Opening
Bibliographic Information:
GamePro /
(founded) by Patrick J. Ferrell
ASIN: B005BZJUAA/ International Data
Group (IDG)
p. 92 / $ 3.95 (Amazon)
2011 (July issue)
Body of Content
Summary: The
magazine is largely a review source for video games – across a host of game consoles. Each issue holds a wide variety of reviews –
with this issue looking more closely at the following games – “The Lord of the
Rings: War in the North” – “Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City” – “The Elder
Scrolls V: Skyrim” – MMA Supremacy” – “Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One” – Tomb
Raider” – and “Game of Thrones” – among others (p. 3). The magazine also contains a few articles
dealing with the video game culture – for lack of a better idiom. These articles refer to trends in game
design, self-construction of a PC unit, and video game classifications – with
interviews of game designers and industry experts as part of the write-up.
Critique: Whether
it is a book or a magazine, the author(s) have an intended audience for their
work. Often, in the case of magazines,
if someone looks at the advertisements, then they can decipher a great deal
about the intended readership. Looking
at GamePro, it is clear that younger
males comprise the key demographic.
One ad from Digital Storm for a specially-made gaming
computer shows a computer tower – in ominous red light – with a chain of
bullets draped across the tower – with the headline reading “DOMINATE your
opponents” (p. 21). Another ad markets
the Blu-ray version of Battle: Los
Angeles – an action-based alien invasion movie – with the review headline
“Pure Adrenaline” (p. 17). Further, an
ad for a fantasy game reads “He’d love to wake up next to Nina” (p. 50). The ads present a consistent message that
males – heavily interested in hot technology, violent action games, and sexual
innuendos – demonstrate their chief demographic.
Teaser: “All the latest game news, reviews, and cheats that a
serious gamer could ask for!”
Information about the Author: In
1988, Patrick J. Ferrell started the magazine with Leeanne McDermott, his
sister-in-law. Early contributors also
included a husband-wife duo of Michael and Lynne Kavish within the design
aspects of the magazine. The founders
teamed with a major publisher – IDG – and settled in various Bay Area cities
(San Mateo, San Francisco, and Oakland) over the years (Wikipedia, 2011). In a 2002 news article, industry
experts reported that GamePro held 3
million monthly subscribers – mostly to a male teen demographic (Business Wire,
2002).
Supplemental Material
Genre: Gaming
Curriculum Ties: Technology – video games
graphics, game design, game theory
Booktalking Ideas: 1) How
does GamePro’s review of a game stack against other industry standards like GameSpot? 2) “See the feature article on
the newest addition to the Elder Scrolls
franchise!”
Reading Level: GamePro is a
thoroughly young adult selection – read highly by teens 13-19 … and even a few
procrastinating college students.
Challenge Issues and Defense: Some games are rated-M for
Mature audiences – even though the magazine contains a heavy teen
audience. Although the magazine does not
contain a high amount of objectionable material, some parents may feel that it
pushes, advertises, influences, etc. teens towards such titles for
purchases. The best defense is not one
of exclusion from the collection – but rather to tactfully inform parents that
they still hold parental rights over what product purchases their teens make –
instead of asking for censorship of the collection.
Personal Reasons for Inclusion: I
wanted a resource for males in the magazine format that countered the
female-heavy Seventeen magazine.
Last Thoughts
References:
Business
Wire. (2002). Find articles [Webpage]. Retrieved from http://findarticles.com/
p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2002_Sept_23/ai_91910470/
Wikipedia.
(2011). GamePro [Webpage]. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GamePro
Listening to (Music):
Artist – Leeland / Album – “Sound of Melodies”
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