When it comes to the cover of most gaming magazines, they typically use a picture of a popular video game character as the main image. The main coverline is usually the name of the game that the character in the main image is from and something about the game in smaller text under it. Coverlines are typically placed around the main image where there is negative space. The articles in video game magazines, the main things magazines cover are reviews, interviews with game creators, highlighting games that are going to release, discussion about the video game industry, and in the 90s guides and tips on video games. Typically, writers use gaming terms such as devs, mods, indie, AAA (or triple A), glitch, and UI. The content is used and formatted in a way that captures the target audience, usually coinciding with the majority of videogame players which are young males below 35 but more recently females as well.
PC Gamer is another popular gaming magazine that focuses on, you guessed it, PC games, or games played on a personal computer. PC Gamer also talks about pc gaming related devices and products to maximize a computer's efficiency. PC Gamer's cover always has the masthead in the same font, size and color and usually the main image is overlayed on top of the masthead to make the character in the main image seem larger than life. PC Gamer can do this because they have an established brand and are well known. The main coverline is usually the title of the game from the cover image with the title of the article under it. The magazines have two puffs on the cover, one in the bottom right corner always has the title of an article about pc gaming related devices, such as air coolers and graphics chips, the other puff talks about an article inside the magazine. The other coverlines are placed in the corners of the cover. The placement of the masthead at the top of the paper as well as the multitude of coverlines on the edges of the cover show that this is a magazine intended for American audiences because magazines are displayed with the left half of the cover shown in Europe while in America, they are displayed with the top of the cover shown.
The target audience of PC Gamer is mostly adult men around the age of 20 to early 30s, this is because the magazine focuses on games that use a personal computer and often recommends costly computer hardware, which would require a job to buy. The cover of the magazines appeals to this audience with its detailed artwork, and complex yet consistent layout.
The gaming magazine, Edge, uses a more minimalistic style which typically consists of the large main image, the masthead EDGE, and a single main coverline with an occasional list of the other coverlines or no additional coverlines at all. Edge always puts its selling line "The Future of Interactive Entertainment," under the masthead, and has the edition number and date released in a puff at the bottom. Covers typically use a bright color in the cover or grayscale but always emphasize contrast. Edge magazines usually have exclusive interviews with developers, reviews of games, and at times exclusive first looks at games not yet released.
The target audience of Edge is primarily young people from 13-24 because the majority of video game players are in this age range. The bright, dynamic, and simplistic aspects of the covers appeal to this younger audience. The contrasting large masthead catches young audiences' attention.
Charlie512. “Codes and Conventions of a Gaming Magazine.” SlideShare, 21 Sept. 2015, www.slideshare.net/Charlie512/codes-and-conventions-of-a-gaming-magazine.
Filipstojcic. “Gaming Magazine.” SlideShare, 28 Jan. 2016, www.slideshare.net/Filipstojcic/gaming-magazine-57593615.
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