A new fanzine / magazine idea - Anyone interested in contributing?

[Simon_G]

Hi guys, long time lurker, first time  Hope this is in the right section, apologies if it is not.

Anyhoo, I have an idea for an arcade / emulation fan based magazine and decided to sign up here to see if anyone would be interested in helping it come to fruition.

Looking at GameRoom, and to a lesser extent RetroCade Magazine and RetroGamer, there seems to be a gap in the available reading material that I feel should be filled.

The idea proposed is to produce a publication that covers the missing material in a manageable medium.

Seeing as most cabs run frontends covering both arcade and console emulation, it would therefore prudent to include not only arcade material (mame / daphne / capcom etc) but also console based material too (SMS / SNES / NES etc).

Articles will include reviews of old and new games, hardware reviews and guides, cab building guides, reviews of new equipment, buyers guides, interviews if possible, manufacturer/developer look backs and pretty much anything else that will fit into the Arcade / Retro Gaming Cab ethos (including virtual pinball and Jukebox too)

I have a flatplan made up for issue 1 and a few articles already written, but before I continue I am looking to see...

1) If there is any interest in such a publication
2) If anyone would be interested in contributing

Although I would love to see something like this in print, I cannot see how it would be possible given the extortionate cost of printing here in the UK.  With this in mind, the publication would initially appear in PDF format, with the idea of including multimedia capabilities down the line (videos of gameplay, audio etc) and maybe even publication on the Apple NewsStand or iBooks.  A printed version has not been discounted, but to begin with I cannot see the financial benefit in doing so.

Anyway, I would love to hear your views especially if you feel you could contribute to something like this.

Regards
Simon_G

[Howard_Casto]

Magazines, even digital ones, are kind of dead.  From what you are wanting to focus on a blog-based webpage sounds like it would make more sense.  The thing about emulation is, things change so quickly that you could put a guide out on how to setup "emulator x" and by the time the magazine is ready for release it would already be out of date. 

I don't think it's a bad idea though, I just think you need to really figure out what you are going to focus on and give some serious thought as to the release medium. 

I'm sure lots of people (myself included) would be willing to contribute, but if you were planning on selling the thing on itunes or something I doubt many would be willing to do it for free. 

[Simon_G]

Thanks for replying.

Not sure I am totally convinced about the "magazines" are dead comment, there are a few niche publications within the retro gaming field that are doing well in either digital or print format.  Like anything, if a product is marketed correctly, people will be interested in it, regardless of medium, and with the advent of tablets especially, the ability to read material offline has never been in such demand.

Admittedly, a blog allows you to keep in time with developments, but I am not so sure on their ability to engage people as well as a magazine can.  Maybe I am out of touch on this particular point.  Also, with the future in mind it is harder to charge for blog based content as the general consensus is that everything on the internet should be free.  Not only that but with a website / blog, information gets lost.  Just look at the thousands of posts on this one forum and the wealth of information within them.  Some great stuff, but most of it totally lost within the quantity of it all, people looking for particular information do not want the hassle of searching for it.  People are lazy, me included!

With money in mind, if the idea gained enough momentum to be "sold" then I would not expect anyone to contribute for nothing so there should be no problem there.

[Howard_Casto]

Well retro gaming and emulation are NOT the same thing.  Just to give an example, you can do a review of a 20 year old game and people will still be interested in it.... you can still play the game afterall and collectors of physical carts might be interested in a title they haven't played before.  On the other hand the setup of MAME changes from version to version and the best source of info when you run into problems is to go to a forum like this one and just ask somebody. 

I don't think all magazines are dead, just "how to" ones.  If you want to do features on various games and products that would work, but a "how to" geared set of articles probably won't.  Ask Saint.... his book was top notch, probably the best as it pertains to this hobby, but I don't think he exactly set any best-seller records. 

I think about the only way anybody is going to be able to help or give you a valid opinion is if you make a sample available so we can get an idea of what you are trying to do.   

[Simon_G]

Howard,

Thanks again for the reply.

Well retro gaming and emulation are NOT the same thing.

Sorry, that was me not being totally clear on the outline of the idea and how I think it might succeed... 

I am building a small bartop for the kids (I want to built a digital pinball cab too at some point) and started trawling through various forums looking for relevant help and advice.  It quickly became apparent the information I required was available, but was more often than not scattered all over the net with a wealth of good honest advice buried under masses of "filler" material.  Just look at the potential goldmine that is the BOYAC archives (How many people search that for information?)

Anyway, what I would have been grateful for and which I am others would appreciate it too) is a central, well managed location with relevant information pertaining to their newly found hobby.
Thats not to say that this forum or any given website is not good enough, its simply that being as successful as it is, its hard to keep relevant information available.  A magazine / fanzine / publication allows that information (and other stuff too) to be stored in a way that is more easily digested, and also allows for better recall when that information is required in the future.
Of course this is not to say that the publication would be newbie centric, far from it, but the information for those new to the scene would be well balanced by articles for the more advanced member too.

If you are building a Cab, the chances are that it will be running a frontend, so Mame and other emulators are more than likely to feature on it.  Decent setup guides are hard to find (well I have yet to find one in my searches) yet even a rough starting guide would not go amiss I am sure.   Then there is the skinning and mods that can be added, making the whole experience better.  Yes I appreciate that emulators change at a rapid pace but seeing as it is IMHO just as important as the games that are being played themselves, some form of recognition has to be considered (even if it is just a direction to an updated guide on the corresponding publication website)

Mrotate, ArcadeVGA, Soft15K....there is a massive amount of potential in just those few things alone for articles, guides and reviews not to mention everything else associated with it.  Hardware reviews (new joysticks, buttons, peripherals etc that enter the market can be reviewed) and thats without the games themselves with the addition of console emulation thrown into the mix.

In regards to the games (lets look at arcade games here) we have reviews, interviews if possible, walkthroughs, manufacturer / developer look backs....etc.  If we add in console games too the possibilities include...reviews (of old games and new homebrew being released), previews, interviews, walkthroughs, developer look backs, arcade conversions and how they fared (joining the two sections together), peripherals for playing emulated games (like old style joysticks that have been manufactured with USB connectors, flash carts etc)….plenty to write about or cover.

With the arcade / console sections being closely related, the combination of the two in one publication will I feel work well, as they both compliment each other.  This also means much more scope for content and diversity to appeal to a wider audience.

And that is not an exhaustive list either, just what springs to mind, I am sure you could add to it too. 

Hopefully that explains it a little better than my first post tried to and with this extra information I would appreciate a second opinion on the potential of the idea.

Ask Saint.... his book was top notch, probably the best as it pertains to this hobby, but I don't think he exactly set any best-seller records. 

I have it here, although I am convinced that setting the world alight was his intention, just doing something for the community is the first payment for me, actually making a few beer tokens in the process is a bonus

[Simon_G]

I think about the only way anybody is going to be able to help or give you a valid opinion is if you make a sample available so we can get an idea of what you are trying to do.   

Thought there might be a bit more interest in something like this, maybe I got it wrong?

I'll get a sample made up, and see if that gets peoples interest...

Thanks Howard for taking the time to reply, its much appreciated.

[CheffoJeffo]

Thought there might be a bit more interest in something like this, maybe I got it wrong?

Some very dedicated people have bashed around ideas for retro gaming magazines, including those who put their money where their mouth is.

Retrogamers are a notoriously bad audience and even worse as authors (some few folks excluded ... tks saint, KS, Van, Gozer and even MM).

If you want to give back, then the wiki needs some tending to.

 

[cmoses]

I think there is interest but at the same time it is a huge undertaking. There is a lot of information out there ad you mentioned and there are many topics that could be further explored and written up. I think the issues are that anything printed would quickly become outdated. Everything in this hobby gets updated, operating systems, emulators, front ends, drivers for video cards, etc. Combine that with all the possible configurations and you can't write a guide for everyone. I think it would be a great thing and I think you would have interest, I think it's just a difficult undertaking. It would in my opinion have to digital, have to be inexpensive and be something your doing for the love of the hobby. There will always be new hobbyists out there and this is a hobby with a steep learning curve. People always look for an easier way to do things, so providing it would be a benefit.

[Simon_G]

Again thanks for your input guys, its much appreciated.

It would in my opinion have to digital, have to be inexpensive and be something your doing for the love of the hobby.

I am ticking those boxes already

There will always be new hobbyists out there and this is a hobby with a steep learning curve. People always look for an easier way to do things, so providing it would be a benefit.

I am one of those people (not new to emulation but new to MAME) and would have appreciated some kind of "Newbies Guide" just covering the basics, but then again this would just be a small percentage of what i was intending on offering in the publication.

I vision it being a more rounded publication offering not only guides and help, but reviews, interviews, articles covering MAME and console emulation.

[SavannahLion]

What is with the insistence on using outside image hosting services like tinypic and imgur or whatever? Saint has plenty of space here for just that kind of thing. It pisses me off to find some really great article hobbled because the outside host for the necessary files deleted the files or disappeared. Information survival is accomplished through duplication, not cross linking.

[Vigo]

My work filter scrubs all image hosting sites these days. It sucks that I can't see a the photos on project announcement threads that are not hosted here. I can't even tell if there was suppose to be a photo posted. Sucks because I used to really enjoy following other people's projects. I end up appreciating when people take the time to post here, even if it is the slower route.

Meh, my workplace is a 

[ChadTower]

My work filter scrubs all image hosting sites these days. It sucks that I can't see a the photos on project announcement threads that are not hosted here. I can't even tell if there was suppose to be a photo posted. Sucks because I used to really enjoy following other people's projects. I end up appreciating when people take the time to post here, even if it is the slower route.

+1


But I understand when people don't do it.

[Vigo]

+1


But I understand when people don't do it.

Same here. I prefer blaming my job anyway. 

[Simon_G]

Well that killed that thread then....

[Well Fed Games]

Ha, yeah, that was quite a derail. But I would definitely read content about emulation, etc. I think there is way too little written about classic gaming, and while the web and forums are great, there is something to be said for edited and packaged content, either digitally or in print.

[drventure]

I'd second the comment about contributing to the Wiki here.

For reviews, you'd be hard pressed to find anything much better than Mamezach's site

http://mamezach.blogspot.com/

Awesome set of reviews there.

Short version, I'd love to see new info on the hobby, in whatever form. Truthfully though, I can't imagine subscribing to a magazine for it. There's just soooo much really good info out there already.

[Vigo]

  I can see the picture.

Well that killed that thread then....

You got an uphill battle gaining traction with this. In the recent years, Gameroom was run well by a veteran member of the community here and had a lot of support. It even couldn't keep afloat. I did subscribe to it, but I'm not so sure I would have if there was no printed material. Lets just say for me to shell out money to subscribe, I would have to feel I am getting my money's worth. That is harder to do without printed material.

If you get something going, I would be happy to contribute a bit with writing or that kind of support. I'm sure others would as well. I think you would need to put something out there before anyone gets too excited.

[Howard_Casto]

Yeah don't misunderstand  if you want help, we'll help if you want to try out an issue or something.  We just want you to understand that there are some major hurdles to producing something like that, you aren't going to make any real money, and it isn't going to be easy.

Getting into this hobby is like owning a boat.... the two days you are happiest and have the most money in your pockets is the day before you buy your boat and the day after you sell it. 

That doesn't mean it can't be worthwhile, but I'm just saying....

[Simon_G]

Thanks guys,

I appreciate the support.

I have been down this road before, writing the RetroRevival fanzine some years ago (in fact issue 4 was well received, some 4000+ downloads and was 100% free, even managed to get some financial sponsorship) so I am fully aware of the effort needed to get it off the ground.  I have some decent InDesign skills, a strong vision of what I want to offer and what direction I think the idea should take, just cannot produce 60+ pages of content on my own, which is why i need others to be involved too.

I am a competent writer, can tackle most things with my knowledge, and can see the benefit of something like this, however, like everything in this niche people seem very dubious about new projects, especially as most of them never actually get out of the planning stage.

So, I'll leave it at that.  If anyone wants to come on this journey with me, then please feel free to PM me and we can discuss matters in private, otherwise, I'll knock something up and see if that generates some interest.

Thanks again.

[shponglefan]

Although I would love to see something like this in print, I cannot see how it would be possible given the extortionate cost of printing here in the UK.  With this in mind, the publication would initially appear in PDF format, with the idea of including multimedia capabilities down the line (videos of gameplay, audio etc) and maybe even publication on the Apple NewsStand or iBooks.  A printed version has not been discounted, but to begin with I cannot see the financial benefit in doing so.

Having read a few of your posts in this thread, I can appreciate what you want to do.  And IMHO, it would be nicer if there were better central repositories for some of the information out there.  But to be blunt, a PDF magazine style format isn't the right way to go about it.

In this day and age, a blog-esque website (if it's just articles) is the way to go.  The other option would be a video series; actually a retro gaming/emulation/arcade series could be awesome.  But also a crap-ton of work.

[Simon_G]

Just a small update on this.  I am currently working on a 20 page or so sample issue so that anyone interested in contributing can see where the title is likely to be heading.  I would expect to be able to show this off within the next two weeks, however as I am writing this all myself at the moment, there may be a slight delay in getting it out there.