PlayStation: The Official Magazine
1940-0721 |
PlayStation: The Official Magazine (PTOM) was a magazine originally known as PlayStation Magazine (PSM), becoming PlayStation: The Official Magazine in late 2007. PlayStation: The Official Magazine was published 13 times a year by Future plc until its cancellation in late 2012.[1][2][3]
PSM's UK-based partner magazine, PSM3, was another Future publication.
History
PSM: 100% Independent PlayStation Magazine
Prior to becoming the official magazine, PSM was an independently published
The magazine launched with the September 1997 issue, which featured
PSM celebrated ten years of publication with its 2007 issue. By this time, the magazine had been through several redesigns, most recently with its June 2006 issue. Also over its history, the magazine had sponsored side content such as
PlayStation: The Official Magazine
After
The last issue published under the PSM title was that of December 2007, becoming PlayStation: The Official Magazine with the following Christmas 2007 issue. While it did retain the same staff for a period of time lasting from December 2007 until January 2008, it eventually lost its remaining core editors, making PTOM a completely different magazine from the former PSM.
Due to the same setbacks that caused the cancelations of other video game magazines published by Future (mostly prominently Nintendo Power), the magazine ceased publication after 15 years (5 as PlayStation: The Official Magazine) with its Christmas 2012 issue.[1][2][3]
Mascots and promotion
In the beginning, PSM had an anime-style mascot named "Banzai Chibi-Chan", created and illustrated by Robert DeJesus. He was featured prominently in early issues and even inspired apparel and other accessories. He was later dropped, with the supposed reason being that the character was too childish and gave some the wrong impression about the magazine's intended audience.[citation needed]
A
Some lid-stickers promotionally featured characters from PlayStation games being covered in the magazine. Other inserts included PlayStation memory card label stickers featuring visual themes similar to the lid-stickers, as well as video game tip sheets, instead of the demo discs that then-competitor Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine was known for.
As PTOM, from the July 2008 issue to the June 2009 issue, the magazine included promotional codes for free downloads of Qore, a subscription-based interactive online magazine for the PlayStation 3, available through the PlayStation Store. These free, promotional editions of Qore did not include some of the features available in the paid-for edition, such as playable demos. PTOM also had promotional pullout-style posters from time to time, to help advertise upcoming video game releases.
References
- ^ a b Santos, Alexis (7 November 2012). "PlayStation: The Official Magazine being shuttered, will say farewell with holiday issue". Engadget (Joystiq). Retrieved 6 December 2012.
- ^ a b Reilly, Jim (6 November 2012). "PlayStation The Official Magazine Closing". Game Informer. GameStop Corporation. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
- ^ a b Conditt, Jessica (6 November 2012). "PlayStation: The Official Magazine shut down, final issue this holiday". Engadget (Joystiq). Retrieved 5 November 2016.
- ^ "Archived version of PSMPodcast.com". Internet Archive. Archived from the original on 2008-09-14. Retrieved 6 December 2012.
External links
Archived PlayStation: The Official Magazines on the Internet Archive