Hello friends. In all the recent hubbub I have been moved significantly, and want very much for this vision of what a gaming magazine can be to succeed. This is my first post, so wish me luck.
OK, here goes:
*deep breath*
As I currently understand it, finances are tight. This shouldn't come as too much of a shock, since with the recession, less ad revenue and less membership subscriptions are par for the course. It is wholly unsurprising that an online magazine would be near the bottom of the list of most people's (and corporations') budgets.
With that one immutable fact in mind, The Escapist must now cope with either lowering costs, raising revenue, or both. While this is quite obvious, I feel that it would nonetheless be useful to discuss what the implications of this statement are:
On the cost-cutting side:
- A reduction in quality and quantity of content providers on the site.
- Less in the way of promotions, sales, and prize giveaways.
- Letting go of non-essential staff, meaning less reviews, articles, and editorials. In addition, if the moderators are paid, there is a chance some of them would be let go as well.
On the revenue side:
- More ads
- A bigger marketing push to buy escapist products
- More sponsored articles, or sponsored reviews of games
- Creating more pay-to-view content, i.e. ZP, LRR, "memebers-only" forum posting (a la Something Awful)
Those are just off the top of my head. All, some, or none could be implemented by the Escapist.
Now is the time for strict budgeting, and the trimming of fat from the Escapist's expenditures. When times are tough, the best thing to do is consult one's mission statement and ask "What does this entity stand for?" I feel that a refocusing on the core values of the Escapist might make some of the harder decisions easier to swallow.
To that end-
Again, as I understand it, the Escapist's mission is to be the "mouthpiece of the gaming generation" (I hope I got that right). If this is indeed a correct understanding I believe the escapist should:
-Cut down, or cease entirely, their objective reviews of video games and other media. There are plenty of sites that already do this, and it contributes little to achieving their mission. Now, content like ZP should be promoted, since it serves to improve the industry as a whole (to keep us from building submarines out of bread as it were). If a pay-to-view system were enacted for the most talented of these content producers, my hope is that money could be put back into the discovery and promotion of new talent (much like what the E is doing with the Jimquisition).
-Cut down, or cease entirely, the reporting of non-gaming news, and re-work the criteria for reporting it. What I mean by this statement is, rather then just report anything with a gaming tag in it (as many, many sites already do), the Escapist should ask itself, how can we use our reporting of gaming news to promote our mission (I hope you're noticing a theme here). For example, in my opinion, I do not think the Escapist has the resources or creative talent to make compelling previews of upcoming games that could seriously compete with the likes of IGN, nor do I think that such previews allow the Escapist to further itself as a mouthpiece of the gaming generation. Instead, perhaps report on the evil machinations of large video game mega-corporations (I'm looking at you Kotick) so that we can continue to call them out for their shenanigans. I envision a bright future for the Escapist wherein in builds on the success of proven brands like ZP and becomes a feared watchdog of the industry, thus causing in to improve itself and advance the medium as a whole.
At the same time, to refocus upon its mission, I believe the Escapist should promote its "serious" articles on the nature of what it is to be a gamer, to love a game, to create a game, etc. etc. etc. It is within these articles that I believe the Escapist can distinguish itself from the crowd of video game media, and indeed elevate itself to true greatness.
Was it not for these articles that the Escapist was first created?
In recent times however, more and more of the spotlight has been instead shown upon things like news, reviews, third-party content -- all things that I fear stray from what the Escapist's mission is. Within them, serious thought is put into a medium we cherish, thereby giving it new meaning and promoting the discussion of it within these very forums. By thinking and talking about video games, we gave them new meaning beyond a simple hobby or past time and give them the potential to be be something more, something, dare I say it, artful.
Finally, I would like to reaffirm my love for these forums. Goddammit Escapist, if you get rid of the fantastic moderators on here or scare everyone off with obtuse get-rich schemes, expect a firm finger-wagging from me. It is *so* hard to develop a community as good as this one, one where debate and discussion can occur on a more intellectual level. I believe that the forum will continue to be a firm anchor, and it would behoove the Escapist to continue or even expand their support of not only the forums, but their integration in to the site as a whole (by which I mean the fact that, for example, news articles are automatically poted to the news forum).
These are what I feel are the issues facing the Escapist, and my hopes for the future of the enterprise.
*whew* OK, somebody cut me a check.
