-free on PC before I consider a purchase. I purchased Shovel Knight on Wii U because I know I can find it DRM-free on PC whenever my Wii U dies, for example. (This was well before the physical release was announced.) I prefer console gaming but I'm thinking it's about time to find a good PC controller and take the plunge with Indie Box, GOG.com, etc.

Yeah - essentially a vicious cycle of diminishing returns. Now we have corp-sponsored 'zines or crowd-funded efforts - neither depending entirely on advertising space but still benefiting from it. While corp-zines like Game Informer are at least something, I'm glad to see crowd-funded magazines popping up from time to time. I was going to make an "Achievement Unlocked!" joke. But I won't. You're welcome.

As long as it allowed shareable SD card level saves, ditto.

I agree with the consensus here - the Internet killed print video game magazines. And not just video game mags - a large portion of the print mag industry in general. And still is. Look at Playboy's recent decision to go non-nude - a death knell if I ever heard one. (Only kinda joking.) As for the lack of electronic substitutes, some tried but either weren't very good - many were designed to compliment the magazine, not replace it - or were eventually gobbled up by the various buy-outs and mergers over the years as their parent companies shed assets. They couldn't directly compete or wouldn't compete and it eventually caught up with them. And you have to remember the time frame. Monetizing the early 'net wasn't easy. Magazine publishers couldn't sell e-zines via app stores because app stores didn't exist. The PDF format didn't exist. Smart phones & tablets didn't exist. Video game magazines were at the forefront. They took the brunt. They were being hammered by Internet competition as soon as kids had a Freenet account, USENET access and a Lynx browser. When that big, blue "N" began pulsating on computer screens, the writing was on the wall. They didn't have the time to react - in regards to stubborn corporate mindsets, actual time necessary for the Internet to technologically mature, or both. I think print video game magazines are on something of a rebound though. In limited fashion, at least. Largely thanks to crowdfunding, print-on-demand, etc. We'll never see a large selection on mainstream news stands again but we can look forward to more focused, niche publications in our mailboxes and tablets. And who knows - should the owners of Electronic Games, Next Generation, or Video Games & Computer Entertainment ever decide to try Kickstarter, we may see a return of some old favorites.

I should have mentioned - the code editor has the same problem. When submitted, this will be displayed properly: [LIST] [*]Item 1[/*] [*]Item 2 [LIST] [*]Sub-Item 2-1[/*] [*]Sub-Item 2-2[/*] [/LIST] [/*] [*]Item 3[/*] [/LIST] But this will not: [LIST] [*]Item 1[/*] [*]Item 2[/*] [*]Item 3 [LIST] [*]Sub-Item 3-1[/*] [*]Sub-Item 3-2[/*] [/LIST] [/*] [/LIST] The problem occurs only when the indented portion of the bullet list is present at the end of the bullet list. It will look correct in the editor but the indention is lost with submission.

I know your pain - I've experienced this many times. It must be a bug with the WYSIWYG editor - unless something follows the indented portion of the bullet list, the indent formatting is often (always?) ignored with submission. I always try to have something follow the indent to work around this. Sometimes this means sorting a list of items differently than the magazine. Like so: Item 1 Item 3 Sub-item 3-1 Sub-item 3-2 Item 2 I try to avoid this whenever possible but am flexible if order is not important. Other times, I'll simply separate sub-lists from the primary list with line breaks and a note. Like so: Item 1 Item 2 Item 3 (includes:) Sub-item 3-1 Sub-item 3-2

Welcome!

Thanks E-Day and Sean697!

Can't thank you enough for preserving these Next Generation issues, marktrade! I've always considered NG to be one of the best video game magazines of its day. Some of their interviews will be referenced by historians for years to come, I'm sure.

News sections can be tricky as their format varies from magazine to magazine. My usual news section summaries involve listing a news headline, then including some brief notes to clarify the headline if necessary. I'll usually spend more time detailing the news sections of pre-mainstream Internet magazines as scholars and researchers often have to rely on these 'zines more so than post-Internet publications. (I'll be the first to admit I need to revise several of my summaries for this very reason.) Some magazine news sections are very structured - with these, I'll usually include the amount of page real estate dedicated to the news story (1/4th page, 2.5 pages, etc) as a general metric of how "important" it is. Sometime news columns are so sporadic & fluid you almost have no choice but to concentrate on the focus and imply the remainder with a "misc" or "etc" - otherwise, you risk emphasizing the minor along with the major. It can be a judgement call as to whether it's relevant or not. Anymore, I typically indicate development and import coverage in my leading "Primary Systems Coverage" section. I never try to assume someone is familiar with development code names, etc. So in the case you've described, I'd list the Ultra 64 in my systems section as "Ultra 64 (development coverage; the eventual Nintendo 64)." These summaries we put together are pretty open-ended, though - as mentioned earlier, there are no strict guidelines. And there's no right way, either - some of us are very matter-of-fact with maybe some running publication history thrown in (raises hand) while others can both inform & entertain - Areala is especially good at this. I'd recommend browsing around - get an idea of what other folks have already done - and see if anything agrees with what you want to do. Then use these as a template or as a starting point for a template of your own. Cheers, and welcome aboard!

For the longest time - until I discovered RetroMags - I had that particular Top Score issue categorized as EGM #1 in my collection. Doh.

I'm disappointed to hear this - it was a great little program. :/ I hope something suitable comes along to replace it.

With my entries, I like to include a list of covered game systems at the start - so a visitor can immediately know what to expect from the issue. Then I transcribe or summarize the table of contents in outline format. It's important not to build your entry based on the table of contents alone, however. You'd be surprised how often the TOC is incorrect. And they're often not very detailed. I usually find myself expanding on each section with notes and bullet lists when necessary, including actual article titles, authorship notes, review and preview lists, etc. In my notes, I try to include words and phrases a site visitor may literally search for when visiting RetroMags if the TOC didn't include them already.

I've been waiting over 20 years to read this issue.

An edited Next Generation #53 (May 1999) is ready for downloading. http://www.retromags.com/magazines/category/usa/next-generation/next-generation-issue-53 Thanks to marktrade for the actual scan work and Phillyman for the new & improved file uploading! If you'd like to help with marktrade's backlog of unedited magazines, please see his Work In Progress discussion.

And having been available pre-Internet, it's even more important to see these older magazines preserved. They are essentially the documented history of the day. Thanks, VGBounceHouse!

Retromags Presents! Next Generation Issue 53 May 1999 Database Entry! Download Directly! Scanning by marktrade, editing by RetroDefense

Like Sean697, I've been watching some auctions for preservation purposes and think it would be very helpful if everything already owned & planned for preservation is flagged as "Acquired." Whether in an immediate scan queue or not. Too many acquired magazines can always be shipped and outsourced to other scanners with the time and resources, after all. I'd much rather know I'm spending funds on issues the site absolutely doesn't have access to. The only exception would be acquired issues you know won't provide an adequate scan - either damaged, missing pages, won't be debound, etc. In which case, I'd leave these as "Missing" in the hope better copies can be acquired in the future. I believe PhillyMan is working on a formal request system, VGBounceHouse, where visitors can request certain issues be preserved. This may help you decide a strategy for your impressive backlog.

I imagine this happens often between RetroMags members. And while it makes sense if purchasing for a personal collection, it'd be great if we had a better way of coordinating efforts here at RetroMags when buying for purposes of preservation. Pooling of resources, a formalized means of notification to avoid unnecessary bid combat, etc. I think it would help especially in regards to rare and expensive issues.

Areala's right. And even if the magazines didn't cost much, I'd be inclined to file a complaint on principle alone. Ebay will probably ask you resolve the issue with the seller directly, though. Which is why many sellers get by with this kind of thing - other buyers never see the damage done. Coincidentally, I purchased a magazine from this seller back in March. I can't recall exactly how it was shipped (media or whatever) but I do remember not being impressed with the packaging. I did leave positive feedback as it arrived intact & in relatively good shape but this was just as likely by chance than effort. I'm actually selling some items on Ebay at the moment - figured it was time to get rid of my video game box & docs collection. I go out of my way to properly package everything - the idea of something arriving damaged is almost sickening to me. Seriously - I get crazy anxious about shipping sometimes.

I think the difficulties with straightening pages - using page elements to gauge what is and isn't straight - is a more prominent problem with older magazines. I wouldn't be surprised if some literal cutting and pasting was going on when these magazines were originally created. And I've struggled with crop vs. straight myself. Sometimes to the point where I'll rescan a page. And if that won't solve the problem, I'll err on the side of straight unless the crop will seriously hurt the actual content of the page. I'm not as strict with advertisements (which often have no real margin to play with).