Keep up the great work!
Atul Varma[/strong]
To the editor - First of all, let me congratulate everyone involved with The Escapist on producing a fantastic piece of editorial journalism. To my mind, the magazine encapsulates the tone and thought-provoking subject matter that the best (and generally now defunct or mutated) print magazines produced in the last few years. The only thing I can imagine might add to the experience would be a forum of some sort, to discuss each article (with appropriate moderation to avoid discussions degenerating too far). However, as you seem to be styling the magazine as an internet- distributed print magazine, perhaps this is inappropriate. Finally, the notion of having a single game or product advertised in each issue is a good one, and I wish you the best of luck in securing some top-quality sponsors.
I have only one (minor) criticism, related to the "Gamer Like Me" article by Jennifer Buckendorff. As a major article in the high-profile first release of a flagship magazine, I can't help but feel it's a little unwise to mention "the kid who only plays GTA after school - and loves it". In the current climate of gaming coming under heavy fire (in many cases for adult games being sold to minors), this could be misinterpreted. Perhaps I'm being over-sensitive - I play GTA and enjoy it greatly, and haven't yet felt the need to release my latent gaming-borne rage onto society... Still, if you plan to be held up as a publication that celebrates the greatness of gaming, perhaps extreme sensitivity to these sorts of public issues (however wide of the truth they may be) is in order.
Anyway, congratulations again on a fantastic first issue; I look forward to a long series of interesting articles to read.
Simon "Rolphus" Rolfe[/strong]
To the editor - I just learned of your online publication via a post on slashdot regarding the article, "Culture Wargames," by Kieron Gillen. It is probably the best essay I've ever read dealing with gaming as a new medium.
I was quite pleased to discover the high quality of content throughout the issue and that the editorial direction of the publication will fill a void in gaming publications since the days of Nintendo Magazine: that of the adult, educated individual seeking more from their reading than the latest press release/new game info. Fortunately now that a whole generation of gamers has grown up, you have an audience large enough to support the more esoteric essays that lead to more thoughtful conversation around the watercooler than the "holy crap, you shoulda seen the move I pulled last night" variety.
Thank you for a great read. I wish you much success with the new publication.
Rob
Kansas City, MO
