So I return to reading The Escapist after a long absence to discover... no more PDF option? What the helling Hell is this?
WT(PD)F?! Or, What Happened To The Escapist?
- Thread starter BrainFromArous
- Start date
Recommended Videos
No, that's why I brought it up.Crap_haT said:
More seriously, the magazine format and PDF accessibility of TE made it stand out in a sea of "Webulized" online games-journalism slop. And now that's gone?
BrainFromArous: See [a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/editors_note/786-Editor-s-Note-Pens-Paper-and-Pretzels]here[/a] for the kick-off and discussion surrounding this when it first happened.
Crap_haT: Unless you've been lurking far longer than you've been registered, you have no idea what you've missed, and you're probably better off for it. No, it's not a problem for you, but it may be a problem for BrainFromArous.
Crap_haT: Unless you've been lurking far longer than you've been registered, you have no idea what you've missed, and you're probably better off for it. No, it's not a problem for you, but it may be a problem for BrainFromArous.
Israel Kamakawiwo'ole is awesome. You SHOULD be able to edit your comments to redact whatever you thought better of, but it's essentially a moot point now anyway.
I never really was into reading the internet like a peice of paper. Other than that statement, I have no argument.
Thanks for the link.Geoffrey42 said:
Having caught up...
GODDAMMIT.
No more PDF. No more magazine-style. So now it looks and functions like every other gaming website out there.
Another example of fixing what wasn't broken.
Oh well, at least the Yahtzee stuff is funny.
And they know it. The Yahtzee clip is bracketed by adverts, including one which "sticks" for a while EVEN AS THE CLIP PLAYS.John Galt said:
Also, just in case you didn't know which website you were on, there is an Escapist URL stamped along the top edge of the frame throughout the entire viewing. Not when the follow-on ad appears, of course, because we know what matters at The (New) Escapist.
(With that ID stamp, The (New) Escapist has reached the lofty heights of the presentation standards of broadcast network television. How delightful.)
I strongly suspect this is why the PDF format was dumped. You can only sell ad space once on a PDF or printed page. Every time you view or print the page... same ad. But when people have to visit a web site to read the content, well... they sky's the limit.
It's a goddamned shame, no matter how you slice it.
And yes, the Yahtzee reviews are funny. But they could be hosted anywhere. Think about it. They could be on 1UP or GameSpot or a FutureNetwork site and not one single thing about them would have to change.
So what does it say about The (New) Escapist that it's biggest draw came wholly from outside the site and has nothing to do with the site's own writing?
BrainFromArous, I'm not sure what impression you were under previously, but my understanding is that the Escapist has always been in this for the money. It is a business. The people working here may very well love what they do, but in the end, the goal is to make a decent living, and support themselves and their loved ones.
If the PDF format was dumped because it was no longer a sustainable business model, then so be it. I may miss it for its artistic quality, but I'm not going to hold a grudge against them for trying to be profitable.
As per Yahtzee, while I may not be a fan of many of the people that Yahtzee has brought here, again, I don't fault the Escapist for seeking a wider audience. While you criticize them for bringing him in when his content could be anywhere, I see it more as the Escapist recognizing an obscure talent in Mr Croshaw, and coming up with a mutually beneficial arrangement. This is much the same way they came by their other content produces (heretofore known as writers). Recognize talent, provide said talent access to a larger audience, earn income off of audience being drawn to talent. Plus, I think Yahtzee's content is fairly high-brow sometimes, even whilst being low-brow, and occasionally over the head of his adoring fanbase. I think that aspect of him fits quite nicely here, and if you haven't already, I suggest checking out some of this games, because it turns out he's pretty good at making those too.
If the PDF format was dumped because it was no longer a sustainable business model, then so be it. I may miss it for its artistic quality, but I'm not going to hold a grudge against them for trying to be profitable.
As per Yahtzee, while I may not be a fan of many of the people that Yahtzee has brought here, again, I don't fault the Escapist for seeking a wider audience. While you criticize them for bringing him in when his content could be anywhere, I see it more as the Escapist recognizing an obscure talent in Mr Croshaw, and coming up with a mutually beneficial arrangement. This is much the same way they came by their other content produces (heretofore known as writers). Recognize talent, provide said talent access to a larger audience, earn income off of audience being drawn to talent. Plus, I think Yahtzee's content is fairly high-brow sometimes, even whilst being low-brow, and occasionally over the head of his adoring fanbase. I think that aspect of him fits quite nicely here, and if you haven't already, I suggest checking out some of this games, because it turns out he's pretty good at making those too.
I will if that goal eclipses all others. Aesthetics aside... if we're talking business, let me speak as a customer.Geoffrey42 said:
The whole point - the value for me as a customer - of this "business" was to have a distinctive, magazine-styled site for smarter gamers. Something which evoked and recaptured the glory days of NextGen, CGW, Computer Games or even old worthies like Softalk - yes, that's how far back I go. Something which pointedly did NOT resemble, in content or presentation, every other lame-ass gaming website out there.
And now that's gone.
And while The (New) Escapist has not sunk to the depths of eye-breaking atrocities like 1UP, that distinctive value is gone.
Inevitable? Perhaps. The cold truth is that "smart" things don't last terribly long. Perhaps there was no other way this could have played out. More's the pity.
Also, I do not
so much as note Croshaw's ascendancy over the organic (for lack of a better word) content and what that betokens.
It's similar to how everyone I know who still reads EGM immediately flips to the back to catch Hsu & Chan and Rest of the Crap. Then they drop the mag in the "put aside" pile and read the actual articles and reviews later, if at all. While I'm glad EGM carries those two features, you can't help but notice that the best stuff currently in the mag comes from the two people - Jeremy 'Norm' Scott and Sean 'Baby' Reilly - who did NOT come out of the Ziff-Davis/1UP hivemind.