Christian Cawley is a writer and editor who covers consumer electronics, IT, and entertainment media. He has written for publications such as Computer Weekly, Linux Format, MakeUseOf.com, and Tech Radar.
He also produces podcasts, has a cigar box guitar, and of course, loves retro gaming.
The first women-owned and operated video game magazine, Computer Entertainer (also known as The Video Game Update), is now available to read online thanks to the efforts of the Video Game History Foundation (VGHF).
The Video Game History Foundation (VGHF), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, has engaged in a US-wide quest to locate and digitize every issue of Computer Entertainer, which ran from 1982 until 1990.
Why archive Computer Entertainer?
Of course, many publications from the past require a rigorous digitization archival project. So what makes Computer Entertainer significant?
Owned by sisters Marylou Badeaux and Celeste Dolan, Computer Entertainer was the only console magazine to survive the 1980s US-focused video game crash, and as such is a rare source of information about the industry during that era. So significant is this publication that it may be the only English-language outlet to cover Super Mario Bros. on the game’s release.
“I often call the period between 1985 and 1988 the ‘dark ages’ of the home console game industry in the U.S.,” said Frank Cifaldi, the founder and Executive Director at the Video Game History Foundation. “Games and even entire systems were still technically being released, but without an enthusiast press to cover them, we don’t have a lot of insight into what people thought. Computer Entertainer gives us an incredibly rare glimpse into the rebirth that would define the industry as we know it today, and we are incredibly proud to offer the magazine in its entirety to everyone as a public utility.”
Here’s Frank explaining more about this project:
Free to access under an open Creative Commons license, all issues of Computer Entertainer are searchable in the VGHF’s digital library, as are other publications.
What’s in the Video Game History Foundation archive?
The VGHF’s Digital Archive contains over 3,000 full-text-searchable out-of-print video game magazines. These boast never-before-seen artwork, video, and promotional materials from past trade shows. Other media is included, such as behind-the-scenes materials, like footage from the production of Cyan’s classic 1993 adventure game Myst (over 100 hours!). The VGHF recently added materials from the collection of Craig Stitt, who designed Spyro the Dragon and more. Meanwhile, nearly 400 trade magazines have been added to the archive, publications that were previously only available to retailers and industry professionals.
“Making Computer Entertainer openly accessible is part of our commitment to saving video game history,” said Phil Salvador, library director at the Video Game History Foundation. “By preserving and sharing rare materials like this magazine, we’re continuing to grow our digital library into a one-of-a-kind research tool that we believe is changing how people study the history of video games.”
You can read Computer Entertainer in the VGHF’s digital archive now, and learn more about this collection in the VGHF’s blog. Behind the scenes details of the publication are shared by Marylou Badeaux in the VGHF’s podcast on this archival project.
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Christian Cawley is a writer and editor who covers consumer electronics, IT, and entertainment media. He has written for publications such as Computer Weekly, Linux Format, MakeUseOf.com, and Tech Radar.
He also produces podcasts, has a cigar box guitar, and of course, loves retro gaming.
