I recently finished reading a book and the acknowledgements section was just a QR code. I dutifully scanned the code and read the thank-yous on my phone instead of on paper, but it got me thinking. What happens when that website eventually goes down? When the publisher eventually decides that it can’t afford to host a different website for every book it refused to print acknowledgements for?
I don’t understand the logic at all. Whatever short-term printing savings could be made would surely be offset by server or hosting costs for the site. And we’ve been constantly reminded in recent years that the internet is anything but permanent.
Gaming websites are shuttering with alarming frequency. Some sites are gutted and repurposed, like Kotaku. Others have wholesale layoffs that leave countless journalists in the lurch, like Dot Esports. Some close down entirely, like GGRecon or The Loadout. Google is as much to blame for this as the executives of the companies themselves, but, whoever’s at fault, it’s not a good sign.
That’s why we need to return to physical media. Not only are good journalists losing their jobs, but entire swathes of work are being expunged from existence. That great interview with your favourite developer you always reread for inspiration? Gone. That classic review for a top game that’s been memed to oblivion? Disappeared. I’ve had to download physical copies of countless articles because websites have shuttered and my work would have otherwise been lost. This doesn’t happen with physical media.
That’s not to say that physical media is in a good place. Play magazine (formerly Official PlayStation Magazine) and Game Informer, two titans of the industry, have recently stopped printing. This is a crying shame, and despite the fact that Game Informer was difficult to get hold of here in the UK, some of the interviews and writers there were the best in the business.
At least we can still read those classic interviews, though. If you have a physical copy of Game Informer, no executive is going to break into your house and burn it because they ceased printing and killed the website. That’s yours now, to reread whenever you want. You can just about do the same using the Wayback Machine – I go back toBlake Hester’s interview with Tango Gameworks’ Kenji Kimura and Masato Kimurawhere they explored the streets of Shibuya whenever I need professional inspiration – but even that isn’t set in stone. The Internet Archive has been the subject of lawsuits and DDOS attacks in recent months, and it seems likely that the site, one of our only methods of preserving online culture, will have to shut down. What then?
Luckily, some companies are returning to their physical roots. Lost in Cult publishes unfailingly high quality tomes that dissect the intricacies of game design. I’ve pored over their beautifulSable Design Works book, have Citizen Sleeper on the way, and it’s just announced it’s applying the same treatment toThe Outer Wilds. It sure knows how to pick ‘em.
I wonder, too, why Ikumi Nakamura decided to publish herurban exploration photojournal Project UrbExas a physical book rather than a blog, as is the norm these days? There’s a wonderful tangibility to physical art. Vinyl records are coming back for the same reason.
The latest company to do this is EGM. Electronic Gaming Monthly was a titan of print and online games journalism, and unfortunately shut its doors just as I was making my way into the industry. A piece I was working on with them was dropped and, while I’m thankful it found a home elsewhere, I’m gutted that I didn’t get the chance to be a tiny part of the historic magazine’s impressive legacy.
The Electronic Gaming Monthly Compendium is a physical history of the iconic magazine. It includes archive material (all those articles we didn’t fully appreciate as kids) as well as new contributions from more than 32 EGM alumni, a host of game developers, and more.
EGM isn’t coming back. Print media isn’t in a good enough position to warrant that. But it’s incredibly heartwarming to see theEGM Compendium’s Kickstarterhit its target in hours, and quadruple that ambitious number just 24 hours after launch. By the time you read this, it’s probably more. People want to read these classic features, people want something they can hold in their hands and keep forever.
Now more than ever, it’s important to own your media physically. Whether that’s video games or the journalism that covers them, virtual copies could be ripped away from you at any moment. Buy physical. Support those who make the things you love. Reject modernity. Embrace the past. Own the things you paid for.
