Not a review of Full Void
When a PR company reached out to me asking about coverage for a new indie game titled Full Void I was sympathetic, but also extremely non-committal.
My email response was something along the lines of, “The game looks cool. But it’s not really what this site is about. Maybe if the devs wanted to write a short piece about their favourite gaming reviews back in the day I could work with that, but we need an angle to make this work.”
I thought that would be the end of it. So I was a little surprised to hear back a week later with a written piece from Ali Motisi - Producer and Lead Developer at Out Of The Bit games - about his favourite magazines growing up. And you know what, it’s really good.
So while I can’t vouch for the game, if Ali’s response below is any indication I’m sure the game is thoughtful, entertaining, and inspired by genre classics. You can learn more about it here.
Ali Motisi on his favourite gaming magazines
I still remember the first time I saw a gaming magazine. I was at my cousin’s house; he had a Commodore 64 and invited me to play some games with him. Up to that point, I had only seen computers in films such as Explorers and TV series such as Knight Rider. I was mesmerised by the Commodore 64. As we waited for the game to load (Rambo on cassette!), we went to drink some milk, and he showed me some gaming magazines he had bought. He had a bunch of copies of this new magazine called Zzap! I started flicking through the pages, and I was hooked. I loved it! The previews, the reviews, the banter! I never owned a Commodore 64, but my cousin was kind enough to let me play his and read associated magazines.
A few years later, I managed to save enough money to buy an Amiga 500. At that point, I started buying magazines regularly. My absolute favourite was The Games Machine, a magazine that started in 1988 and is still going today in Italy!
As a kid, I was never a great writer or reader. The love for gaming magazines changed that. I learned so much, not just about games, but also about pop culture in general. The magazines expanded my horizons and introduced me to so many things, such as the demo scene, programming, and the people behind the games. I especially loved the previews. I enjoyed the feeling of anticipation and looking forward to the next game from my favourite software house. Some of my best memories are connected to previews of games from Lucasfilm, Sensible Software, Bitmap Brothers, Bullfrog Games, and Team 17.
I vividly remember the preview about Beneath a Steel Sky in The Games Machine; they showed some of the concept art behind the game and some of the illustrations upon which some screens were based. That made a big impression on me and inspired me to work with talented artists later in my life.
Another feature that made a big impression was the Team 17 development diaries in The Games Machine. I loved how the team members went to the pub and talked about the games they were designing. The idea that a small team of people could combine graphics, animations, music, sound, and programming to create something so cool really opened up my mind. There are so many memories; I can still trace back what I was doing when I read specific issues of my favourite gaming magazines.
I still enjoy gaming magazines to this day and am happily subscribed to Amiga Addict, and I also buy Retro Gamer regularly.
