Key Takeaways
- Game Informer employees found out about the firings through social media, with no prior notice.
- The magazine faced abrupt closure, even though the next issue was 70% complete.
- GameStop acquired Game Informer in 2000, but struggled afterwards and the magazine was forced to close.
If you grew up a gamer, whether your favorite games were on an Xbox, PlayStation, or Nintendo console, you’ve undoubtedly read Game Informer at least once. One of the most original and unique video game magazines has been around for 33 years.
After exploring a second, third and fourth life, Game Informer is officially closing up shop. What’s worse than the end of the publication/website is that when management actually decided to officially close the doors, no notice was apparently given to employees.
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Following the announcement, several employees expressed shock.
Game Informer management announced that the magazine was officially shutting down in a social media post titled “Final Steps: Farewell to Game Informer.” The post began by announcing the magazine’s demise after 33 years of print and online editions, and then a return to print.
The announcement came as a shock to Game Informer readers, but more importantly, the closure also came as a surprise to many of the company’s employees, some of whom claimed on social media that the company didn’t inform anyone of their layoffs, and only found out their jobs were gone through a Twitter post.
Alex Van Aken, lead video editor at Game Informer, revealed after the initial announcement that some of his colleagues still don’t know they’ve lost their jobs.
“Some staff still don’t know what’s going on, but someone higher up leaked the news via Tweet. I’ll have something to say later today, but yes, everyone at Game Informer was fired about an hour ago.”
Content director Kyle Hilliard echoed Van Aken’s comments, saying that not only did GameStop suddenly shut down Game Infomar, but it did so even though the next issue was “70% complete.”
Other employees quickly took to social media to express their frustration and surprise over the closures and job cuts, while GameStop did not specifically address Game Infomar’s claim that it had notified employees in advance before reopening to the public.
GameStop first acquired Game Informer when it acquired Funcoland in 2000. Initially, the magazine was conceived as an added perk for those who purchased a GameStop Pro subscription.
But as video game retailers struggle, so do magazines. In January, GameStop reportedly dropped its print edition, only to bring it back with a standalone subscription for $19.91 in honor of the year the magazine was launched. But just five months after that decision, Game Informer was officially shut down.
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It’s unclear exactly how publishers will proceed going forward.
