David Hayward recalls another classic games magazine of the 80s and beyond
Going against the distinctly partisan grain of 80s technology magazines, Computer & Video Games was the first multi-format gaming publication. It first appeared as far back as November 1981, a time when there were very few home computer gaming magazines. It remained on newsagent shelves until 2004, when its owner turned its full attention to the web-based incarnation.
C&VG stood out from the beginning; it originally cost 75p (around £2.90 today, apparently) and provided around 100 pages of reviews, features, ads and all manner of tips, tricks and cheats. This all came enclosed within elaborate covers, addorned with a large logo. More impressively, it was one of the first magazines to publish pages upon pages of BASIC listings for homebrew games, sent in by readers, for a variety of different home computers – and who can forget the Golden Joystick Awards?
The first issue claimed that the magazine was there to help push the boundaries of the reader’s imagination, much like the programmers who were coding the latest games for the limited machines of the time. It looked at home computers, the actual machines, early consoles, as well the arcade machines you could find at your local seedy arcade or in the pub.
You could get paid as much as £10 for submitting a review, with more on offer if the game happened to be one of the more popular titles. Yes, I did send in some copy, but sadly it didn’t make the cut. I was only eight at the time and a tad inexperienced when it came to writing.
Its History
C&VG was launched by EMAP, with Terry Pratt at the helm as editor and stayed under Its ownership for nigh on 20 years. Then, in February 2001, Dennis Publishing (Micro Mart’s owners) bought it. At that time, C&VG was selling around 45,000 copies and had just launched a website.
A few years later Future Publishing acquired the title and attempted to mould the the magazine to better accommodate the new generation of consoles and gaming. However, in October 2004, the print side of Computer & Video Games was finally laid to rest and the focus was shifted to the internet side of things. This proved a healthy place for Britain’s longest running games magazine and, as such, the traffic was enough to keep the name, if not the magazine, going.
Unfortunately, early 2014 saw Future undergoing a restructure, which earmarked C&VG for closure. Thus, on 26th February 2015, the C&VG site was closed.
The Good
It covered a range of hardware and even arcade technology. Program listings, in BASIC and even in Assembly later on.
The Bad
It often felt a little lacking in concentrated content. That’s the nature of trying to deal with covering multiple, very distinct formats, we imagine.
Conclusion
It’s sad to see a magazine close, and C&VG’sclosure was particularly heart-wrenching.
Did You Know?
• Melissa Ravenflame never actually existed, despite the rivalry between ‘her’ and the other ‘Girlie Tipster’, Hannah Smith, from Crash.
• Julian Rignall and a few other notable names worked for C&VG in the past.
• The Golden Joystick Awards first appeared in 1982/3, with winners including Manic Miner, The Hobbit, Ah Diddums and Jet Pac.
• In the first issue, you could win a cocktail Space Invaders cabinet!