Nintendo Power: Shutting Down??

[agbulls]

If true, this is really the end of an era. Whether you like it or not, you can't deny the magazine's influence during its heyday.

Rumor: Nintendo Power Shutting Down
Mass layoffs and a new focus may close the curtain on Nintendo's official magazine.
by Matt Casamassina

May 14, 2007 - Hot on the heels of the news last week that Nintendo of America was planning to move a significant chunk of its marketing and sales departments from Seattle to either San Francisco or New York, IGN has learned that the company may be planning to close or restructure its official Nintendo Power magazine. Sources close to the publication tell IGN that mass layoffs are underway and that employees are being told to look for new work by September of this year.

Calls placed to Nintendo of America for comment went unanswered in time for publish.

Founded in 1988, Nintendo Power magazine has over the years faced an emerging threat from game-focused websites, which have the means to provide more timely news, previews, reviews, walkthroughs and cheats. Even so, the publication has maintained a loyal subscriber base.

Without an official confirmation one way or the other, we're still in rumor territory, but what is undeniable at this point is that the magazine is either undergoing a rebirth of some kind or is on its last legs.

IGN will continue to follow the story and update readers with more information as it becomes available.

[Snapple]

I read every Nintendo Power from the beginning up until issue 100-something. It's not exactly the best magazine for unbiased reviews, but it definitely was influential and entertaining back in the day.

I still think NP is the sole reason Battletoads became a success.

[boatofcar]

For better or worse, many of us who grew up with the NES have fond memories of Nintendo Power. I remember subscribing even before I got a NES! As many have correctly stated, NP wasn't the place to go for unbiased reviews, but their game strategy sections were the best of any magazine at the time by far. I still remember the first issue I recieved in the mail--volume 33, TMNT The Manhattan Project.

[heybtbm]

Nintendo has the top 21 titles in Japan right now...that's right, the top 21 selling video games are on the Wii or DS. Now think about how much could it possibly cost to keep publishing Nintendo Power? Lame Nintendo...real lame.

[chrisbid]

when they changed up their format a couple of years ago, i liked the direction they were going. they got snarky and it was an entertaining read. its a shame it didnt work, most people probably still think its as kid oriented as it was in 1990

[Sylentwulf]

They're moving all their offices, and it's a rumor, and they may be re-structuring their offices.

I HIGHLY doubt this is legit. Let alone the vast amount of cash it would take them to pay-off their current subscribers if left unfulfilled.

[GuyinGA]

I dug Nintendo Power and used to have TONS of issues of it. They never said any game on Nintendo systems were awful -- they were a few times they came close, but they would point out the good parts of the game. Nowadays, it's like 'oh, the graphics suck, this game's crap' (ahem, Game Informer and EGM).

And I loved those game guides that would have 50 games in each of them. The Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past one is my favorite.

[Damaramu]

Man, I almost bit on that 12 Issues For $12 deal when I registered my DS. Glad I didn't.

[Felixthegamer]

It's my fault, I just renewed. I kill things when I renew

[Aussie2B]

I don't know what's more upsetting, the idea that Nintendo Power could be going under or the fact that Nintendo is partially pulling out of Redmond. I have no idea why, but the game industry seems to be more and more rejecting Seattle. Personally, that where I'd like to live and find a career in upcoming years, so any decrease of presence of the industry there is saddening to me. I'm sure San Fransisco is nice, but I'd like to live in my home state.

Anyway, I must admit, Nintendo Power has been pretty disgusting to me since around the second half of the N64 life span and I've only caught occasional glimpses of it since then, but I have such a fond place in my heart for old school Nintendo Power. In fact, one of the things I'm most looking forward to doing to this summer is getting another crack at my Nintendo Power box that's stored at my mom's house and picking up with whatever issue I left off on (it was something near the beginning of the SNES life span).

[joshnickerson]

Son of a "b".

I've been subscribing to it since the SNES days. I'm hoping this is a fake rumor.

[diskoboy]

I have the first 24 issues, and all the Nintendo Fun Club Newsletters. I joined in 1987. I wish they'd have kept the club going.

Glad I held onto those things. If this is true, I smell $$$$$$ ;)

[calthaer]

Their promo items nowadays suck. Bonus discs, e-reader cards, and the like were cool.

Pokemon mangas, Wario stickers, and other cheap crap are not.

[gamegirl79]

Bah...I hope this is a false rumor. I've been reading Nintendo Power since it started. Okay nowadays I mainly just collect them, but back in the day I would read them so much the pages would be ripped and falling apart.

I liked those Howard and Nester comics in the early issues.

[PDorr3]

Dont forget guys this is just a rumor, until we get a solid answer this could have just been misunderstood or wrongly heard somewhere along the line.

I have never bought or subscribed to NP (unless it was a free subscription) for my gaming years, however I definitly appreciate the magazine for the 30 or 40ish issues that I have, even if there were a ton of filer strategy guide sections in it (atleast in older issues) it is still an entertaining read and would be greatly missed if this news was true.

[retroman]

I have every issue of NP from 1 in 1988 to now...As a kid i loved it. Then i grew out of the format that it used for years. Now i like the format NP uses. I never let the subscrp go because i collect to much stuff. I hope the news is not true.

[bangtango]

I dug Nintendo Power and used to have TONS of issues of it. They never said any game on Nintendo systems were awful -- they were a few times they came close, but they would point out the good parts of the game. Nowadays, it's like 'oh, the graphics suck, this game's crap' (ahem, Game Informer and EGM).

Even the old Nintendo Power issues would give you an occasional hint that a game may suck.

I distinctly remember an editorial-type piece from an earlier issue in which NP answered someone's question as to why certain games weren't reviewed. Their answer was that they tend to review the cool games and avoid the ones that are lame, which is why you saw mostly positive reviews across the board. In short, they said that if a game wasn't covered in Nintendo Power then it was safe to say the game wasn't that good.

(My thoughts: Of course that didn't stop them from devoting tons of pages to shitty games on a regular basis).

Besides, NP tended to use the opinion related pieces (monthly columns with random people) to get the word out about a bad game or two. Like that short lived one in the early 90's where those 2 dudes used to review games, then eventually they replaced it with something else where games also got reviewed. So they could take shots at a game but it was in the form of a column and that meant it didn't necessarily reflect the opinion of NP or the editors.

[vintagegamecrazy]

Sad to see more of the game industry drying out but I don't miss the new ones. They are too biased and I don't like the layout and style at all anymore.

[Push Upstairs]

I haven't read a NP since like issue 50 (my subscription ran out at 48 but I bought 50 for the GB Zelda coverage).

[lendelin]

It wouldn't surprise me if the rumors were true. If an avid NP collector like me who has every issue minty mint since volume 1 did not renew his subscription for the first time in 19 years, and decided not to get another issue despite his first game experiences are associated with NP, something bad happened. I expected something like this for some time now.

Nintendo Power changed its layout and content around a year ago, but it was too little too late. NP missed to address a more adult audience, tailor its articles towards a new generation of young gamers, and step out of its roots which made it from 1988 to 1996 one of the best magazines around. Its shortcomings during the NES and SNES times were actually its greatest strenghts at the time; for a couple of years now the shortcomings are just that...weaknesses.

The demise can only partially be explained by the Internet and other resources gamers use which is a big hurdle for every print mag nowadays. NP did not go the route of GameInformer which was in the last couple of years vastly superior to NP, and is still today by far the best mag around. Period. GI proves that print mags aren't doomed if interestingly done. Articles about game projects which address important aspects of game design, economic issues of the industry, and lots of other interesting departments of the mag made it a great read while I spent fifteen minutes tops with NP. GI also listened much more closely to the Internet -- to boards like ours and addressed in their print mag issues articulated online.

However, please don't make the NP of the past a biased, kid-oriented mag. It wasn't. NP could afford to have strict review grades based on the dominance of the NES and the incredible SNES. Its greatest strenghts by far was the guide approach with detailed maps which put avery other mag to shame and made every issue a guide for various games. NP was the perfect mag for its time -- not a more "innocent" time of the business, but a time which could be presented more innocently than it actually was.

NPs demise has certainly been viewed also under the aspect of diminishing marketshares of Nintendos consoles, and the dominance of the handheld games -- both trends were obstacles to tailor the mag towards an older demographic. I remember well the N64 times when the terrible lack of third party support made it a "preview"-mag becasue there were not a lot of games released (and the review gardes became more lenient); but the GC was in much better shape, and NP did not make enough of it. Little pics, small reviews, for some great games GI and other independent mags delivered more mouthwatering reviews and previews than NP. NP needed a big restructering five years ago, the modernization for around a year now was too little too late.

If the rumors are true or not -- there is no doubt in my mind that NP is in bad shape; how much economically is the big Q, but certainly in bad shape under a journalistic aspect.

[BocoDragon]

Wow... I just started collecting Nintendo Power this week :D I guess it's easier to get them all if I don't have to keep up with new ones. (am I in for a big fight finding any issues by the way? I don't care about Fun Club newsletters...)

I agree with the nostalgic poster above: It was all about 1988-1996. That's actually when my subscription ran out was 1996... the N64 era of the magazine was always pretty lame when I leafed through it on newsstands.

And I actually kinda understand what you mean about the weaknesses of today being strengths back then..... I read EGM as well (the best in straight game journalism in the early 90s by far), but NP offered something magical and fun every time it came in the mail. There was always some interesting comic or feature. (cards/catalogs, etc)

[DigitalSpace]

NP isn't what it used to be, but I still hope this is just a rumor.

Why can't this happen to GamePro? Every time I read something from them, I wonder if they hired the author from GameFAQs.

[BocoDragon]

NP isn't what it used to be, but I still hope this is just a rumor.

Why can't this happen to GamePro? Every time I read something from them, I wonder if they hired the author from GameFAQs.

Wow.. is GamePro still around?

My 1992 self could have told you that mag needed to die.

[Ed Oscuro]

Nintendo Power changed its layout and content around a year ago, ...
Again?

[Icarus Moonsight]

My crystal ball tells me restructure over termination by a ratio of 99 to 1. :D The announcement in the NP June issue of Sinfield relocating to New York and dropping to a contributing writer from writer/editor is somewhat telling as well. Nintendo is too controlling of a company to let ALL coverage be held outside the company. I think Nintendo Power (the magazine title) may fade away but, will be replaced by something equally Nintendo.

This topic reminds me of how much I miss Gamers Republic. *sniff*

[Push Upstairs]

Why can't this happen to GamePro? Every time I read something from them, I wonder if they hired the author from GameFAQs.

Protip: Puns in game reviews are lame.

[Oobgarm]

It's hard to gauge my feelings on this issue, if true.

I was a subscriber since the Fun Club days, having only missed the first two issues of it. I remained a subscriber up through issue 120. That's a shade over nine years of getting the same magazine, considering the first couple years of NP were bi-monthly.

Nintendo Power as I know it has been dead for quite some time now. Quality really started to decline right around the time they decided to remove the spines from the books. Yeah, they put them back on not long after, but that was the first sign that Nintendo had concerns about the future of their magazine. When intrusive ads began permeating the pages, that was the dealbreaker for me. I understand that they needed to generate some extra revenue, and every other magazine is filled with them, but their inclusion removed a great deal of the charm that NP had. It just seemed like every other book at that point.

I applauded their redesign. It was well done in just about every aspect, especially with the retro and community areas. When I renewed for a year, thanks to some promo offer, I actually enjoyed getting them in the mail again- even if I really only read those two aforementioned sections. I enjoyed getting it in the mail again, a sign of a good publication.

If it does go by the wayside, I'll briefly mourn the loss of an old friend, but I would completely understand why it happened. I am actually kinda surprised that there is a market for first-party propaganda mags these days, especially with the intertubes being as prolific as they are.

[diskoboy]

Wow... I just started collecting Nintendo Power this week :D I guess it's easier to get them all if I don't have to keep up with new ones. (am I in for a big fight finding any issues by the way? I don't care about Fun Club newsletters...)

You may have trouble finding issues from the first year or so.

For a long while, the magazine was subscription only. Fun Club members got first dibs. And I think the fist few issues were exclusive to the fun club members (I may be wrong on this)

And you actually should look for the fun club newsletters. They were very well done, with the exception of the fist few.. They were almost exactly like NP magazine, but alot less pages. Usually about 30, tops. Those are super difficult to find, becuase they were members only. And I'd only part with mine if I was about to go homeless.

[BocoDragon]

You may have trouble finding issues from the first year or so.

For a long while, the magazine was subscription only. Fun Club members got first dibs. And I think the fist few issues were exclusive to the fun club members (I may be wrong on this)

And you actually should look for the fun club newsletters. They were very well done, with the exception of the fist few.. They were almost exactly like NP magazine, but alot less pages. Usually about 30, tops. Those are super difficult to find, becuase they were members only. And I'd only part with mine if I was about to go homeless.

Thanks for the info. Yeah, NP was subscription only in Canada until about the N64 era, when they started putting ads in.. I don't know if it was subscription only in the States for that long as well.

I've been finding NPs here and there... I'm thinking that the people who collect magazines are very rare indeed... so I think I have a shot at whatever issues are lying around in most people's basements. In any case, it's all just fun anyway, a lightweight collector's hobby :)

I spose I didn't want to collect the Fun Club stuff because I thought it would be impossible... but it looks like they're for sale here and there. Based on their 1987-88 dates, there couldn't have been more than one volume (year) I'm thinking...

[WanganRunner]

Weak!

I just subscribed, lol!

I wonder if they'll refund.

[Gentlegamer]

I subscribed to Nintendo Power in the late NES to early SNES era. I moved on when I realized how little value a house organ full of useless photographed "level guides" had.

[rbudrick]

Wow. I've had a subscription since the second Fun Club News. The magazine is hit and miss, but in general, they have had content no one else had. It is hard to imagine a videogame world without NP.

As someone mentioned Nintendo would seem to be the last company to leave their news up to 3rd parties. That would just be weird.

I would definitely miss this mag, having read tens of thousands of pages of it.

-Rob

[PentiumMMX]

It would be sad if NP was shut down. I've been reading since 1998 (A few months after getting my N64), and now I have a decent collection of issues from 1989 to today.

I got a Subscription in 2001 (So I could get a guide for Donkey Kong 64), and I had a subscription for a while last year (3 free issues for registering 3 games at Nintendo.com).


I liked those Howard and Nester comics in the early issues.

Yeah...I also liked the Super Mario Adventures comics.


Why can't this happen to GamePro?

Yeah. I tried reading an issue from around 2001, and they where all "ZOMG t3h maddenz is l33t!!!!!!!!111shift+1!"

[Icarus Moonsight]

NP becoming a Wii Channel? It's not even a rumor but, it is a possibility. Makes complete sense so chances are low that it will actually happen but, anyway here's the link:

http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2007/05/column_game_mag_weaseling_mag_21.php