That's a project we've been discussing for a long time, Chris. Bill did the legwork on it, and (correct me if I'm wrong), there just wasn't any real interest on the part of publishers. There seems to be to this ridiculous idea that no one is into old videogames, and, to be fair, even the mags on modern games are having a hard time right now. There seems to be this idea that people want to play games, not read about them, and even if they do the web is full of free stuff (especially reviews), so why bother?
From what I've seen, I have to admit I think they're right. There is a core audience for this stuff, but it is very, very small. We're talking hundreds instead of the thousands (if not tens of thousands!) they'd need for a viable full-color, glossy magazine. I don't know what the actual runs are like, but I'm guessing that a magazine with a few hundred subscribers would be classified as "deep niche" and probably be self-published. That's something we might look into at some point, but I don't think any of us have the enthusiasm or funding for that right now.
Try to imagine how many people would pay for an amateur U.S. magazine (and perhaps Mark's special Dutch edition) on retrogaming that has to be shipped and all that; my guess is that the cheapest we could produce it and recoup losses would be $6 to $10 per issue, maybe more. My estimate is that you'd be looking at a subscriber base of about 25 to 30 people. Just not worth it for anyone involved, at least in my opinion.
Don't get me wrong--I love you guys to death! But there just isn't enough of you. Or, maybe there is, but for whatever reason, word is not getting out. In any case, there is something to be said for just sticking to the web format and doing feature length blogs and videos when we get the chance. It's a lot better than nothing. :)
That's a project we've been discussing for a long time, Chris. Bill did the legwork on it, and (correct me if I'm wrong), there just wasn't any real interest on the part of publishers. There seems to be to this ridiculous idea that no one is into old videogames, and, to be fair, even the mags on modern games are having a hard time right now. There seems to be this idea that people want to play games, not read about them, and even if they do the web is full of free stuff (especially reviews), so why bother?
From what I've seen, I have to admit I think they're right. There is a core audience for this stuff, but it is very, very small. We're talking hundreds instead of the thousands (if not tens of thousands!) they'd need for a viable full-color, glossy magazine. I don't know what the actual runs are like, but I'm guessing that a magazine with a few hundred subscribers would be classified as "deep niche" and probably be self-published. That's something we might look into at some point, but I don't think any of us have the enthusiasm or funding for that right now.
Try to imagine how many people would pay for an amateur U.S. magazine (and perhaps Mark's special Dutch edition) on retrogaming that has to be shipped and all that; my guess is that the cheapest we could produce it and recoup losses would be $6 to $10 per issue, maybe more. My estimate is that you'd be looking at a subscriber base of about 25 to 30 people. Just not worth it for anyone involved, at least in my opinion.
Don't get me wrong--I love you guys to death! But there just isn't enough of you. Or, maybe there is, but for whatever reason, word is not getting out. In any case, there is something to be said for just sticking to the web format and doing feature length blogs and videos when we get the chance. It's a lot better than nothing. :)
Matt Barton, Managing Editor
Location: St. Cloud, Minnesota, USA
Email: matt@armchairarcade.com