Manci Games reviews "Video Game Collector - #2"
Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends. This is the first time yours truly has sat back at his good 'ole MG desk to do a review since the unpublished (at least as of now) issue #3 of Manci Games. Alas, here we are.
I skipped out on reviewing VGC #1 for obvious reasons. I probably wouldn't have been as objective that close to the end of MG. Also, I wanted to give the title an issue or two to build before doing what us know-nothings do best: review.
That being said, I'm here to tell you guys (and gals), there's a lot to like with VGC. And like any publication, there's also some problems. Let's get to it...
General things that struck me about VGC were as follows: Great paper stock. It smells absolutely fabulous. I have sort of a fetish for good smelling paper, and this paper rates! On the downside, it's comic-book sized, which leads to a sort of fanzine-feel as you hold it in your hands. I'm hoping that the plan is to eventually expand this sucker into the proper magazine format because this mag deserves it.
Maybe the smaller size is used to disguise the fact that the covers for both 1 and 2 have been atrocious. This mag is aimed at newsstands and should have a newsstand look. Not so. It's virtually unreadable, and the name of the mag is almost undecipherable. Fix this pronto guys. You're target is the mass market. People like happy shiny covers, not this busy type of thing you've got going on now.
Open the page though, and it's like a different magazine. Mad props go out to the graphic designer of this mag. The page borders are awesome. Congrats on those. Some might say the rest of the layout is boring since it's really the same exact thing on each page, but it's simple, uncluttered (you seeing this, cover page?), and readable.
The overall feel of the editorial content is decidedly juvenile in some parts. This is quite surprising as, again, this mag is aimed at an older market. Let's nix references to "the worlds bitchin'-est arcade," and cut out any further Jar-Jar inspired "moolah" anecdotes. And while we're at it, get rid of some of the "oh look, I'm really cool" picture captions. With some of these captions, I had the distinct impression that they were supposed to be funny, but...they just weren't. Maybe they were just over my head?
I'll wrap up the general overview by mentioning that there are quite a few grammatical and typographical errors. Big picture wise, the editors need to learn what a comma should and should not be used for. Also, someone might want to look up the definition of "run on sentence," because it seems to have eluded their collective memories. Specifically, check out the review of "The Flintstones" for more than your fair share of typos, grammar errors and misprints. On the other hand, this is to be expected. It's only VGC's second issue, and it takes time for a mag to catch its groove and work out the bugs, especially when you've got a rookie EIC.
Okay, now let's talk specifics. I say, deep-six the "news" and spend the pages on meatier content. Nothing is really newsworthy enough for a print retro gaming mag. That's what the net is for.
The action figure article was a highlight of the mag. Well written, well edited, and well related. Good stuff here. I actually have one of the figures in the pictures, so I have a soft spot for this piece. My only criticism would be that it needed some quotes from a toy-maker or two. Get that next time, and pieces like this will rate a perfect 10. Bravo.
The game reviews ran the gamut from good to downright boring. Some of Meston's stuff read like an instruction manual. I'm glad I know what kinds of presents I can get in ToeJam & Earl, but is the game any fun to play? Without the rating (Great!) at the top of the page, I'd have no idea. There is no feeling or emotion in any of the Meston reviews. They are informative, to be sure...especially if I've lost my instruction manual. But I want more from my reviews. Enter Geoffrey Miller. He shined in Manci Games and shines once again in VGC. Easily the best writing in the mag. Here's an easy fix: Let Miller and a couple of other writers like him write more, and have the editors spend more time doing what they are supposed to be doing: editing. You've got a great thing going. Now take it up a notch.
Next up is the first of the Manci Games deja-vu sections. Nevermind the fact that some people discounted the Steve Woita cover story when it showed up on Issue #2 of Manci Games. I guess that although Mr. Woita's story isn't that great (according to "them"), his contributions a regular columnist is fine and dandy. Well, I couldn't agree more. Woita throws out an excellent piece that gets you into the mind of a game developer in a very personal way. Hopefully, this trend will continue and we'll see more great stuff like this in future issues.
Manci Games deja-vu #2: The "Made in Japan" section bears the same writer and premise as an old MG section, but the format is much different. Instead of focusing in on one game, we're treated to a potpourri of different imports. While this is a great way to educate the people on the various imports available, it made for some pretty scatter-brained reading. No meat. Trim the fat and give us more vitamins, fellas! This column can be good, but you've got to find its focus.
Manci Games deja-vu #3: The "Timeline" section casts previous MG contributor Leonard Herman in his best possible light. This guy is a virtual machine, and there's no better way to use a machine than to have it spit out data. Lenny is a walking encyclopedia of game information, and this bullet format, while dry, is quite entertaining and informative. Next time though, give the column a title or short intro. I had no idea what I was reading about until three bullets in.
The Collector's Spotlight is a great idea that VGC should get kudos for. These guys make the hobby. Let's let them get their picture and collection in a mag and give them their 15 minutes. While I don't think the mainstream audience VGC is going for is going to care about someone like good 'ole John Keys, most gamers will.
I'm a bit confused by the Twin Galaxies Scoreboard. I think there's probably about 200 people, tops, who will care about something like this. And maybe 10 of them will ever see this mag. Then again, maybe I'm crazy. Well, I'm crazy, but maybe I'm wrong...
Now Homebrew Haven is not what I expected. They admirably took the homebrew scene in a different direction than the standard MG set. Instead of featuring a game (or two...or three!), this issue featured an article on how to download a ROM and manufacture your own cart. This is fascinating stuff...but what about the games, man? Where's the designer spotlights? The homebrew reviews? Copy MG! I don't care! I just want to see what games are out there and how good they are.
The Market Watch section was really interesting. Maybe it's the accountant in me coming out, but I love reading up on what games are going up, what games are going down and which ones to stay away from. Great job on this section, fellas.
Manci Games deja-vu #4: The Price Guide is put together by none other than our own Joe Santulli and friends. I'm glad MG was able to give them two issues to sharpen their claws before they jumped into VGC.
Ahhhhh, the price-guide. In conversations I've had with the Shawn Jones, the publisher of VGC, I've come to realize that this is the meat of VGC. This is why VGC was meant to be published. Without a doubt, it's a work of art. Though the font is tiny, they actually were able to pull off a fairly comprehensive price guide that is easy to read, fun to look at and is informative. There's a reason the guide takes up over half the mag, and that reason is focus. If you want a great quarterly price-guide, this is your product.
The final section is entitled "The Last Quarter" and is written by David Ellis, a noted arcade game collector. This column was well written, fact-filled, and fun to read. Keep David around for awhile. And ask him where I can score a sit-down Star Wars Arcade game!
Well, that's it. The official Manci Games review of Issue #2 of VGC. And I thought I'd never review anything ever again! This was actually kind of fun. Maybe we'll invite Jamie Starr back for a romp, too?
'Till next time fellow gamers...
Originally Posted by ManciGames
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