For many fans, the shuttering of Nintendo Power back in December 2012 was the end of an era. The magazine had been a constant source of Nintendo news and information since 1988, and it introduced a whole generation of fans and aspiring writers to the field of games journalism. While nothing could ever truly replace Nintendo Power and the fond memories it carries, some of most prominent Nintendo journalists on the Internet banded together to continue the magazine’s legacy with their own bi-monthly publication, Nintendo Force, and released its very first issue one month after Nintendo Power shut its doors.
Since then, our friends at Nintendo Force have been handling subscriptions and renewals through yearly Kickstarter campaigns, but this year they’ve switched over to a more fitting model for the publication, Patreon. Within four days of launching their 2016 subscriptions, Nintendo Force has already cracked the top 120 most-supported Patreon projects ever, and they don’t seem to be slowing down! The first issue for new subscribers will be the magazine’s 20th, “30 Years of the Legend of Zelda,” which will launch in March.
Nintendojo alum Evan Campbell and I are very grateful to be a part of the publication, along with some of the most well-known writers in the field. If you have fond memories of Nintendo Power or simply enjoy reading video game magazines, consider subscribing to NF! You can become a Patron of NF right here, and if you’d like to check out some of the magazine’s back issues, you can order them through the NF Store.
What an awesome magazine! As a day-one subscriber, Nintendo Force has truly filled the gap created when Nintendo Power shuttered its doors.
This may sound cheesy (sappy? overly dramatic?) but when Nintendo Power announced they were finished, my oldest son was only a year old and I was disappointed he wouldn’t grow up looking forward to an actual physical Nintendo magazine arriving in the mail box. However he now looks forward to NF magazine every other month! (there’s a digital option too.)
I continue to be impressed with each issue as they are both familiar and innovative in their design/format. The whole “labor of love” thing really shines through on each page. And the two sided posters! Okay, I’ll stop before I start to sound like a door-to-door magazine salesman. But do yourself a favor and click on the “right here” link above, scroll down and check out the collection of gorgeous covers.
Here’s to a successful Patreon campaign and many more years of NF Magazine.