Legendary UK Magazine GamesMaster to End After 25 Years

Boy this is sad - it is kind of one of the last of my old era of gaming magazines. These magazines really were the only place to build a sense of community and hype back in that there day.

@RogerRoger Same here.

Used to buy Edge (and before that OPM) religiously. I became friendly with the manager of EB/Game many, many years ago as he drank in the pub I worked in.

Apparently, to justify their unsold stock, they only had to send back the front cover of a magazine - so I ended up never actually paying for a games mag for a good 3 years. Then never even read any after that.

Ah GamesMaster! The excitement over each new issue, all those memories. But I have to confess I haven’t bought a games mag in years. Part of it is a natural, gradual change to online (just as with game purchases) but I also think that as I’ve aged I’ve moved away from things, or been pulled away, probably all that serious real world stuff gets in the way, which is a shame. I will be sad to see it go but pleased that the staff are to be redeployed in house.

Also, lets be honest - print as a form of news delivery is as good as dead. I work in a large media business with what was the highest selling local paper in the country - and there's just no getting around the fact that people want, and can get their news for free and quicker than any print publication can provide.

There will always be a place for the printed word, but I'd see something like Edge outlasting pretty much every gaming magazine out there.

Your Sinclair - thank you. Amiga Action - thank you. xx

i still buy official playstation magazine almost every month, it still offers something extra websites generally don't, and it's focus on playstation suits me. i prefer the print version than trying to read a pdf on my phone.

i remember the days of crash when i was a kid.. my parents attic had about 3 years worth of them, but they got dumped when i went off to do my postgrad in the netherlands.

@RogerRoger yeah i have to admit it's been a while since i brought one but when all the info in them is available for free on the internet, on sites like this for example it's no wonder

plus i'm over 30 and it's actually less embarrassing buying a adult magazine than a gaming one now a days

I loved the TV show on channel 4 In the 90s with Dominic Diamond also back in the 90s and early 2000s I used to buy this every month I think I still have a load from when the Dreamcast, PS2 era etc was around. Back then it was £2.99 and you'd get a free cheats book with it sometimes but then it went up to £4.99 and I stopped because you just didn't get enough for the price. It was great back in them days it really was but back then I loved it because you actually spoke to people directly about games not using social media or over VOIP like now. Half my friend's have become hermits

Sad that GM won't be on shelves anymore, it's been a shadow of it's former self for a while, was way more gutted when PSM3 went by the way side

Game magazines during the early days of the internet were always something special. I still have a bunch of old PC magazines that my brother bought hyping up games like Doom 3, Half-Life 2, Unreal Tournament 2004 and many others.

I get GameInformer every month because of GameStop and I usually just skim through them, especially since I can just hop on the internet to read gaming news.

I'll miss Gamesmaster and it's still the only magazine of any kind that I buy, though I have found it difficult to find recently in stores. As much as I enjoy sites like these, that feeling of getting a new magazine and seeing what games were inside, or cheat codes and later on the demo discs on the front. Though these days cheat codes are £10 rather than a button combination.

It'll be a sad day when these are gone, I still miss the tv show too. Whilst we've definitely gained much in gaming over the years, I feel we've also lost some of what made it special in the first place

one thing i do miss about being in uk was the gaming magazines. but even then it was only ocasional pick up for train plane etc. But now with all the sites you have already read everything before they hit the shelves.

oh what a shame, i used to watch the TV show as a kid and now this is gone too, i still have some old issues of both magazines too, i will probably go out and buy the last issue as it's the last one but i understand why they have stopped, the internet really does kill everything lol

@leucocyte i stopped buying that a long time ago when they stopped doing demo discs, they were a good magazine but i'm surprised they have lasted this long tbh.

Aw no, this is very sad - really enjoyed both those mags. Really hope they don't close down Retro Gamer anytime soon!!

we are all the millennials that will still remember gaming mags while young kids of today wouldn't have a clue as to what they are lol

Been gaming 40 years and never bought a single issue of either.

I haven't bought Gamesmaster mag for years but I can understand that gutted feeling of having your fave magazine ceasing publication. I subscribed to PSM2/3 for years and was totally gutted when that stopped. I loved that magazine with Dan and the boys.

It was sad when CVG and Nintendo Official Mag shut down. Had been reading 'em for years. I still read both GamesTM and Gamesmaster. Hardly any mags left now. Wonder if Official PS Mag, Edge and Retro Gamer will survive. . . Possibly not.

My fav magazine, EGM, already shut down years ago

Still subscribe to GamesTM, it's my favourite toilet time reading. Bit distraught about this.

Such a shame, I used to always buy PlayStation magazines in the PS2 era, then OXM when Xbox arrived on the scene. I remember always going to the shop every week (or was it monthly?) to pick up a magazine that came out on the day and treat myself to a milkshake while reading it, did that for years till the internet took over.

I work for a printing company mainly printing newspapers and they reckon it’s only got about 2-3 years left till it closes down, further proof that printing is dying out due to today’s internet.

@FullbringIchigo I get you, I’m also over 30 and I would be embarrassed too buying a gaming magazine from a shop these days, not that I’m ashamed to be a gamer at my age since everybody who knows me know that I love my gaming. People could always subscribe and get it delivered to their door but most of us are past that now when we can get our gaming news on today’s internet. At least you have more courage buying an adult magazine, good for you.

Im gutted about this. For my money (and existing subscription) games tm are the best print mag going. Writing was on the wall when future bought imagine though given it will have cannibalised edge sales. The irony being that games tm is an infinitely more enjoyable read. I bet they try to move my sub to edge

Your Sinclair
PC Zone
GamesMaster (original run)

Awesome memories of rushing to newsagent and excitedly getting the latest issue of all three at one point, but haven't cared about magazines in a long time since official playstation magazine had demos.

Sad times but online is killing print.

In the Netherlands i always bought OPM but its gone too... 😢

I always loved reading it no disrespect here but there was always a little bit extra in those magazines.

PSW was my drug...

When that mag ceased to exist I moved on and never bought a mag after that, knowing it'll happen to all of them eventually.