Following GameStop’s abrupt announcement that it would beryllium shutting down Game Informer aft 33 years — which includes GameStop making each of the enactment connected Game Informer’s website vanish and reportedly laying disconnected the full unit — radical crossed the video crippled manufacture are sharing their tributes to the gaming magazine.
“As idiosyncratic who grew up poring implicit each issue, it was specified a thrill and an grant to spot our games grace Game Informer,” said Neil Druckmann, caput of originative astatine The Last of Us developer Naughty Dog and an enforcement shaper connected the deed HBO show. “Sad that specified a staple of our manufacture is present gone. Good luck to everyone involved. Your enactment volition beryllium missed.”
“Thank you for what you person brought to the video crippled industry,” said the authoritative Konami relationship connected X. “We volition ne'er halt fondly reminiscing astir waiting for that adjacent contented to get successful the mail. Your bequest and interaction volition everlastingly remain.” The accounts for Discord, Cyberpunk 2077, Assassin’s Creed, Metacritic and X Gaming saluted Game Informer, too.
Many are reminiscing astir Game Informer’s fantabulous covers, which often had beautiful, customized art. Kit Ellis, who worked astatine Nintendo for much than 13 years successful selling and PR, highlighted however the Game Informer squad pushed Nintendo to marque astonishing creation for this The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild cover:
“I retrieve however excited we were to get this screen up of The Witcher 3 launch,” said Michał Nowakowski, the associated CEO of CD Project Red. “Game Informer was determination successful the precise aboriginal days of the manufacture and it is hard to ideate this volition beryllium nary more.”
Radek Grabowski, CD Projekt Red’s planetary PR director, besides highlighted large covers for Borderlands and Fortnite. “This is video crippled preservation, which deserves recognition,” Grabowski said.
Current and erstwhile staffers are expressing their sadness, too.
- “I’m heartbroken — it was my imagination occupation — but my bills don’t care,” said erstwhile pb video shaper Alex Van Aden.
- Former exertion Wesley LeBlanc posted astir present being retired of a occupation while coming location from a enactment trip.
- “We were astir 70% done with the adjacent contented and it was going to person a GREAT cover,” said former mag contented manager Kyle Hilliard.
- “All of our features connected Game Informer... just... gone,” said Liana Ruppert, a erstwhile staffer who near successful 2021. “Some of my favourite enactment I ever did was implicit determination and that’s conscionable maine – bosom is breaking for the folks that person been determination truthful overmuch longer, poured truthful overmuch of themselves into it conscionable for it to beryllium taken distant with ZERO notice. How is this ok?”
- “As idiosyncratic who was determination astatine contented 1 and spent astir of their beingness warring and scratching and clawing for GI, it breaks my bosom to spot it end,” said Andy McNamara, a erstwhile editor-in-chief who was astatine the work for 29 years.
- “Heartbroken and angry,” Andrew Reiner, different erstwhile editor-in-chief, said successful a post. “Most of my big beingness was spent astatine Game Informer. All day, I’ve been remembering astonishing moments I had with the squad — immoderate of the astir talented and kindhearted radical I’ve ever met and was fortunate capable to enactment with. End of an era, but GI forever!” (Shuhei Yoshida, who erstwhile led Sony’s worldwide crippled studios and present heads up its indie initiatives, replied: “Unbelievable! Thank you for each the years of astonishing sum and friendship. GI lives successful our representation forever.”)
Some are scrutinizing the shutdown connection itself, which was not written by Game Informer staff, according to Kotaku’s Ethan Gach. Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier observed that ChatGPT was capable to constitute a beauteous akin message to the 1 that was really posted.
GameStop didn’t respond to a petition for comment.
Below, we’ve embedded a video interview from 2016 with erstwhile Game Informer pb editors McNamara and Reiner astir the origins of the magazine.