No More 2 Page Screenshots!

[ivarf]

How hard is it to get the photos done properly? It is not so uncommon for retrogamers to have lots of systems available. Surely a magazine could be able to do the same.

[Tabe]

*sigh*

So you want Retro Gamer to cost a lot more, have less pages and not be published monthly then?

Exactly how would using multiple screenshots to fill the 2 pages instead of one giant pixellated one cause the mag to have less pages?????

Tabe

[Dave300]

Like it or hate it I think it's a bit unfair to say that it's being lazy when clearly so much effort has gone into the rest of the mag. The one bit of criticism I will give though is that the text to the left of the screenshot(s) is often really small when there is so much margin around it - makes me squint a little. Can you up the font size by one point and use more of the white please RG!!

[merman]

*sigh*

So you want Retro Gamer to cost a lot more, have less pages and not be published monthly then?

Exactly how would using multiple screenshots to fill the 2 pages instead of one giant pixellated one cause the mag to have less pages?????

Tabe

Articles cost money, either in wages for the full-time staff (Darran and Stu, plus the designer) or payment to the freelancers who write it. Replacing the DPS with more written content would cost more money. I didn't say that the multiple shots would cost more money, but the time and effort put into that would be better spent elsewhere (at least in my opinion).

[Jet Pilot]

*sigh*

So you want Retro Gamer to cost a lot more, have less pages and not be published monthly then?

Exactly how would using multiple screenshots to fill the 2 pages instead of one giant pixellated one cause the mag to have less pages?????

Tabe

Articles cost money, either in wages for the full-time staff (Darran and Stu, plus the designer) or payment to the freelancers who write it. Replacing the DPS with more written content would cost more money. I didn't say that the multiple shots would cost more money, but the time and effort put into that would be better spent elsewhere (at least in my opinion).

[MikeFishcake]

It would also be cheaper if it was printed on matt a4 paper with the pages hand-stapled together, but the presentation is one of the many aspects that make the mag great. It's not just about the information, it's about the way it's displayed.

If it was just a list of facts displayed in a linear fashion with identically sized screenshots, it would be boring.

It's not fanzine amateurish, it's not Edge-waffly, it sits comfortably in between.

[Gabe]

A thought has occurred to me (shut up, it's not that rare)... how about using a DPS for the format comparisons a lot of people want? You could have the same part of the game from Spectrum/Amstrad/C64 and see how they differed in terms of graphics...

Articles cost money, either in wages for the full-time staff (Darran and Stu, plus the designer) or payment to the freelancers who write it. Replacing the DPS with more written content would cost more money. I didn't say that the multiple shots would cost more money, but the time and effort put into that would be better spent elsewhere (at least in my opinion).

These statements contradict each other - having multiple screenshots of the same game (whether the same format or multiple formats is irrelevant) takes more time, which costs more money.

[merman]

No, they do not contradict each other, read carefully. What I said was that the EFFORT put into doing multiple screenshots (by Darran, Stuart and the designers) could be more effective elsewhere. REPLACING a double-page screenshot with more articles is what would cost more money.


Let me add a personal example that I hope makes it clearer.



I spent about 2-3 hours putting together this image, mixing the opening section of the three 8-bit versions of Rick Dangerous. It was fun to do, but got virtually no feedback.

[Gabe]

A thought has occurred to me (shut up, it's not that rare)... how about using a DPS for the format comparisons a lot of people want? You could have the same part of the game from Spectrum/Amstrad/C64 and see how they differed in terms of graphics...

Having shots from ALL the different versions instead of the lazy* Double Page Shots is a very good idea. I like it a lot!

*Lazy - It is F u c k i n g lazy to take digital shots from an emulator and blowing it up out of all proportions. If it was an picture from an analog CRT-monitor/TV they shots would have looked a hell of a lot better. In the old days double page shots looked good because they used these pictures taken from analog sources. Later on (late 80s early 90s) "tecnology" took over and we got these digital prints that Retrogamer is still using today. They DO s u c k and it is very L A Z Y by Retrogamer doing this.

*sigh*

So you want Retro Gamer to cost a lot more, have less pages and not be published monthly then?

Exactly how would using multiple screenshots to fill the 2 pages instead of one giant pixellated one cause the mag to have less pages?????

Tabe

Articles cost money, either in wages for the full-time staff (Darran and Stu, plus the designer) or payment to the freelancers who write it. Replacing the DPS with more written content would cost more money. I didn't say that the multiple shots would cost more money, but the time and effort put into that would be better spent elsewhere (at least in my opinion).

I'm just going by the above quotes, where you suggest something and then seem to argue against yourself when somebody agrees with you. A DPS with 1 picture will be less effort and cost than multiple pictures, so what am I missing?

[merman]

Look, it's straightforward

DPS with 1 screenshot - takes a little time and effort, and not much cost
DPS with multiple screenshots from the same game - takes more time and effort, no extra cost
DPS with screenshots from multiple formats to do a comparison - takes more time and effort, but no extra cost
DPS with photo images from a real screen - takes a lot more time and effort, and maybe the cost of getting the game/hardware
Replacing DPS with article - COSTS MONEY

[Popcorn]

I like the 2 page screenshots, when you hold them at arms length they look cool, and its fun to move it closer and see how pixelly the games are..

[The Master]

I like the 2 page screenshots, when you hold them at arms length they look cool, and its fun to move it closer and see how pixelly the games are..

One of us... one of us...

[Gabe]

Look, it's straightforward

DPS with 1 screenshot - takes a little time and effort, and not much cost
DPS with multiple screenshots from the same game - takes more time and effort, no extra cost
DPS with screenshots from multiple formats to do a comparison - takes more time and effort, but no extra cost
DPS with photo images from a real screen - takes a lot more time and effort, and maybe the cost of getting the game/hardware
Replacing DPS with article - COSTS MONEY

But as already I've said, in most businesses (and I doubt magazines are an exception), TIME = MONEY on some level. Ergo taking more time to do it costs a business in some way. Unless you don't believe that to be the case?

[TMR]

But as already I've said, in most businesses (and I doubt magazines are an exception), TIME = MONEY on some level. Ergo taking more time to do it costs a business in some way. Unless you don't believe that to be the case?

Retro Gamer has a set rate for a DPS spread which isn't based on how long it takes to produce; if a freelancer produces one that uses nine screenshots stitched together they'll still get that same rate regardless of how much extra time and effort is involved.

[Gabe]

But as already I've said, in most businesses (and I doubt magazines are an exception), TIME = MONEY on some level. Ergo taking more time to do it costs a business in some way. Unless you don't believe that to be the case?

Retro Gamer has a set rate for a DPS spread which isn't based on how long it takes to produce; if a freelancer produces one that uses nine screenshots stitched together they'll still get that same rate regardless of how much extra time and effort is involved.

I am happy to be corrected on that, thanks.

Presumably though if Stuart or Darran do it (who I guess are on a fixed salary), my original point is still valid. Though I shall not continue to be an arse and carry on talking about it.