Electronic Gaming Monthly (or EGM for short) took Kickstarter by storm last October with a surprising and incredibly successful campaign promising a meticulously curated retrospective book titled The Electronic Gaming Monthly Compendium. Covering the history, innovations, and lasting legacy of EGM as a publication, this compendium looks to be an essential item for any game lover’s collection. This book is still under development, notably a couple months past its estimated fulfillment date (that’s Kickstarter for you), but one of its add-on items, the EGM Digital Archive, launched into Beta access earlier this month.
Currently only accessible by Kickstarter backers, the EGM Digital Archive features high definition reproductions of all 264 issues of EGM, published from 1989 to 2014, which can be read online and will eventually be able to be exported via PDF. While all of these issues are currently available publicly in a few places, such as through the Video Game History Foundation, the EGM Digital Archive manages to elevate the reading experience through its addition of thorough, concise summary pages for each issue which quickly survey the coverage within, including review scores, features, and previewed games, alongside quick links to navigate right to those specific pieces of content. In addition, the entire archive is now indexed and fully searchable, making it incredibly efficient and easy to comb through EGM‘s historical coverage for any specific topic.
As someone who did not necessarily grow up with EGM (or physical video game publications in general) but has taken a keen interest in retro gaming and video game history in recent years, paging through EGM on an issue by issue basis has been enriching and enlightening to say the least. The creativity and passion that went into the writing within these issues is immediately apparent and being able to witness the evolution of video game journalism as a whole with such ease has been an overall delight. The basis of video game culture as a whole can be found within these pages and immersing myself within them has given me a refreshed outlook on the video game medium itself as well as the culture surrounding it. I’ve already spent over a dozen hours within this digital archive, either blindly flipping through issues or searching out specific reviews for my favorite classics, and plan on sinking in many more.
Even in its Beta form, The EGM Digital Archive does an impressive job preserving decades of material that was vital in shaping the video game industry as well as the culture surrounding it. The added modernization features ensure that this archive is an accessible and easy means for enthusiasts of all generations to delve into the history of the medium. In my opinion, this is a fantastic example of how video game history should be preserved and I only hope many other legacy publications such as Nintendo Power or Game Informer follow EGM‘s lead in the near future.
What do you think? Do you plan on utilizing the EGM Digital Archive? Which legacy publications would you like to take a similar approach? Head on over to the Boss Rush Discord and tell us your thoughts!
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Featured Image Source: EGM (via X)
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