For those who are looking for the inside word form the recently departed 1up editors, look no further than Rebel FM. You can find the podcast by following the link below.
For you Twitter junkies out there, you can find their own personal feeds by listening to the podcast. They also respectfully ask you to Digg the episdode so they can kick further ass.
Let’s all do our part, eh?
We’re not a news site. Or at least we try not to be, but there are some news stories you just can’t stay silent on. This would be one of them. It was reported today that 1Up.com was acquired by UGO Entertainment and as a result, EGM would cease publication and many of our favorite editors lost their jobs. To say that the whole thing sucks is an understatement. Especially for those who have found themselves unemployed at such a terrible time.
For those of us who have been around the gaming scene for awhile, the news that EGM would cease publication brings to end an era that brought four-man reviews, in depth coverage and a commitment to honesty and integrity not often found in a magazine based on advertising games. Our connection to EGM runs deep. John and I were both avid readers of EGM, and it was one of the constants in our respective gaming universes when we were young. I don’t care how many other magazines jumped into the scene over the years, EGM was always the one I turned to for news and reviews that I cared about. Even in the later years, as the magazine faded from what I once knew, I carried the torch as did many others.
Not so long ago, at the Midwest Gaming Classic, we had the honor and privilege of meeting two former EGM staffers, “Trickman” Terry Minnich and Martin Alessi. Try as hard as I might during that interview, it was a little tough to suppress the EGM fanboy as I sat talking to them. Through that connection we also became acquainted with another EGM legend, Ken Williams, who once wore the legendary name of Sushi-X. Those of you old enough to recognize that name will understand my reasons for asking Terry and Martin the identity of the mysterious EGM ninja. It has been our privilege to call Terry and Ken friends as we all continue to follow a passion for gaming and all things geek.
We’ve also had the honor of a great friendship with Phil Kollar and I have to say, I laughed out loud in surprise and glee when I first saw his name on an EGM game review. To see his fire and passion ignite some great things at 1Up.com was a pure joy. I remember sitting upstairs in my house with Phil, on the night before he left to start at 1Up, eating terrible Hardee’s food as he laid out his ideas for a new kind of magazine style podcast. At the time, he was only going to be the News Editor and it was just thoughts and “wouldn’t it be cool if…”. Imagine my delight when 1Up FM debuted, exactly as he had wanted, and climbed the iTunes “charts” to become one of the top gaming podcasts on the web. It was the fire and energy found in editors such as Phil and Nick Suttner that gave me hope for both 1Up and EGM. But alas, it was not to be.
We say goodbye to an era that started in 1989 as news hits that EGM is ceasing publication. Our regret is that they couldn’t have gone out in style, with a fitting end to a magazine that meant a whole lot to a whole lot of gamers. It would have been nice see the old crew back again for one final issue, wouldn’t it? While we may not get a proper send off of the magazine from the corporate giants, we can at least do our part here. For those of you who read and appreciated EGM, let us know what the magazine meant to you. Were you one of the many who poured through the April magazine, looking for the infamous joke? How many times did you try to unlock Shen Long? Anybody try the All Bonds trick? If you would, take a minute and let us know your favorite moments as we say farewell to EGM.
To the staff of EGM and 1Up.com, we wish you the best and know you’ll all land on your feet. Here’s to the awesome things you’ll bring to the gaming public in the future.
Just last week, Jeff Green, former managing editor of Games for Windows Magazine announced that he would be leaving 1UP.com in order to join the Sims 3 team. This was a huge blow to the site, which lost one of it’s most seasoned and talented writers. Green’s writing was often a unique stream-of-consciousness style, and often some of the funniest stuff on the site without trivializing what he was writing about (usually). And as many of you know, this is somewhat of a recent trend. Since Luke Smith left the company for Bungie almost two years ago, some of the site’s most prominent and talented writers have been leaving in turn. Next up was John Davison, who left to start What They Play, a fantastic gaming resource for parents. Soon afterward was Mark McDonald, Brian Intihar and Crispin Boyer. But one of the most troubling departures was Dan Hsu, the former managing editor of Electronic Gaming Monthly. Hsu was widely known for his strong journalistic ethics, having stood up to some of the largest publishers in the industry in the name of keeping his magazine legitimate. With him leaving, I was worried that his replacement wouldn’t be able to keep the magazine the bastion of ethical journalism that it once was.
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We’ve got a good friend and special guest with us this week! 1Up.com News Editor Phil Kollar joins us at the bar. And do we give him any new found respect? Of course not. We give him shit for not playing Einhander, that’s what we do!
In all seriousness, we have a great time talking about Too Human, Castle Crashers and why Phil doesn’t have the 1Up.com standard definition woolly beard yet. Check it out!
SHOWNOTES
Special Guest: 1up.com News Editor-Phil Kollar!
360 Review: Too Human
XBLA Review: Castle Crashers
Retro Review: Ice Hockey (2600)
News: East Coast PAX
Guitar Praise-Solid Rock
Core Games Coming to Wii
New DS on the Way?
Release List
The Last Shot
DGR Mailbag
