Game screenshots for various systems please

[Bub&Bob]

Going forwards, it would be cool if when featuring a game you show screenshots from a good chunk of the systems the game was available for. Driller is obviously the most recent example but I'm sure there have been
others.

In fact, for all games that are featured, a system comparison page (or at least a half-ish page box out) would be very nice. Doesnt even have to be anything time consumng, could just be a screenshot followed by a quick opinion piece from one of the writers.

[ianpmarks]

I agree with all of the above.
If a game was on multiple systems then we should see what it looked like on those systems. The recent Driller article was an excellent read, but just lazily populated with ZX Spectrum screenshots, and a couple of token Amiga ones.
Firing up an emulator takes seconds... it's not like you need to plug in the original machine and take a photo off the television.

[Sputryk]

If it is down to time constraints why there is no real variety, a quick word with a trusted Forumite to provide a few random pics on the hush-hush by such-and-such a date would be feasible, would it not?

[Hiro]

Totally agree, it often happens that screenshots from only one or two machines are covered, with the Spectrum being way too favoured (e.g. I remember saying this about the Myth feature looking almost a Spectrum exclusive).

[necronom]

I've mentioned this lots of times, and kept quiet lots of times, so I'm obviously a supporter of anything that gives us a few more comparison pics. The Frontier one only showing PC shots was a particularly annoying one recently, for me. It made it look like it was just a PC game, when it was a big deal to me that it was an Amiga game. It was ported to the PC by someone else.

[merman]

I just posted in the feedback thread, but I'll reiterate here - it can be a challenge to provide a range of good screenshots from multiple formats.

There are real time constraints, and co-ordinating other people would be a nightmare.

I try to provide the range of formats, particularly when a game is most famous/originated on one machine. But there is no easy way to get every screen you need. We can't grab just grab them from the Web (and many games have few if any shots online).

[flatapex]

there have been articles that I have noticed (I don't tend to remember who wrote what, I apologise) with multiple system screenshots, and believe me when I say its very much appreciated, along with information about which conversions were good/bad. This sort of information can ensure someone like me that is playing a game for the first time can ensure they buy the best version possible.

A particular example would be the super off road article in issue 141, my favourite game ever which i own on 3 different formats (I know, I know), but the article was useful in showing me if I should invest in more, likewise the lemmings article in issue 140

[Darran@Retro Gamer]

We'll do what we can to get a better range of shots in the mag going forward. It's not always possible to get them all in, but we will aim to rectify this from issue 144 going forward. I don't like being accused of bias, particularly as a cpc fan, but I can understand why owners of certain systems get upset.
Personally, even four pages of driller is too much in my book, but then, I don't make the magazine for me, otherwise it would be filled with shmups and strider every issue

[Greyfox]

If some of the freelancers want to contact me with assistance in acquiring screen shots I can help them with it, at least they'll have the correct aspect ratio and in native pixel resolution for article insertion.

Messages on a post card

[Gryzor]

Personally I'd like even more depth in some articles... of course you run the risk that if the Driller article was 8 pages long people who aren't interested automatically skip 8 pages, but with lots of articles it feels like they've been a wasted chance because they feel shoehorned into a small number of pages.

[Darran@Retro Gamer]

Personally I'd like even more depth in some articles... of course you run the risk that if the Driller article was 8 pages long people who aren't interested automatically skip 8 pages, but with lots of articles it feels like they've been a wasted chance because they feel shoehorned into a small number of pages.

I'm sorry you feel like that but we're making a magazine and unfortunately, you're very limited for space. If you want a 12-page article on the likes of driller fanzines and websites are your best bets, because they're far more likely to go into that depth. If you're a good writer you don't need to shoehorn anything in.

Retro Gamer has to appeal to a insanely wide audience who all want their own systems covered in the magazine. The only way you can do that is by getting as many different articles into the mag as possible and as a result some will be shorter than others. We've also had readers complain that some articles have gone to deep on games they don't care about, so there's that as well. Basically it's impossible to keep every single reader happy because they all expect different things from the magazine. We're a commercial magazine though so that's where our focus would be.

[Gryzor]

Oh I know, I pretty much said so myself.

Case in point: *cough*pokemon*cough*

[Darran@Retro Gamer]

One man's CPC is another man's Pokemon.

[TheDude18]

Another vote for system screenshots here.

As kids, we would tend to stick to one computer or console per era. So seeing other screenshots or where possible comparisons between various systems is always an eye opener and a great read for me.

[paranoid marvin]

If you're comparing versions of a game, then screenshots from various systems is pretty much a necessity. If however it is just an article about a certain game in general terms, then for me it doesn't matter which machine shots are featured; otherwise where do you stop, especially if a game was released on lots of systems? I'd rather have more space devoted to the writing of the article than trying to get in screenshots of all the different formats, unless there's a good reason to do so.