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Ty Schalter (VICE, FiveThirtyEight) and Aidan Moher (WIRED, Vulture) review what rocked and what sucked about the classic video game magazines that inspired them to become professional journalists, authors, and...
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Ty Schalter (VICE, FiveThirtyEight) and Aidan Moher (WIRED, Vulture) review what rocked and what sucked about the classic video game magazines that inspired them to become professional journalists, authors, and critics—and what they can tell us about today's digital media and games.
New episodes drop every other Tuesday!
show less
New episodes drop every other Tuesday!
Episodes & Posts
Episodes
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Transcribed
10 MAR 2026 · We told you to ask us anything, and you did! Our Season 1 wrap-up continues with a special AMA/Q&A. From assembling our own ultimate mid-90s gaming mag Voltron-style to talking through how we handle offensive/problematic content, we answered all the questions you submitted via Discord and Bluesky!
As an extra-special treat, Ty also reveals the (published!) letter he sent in to Game Players back in the day. Cringe level: MAXIMUM.
As always, we streamed this recording session live to FunFactor ULTRA members–so if you’d like to get in on the fun, just sign up athttps://funfactorpod.com/! See you on the Discord, and you’ll see us when we next go live!Â
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work athttps://millenniumfalck.com!
Explicit
Transcribed
24 FEB 2026 · The grand finale of Season One is here! Our coverage of the 1995-1997 “Generation Gap” ends with a blowout review of (nearly) every (English-language print) review of Final Fantasy VII that we could find.
Starting with a quick look back at the first year of FunFactor, and discussion of what’s coming next, we then re-looked at the magazine we debuted the podcast with nearly a year ago, PSM No. 1.Â
We then went on to review, well, all of these reviews:
PSM 1: https://archive.org/details/PSM_Issue_001_September_1997/mode/2up
Ultra Game Players 102: https://archive.org/details/Ultra_Gameplayers_102_October_1997_U/page/n83/mode/2upÂ
The Duelist 21: https://archive.org/details/duelist-21/page/n105/mode/1up
The Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine 1: https://archive.org/details/Official_US_PlayStation_Magazine_Volume_1_Issue_1_1997-10_Ziff_Davis_US/page/n85/mode/2up
EGM 99: https://archive.org/details/ElectronicGamingMonthly_201902
NEXT Generation 34:Â
https://archive.org/details/NEXT_Generation_34/page/n53/mode/2up
GameFan Vol. 5, Issue 9: https://archive.org/details/GamefanVolume5Issue09September1997/page/n3/mode/2up
GamePro 46: https://archive.org/details/GamePro_Issue_099_October_1997/page/n49/mode/2up
EDGE 049: https://archive.org/details/Edge_Gaming/Edge%20Gaming%20Magazine%20051/page/n65/mode/1upÂ
Game Informer 53: https://archive.org/details/game-informer-issue-53-september-1997
Campus Life Magazine (partial text archive): https://cmnexus.org/magazines/Campus_Life/issues
As always, we streamed this recording session live to FunFactor ULTRA members–so if you’d like to get in on the fun, just sign up athttps://funfactorpod.com/! See you on the Discord, and you’ll see us when we next go live!Â
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work athttps://millenniumfalck.com!
Explicit
Transcribed
10 FEB 2026 · ISSUE LINK:https://archive.org/details/NEXT_Generation_36https://archive.org/details/game-informer-issue-53-september-1997/mode/2up
EGM DOCUMENTARY BY MY LIFE IN GAMING & GAME SACK:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E010OPY1Tzw
Everybody’s favorite* N64 game ever is here: GoldenEye 007! But did Game Informer’s weird four-voice feature review system capture all the excitement at release?
*if you didn’t have a PC capable of playing first-person shooters online, that is. Did Game Informer’s review capture the skepticism Aidan and Ty had of it at the time?
Longtime EIC Andy McNamara’s letter from the editor takes shots at other magazines that allegedly don’t really play the games they’re reviewing, and we dig deep into who he could possibly have been talking about.
We also shared our best, brightest memories of that “new console smell,” the console acquisition and unboxing experiences that have stuck with us most.
As always, streamed this recording session live to FunFactor ULTRA members–so if you’d like to get in on the fun, just sign up athttps://funfactorpod.com/! See you on the Discord, and you’ll see us when we next go live!Â
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work athttps://millenniumfalck.com!
Transcribed
27 JAN 2026 · ISSUE LINK: https://archive.org/details/NEXT_Generation_36
It’s time to review…the consoles??
NEXT Generation issue 36 marks the start of the magazine’s third year–and they’re not only calling winners and losers of the console generation the magazine was named after, this issue has leaks and rumors of the specs of the next-next generation! And then, wonder of wonders, they declare *the PC* the best console of the year!
That said, they also declare Lara Croft *the most famous woman in the world*, and we unpack a deep (and deeply cringey) interview with one of execs of the developer who created her. Then we reviewed their review of the SEGA Saturn!
Once again, we streamed this recording session live to FunFactor ULTRA members–so if you’d like to get in on the fun, just sign up at https://funfactorpod.com/! See you on the Discord, and you’ll see us when we next go live!
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work at https://millenniumfalck.com!
Explicit
Transcribed
13 JAN 2026 · ISSUE LINK: https://www.retromags.com/files/file/6814-pc-gamer-issue-037-june-1997
One of the world’s biggest, hottest developers took an unprecedented dive into the rich fantasy world of one of their beloved gaming IPs, and pulled strings to get its beautiful, hand-painted art onto the cover of PC Gamer.
So why didn’t it ever come out?
PC Gamer’s huge feature preview of WarCraft Adventures: War of the Clans had great art, full professional voice acting, and young Aidan holding his breath for a game that would never be released. He and Ty talk about the pain of canceled games, and review PC Gamer’s review of Magic: The Gathering (known as “Shandalar”) for the PC.
We streamed this live to FunFactor ULTRA members–so if you’d like to get in on the fun, just sign up at https://funfactorpod.com/! See you on the Discord, and you’ll see us when we next go live!
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work athttps://millenniumfalck.com/!
Transcribed
30 DEC 2025 · ISSUE LINK: https://archive.org/details/GameFan9700/GameFan%20Vol.%205%20-%2012%20%28Dec%201997%29%20Quest%2064/page/n112/mode/1up
MOLLIE L. PATTERSON'S OLD LETTER TO DAVE HALVERSON (she's since said she's cooled down quite a bit, and they're on better terms):Â http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/gamefan/fatbabies.txt
Don't let the extremely long intro discussion on journalism, writing, and editorial mentorship--something both Aidan and Ty are clearly passionate about--dissuade you from checking out our look at the December 1997 issue of GameFan!
It's a huge one for the magazine, as it's the one where founding/longtime/iconic/controversial editor Dave Halverson steps down to make way for David S. J. Hodgson. There's some clear leveling up of GameFan's fannish production from the first issue we did, but there are still plenty of wild decisions being made in pursuit of cramming the most magazine the staff at the time could.Â
It's also a huge time for our show, as we're wrapping up the first season and getting your feedback on what we're doing and where we're going next! Get on the Discord and let your thoughts be heard: https://discord.com/invite/5VBpWGSuz6
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work at https://millenniumfalck.com/!
Transcribed
16 DEC 2025 · ISSUE LINK: https://archive.gamehistory.org/item/9e656342-878a-4098-9f49-0ca4dc313cb2
It's a huge episode for a huge issue: EGM No. 100!Â
Aidan and Ty go through the magic of Christmastime gaming, before settling in to a nice long trip through this 100-game time capsule of how EGM's staff viewed the history of games at the time. Some such lists were made before, and many many many made since--but the choices they made say a lot about both themselves and the industry at the time.Â
And once again, we recorded it LIVE and ON-CAMERA for FunFactor ULTRA members! The edited video version is up at our YouTube Channel (https://www.youtube.com/@FunFactorPod), if you want to check it out.Â
And if you want to attend a recording session? Well, we hook up everyone in #the-ultra-lounge, the members-only channel of our Discord, with the dates, times, and stream links. Join now and get in on all the benefits--including ad-free episodes and bonus episodes! https://funfactorpod.com/
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work at millenniumfalck.com!
Explicit
Transcribed
2 DEC 2025 · ISSUE LINK: https://archive.org/details/official-u.-s.-play-station-magazine-volume-1-issue-02-november-1997
For the first time, we were ON CAMERA as we dug in to The Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine's hard pan of The Lost World, a beautiful and ambitious mess from Dreamworks that barely connects to the blockbuster Jurassic Park movie sequel it's an adaptation of. Check out the video on our YouTube channel! https://youtu.be/DRaYBvpndkkÂ
Are negative reviews like this one, as Ratatouille's Anton Ego said, "fun to write and to read?"Â As a Hugo Award-winning critic himself, Aidan has a lot to say.Â
We're working on a lot of the technical aspects of this, from getting zoomed-in shots of the content to getting Ty better framed in the video, but we'd love to hear your feedback! Join our Discord server and let us know: https://discord.com/invite/5VBpWGSuz6
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Sources include the Video Game History Foundation, the Internet Archive, Retromags.com, our original research, and our personal magazine collections. The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work at https://millenniumfalck.com/!
Transcribed
19 NOV 2025 · ISSUE LINK: https://archive.org/details/gamepro-issue-108-september-1997/GamePro%20-%20Issue%20108%20%28September%201997%29/mode/2up
Grab your whip, your holy water, and your PlayStation 1, because we're reviewing GamePro's review of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night!
We also get on one of Aidan's biggest hobby horses--2D graphics vs. 3D graphics, and whether the latter inherently beat the former--and ride. We had a ton of fun talking through the different biases that we (and different magazines, editors, and writers!) had when discussing the power of novel technology versus, and in the pursuit of, creative ideals.
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Sources include the https://gamehistory.org/, the https://archive.org/, https://www.retromags.com/, our original research, and our personal magazine collections.
The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work at http://millenniumfalck.com/
Explicit
Transcribed
6 NOV 2025 · ISSUE LINK:https://archive.org/details/NEXT_Generation_31/mode/1up
Great jumpin' ray guns, or some similar 1950sesque exclamation!
Captain Blasto, everyone's favorite James Bond-meets-Inspector-Clouseau-meets-Flash-Gordon, except make it a parody, and also it's Looney Tunes, superhero got a big, splashy cover and a huge preview spread in this issue--and why wouldn't it? A bold, new, original-IP action platformer from Sony's top U.S. studio, led by legendary programmer Dylan Cuthbert.Â
Except, well, it didn't turn out great--and the seeds of why it didn't were right there in the preview. How did they handle it? And how did WE handle how they handled it?? Listen to find out!!
We also go long on journalists' role in the PR hype cycle, then and now, as well as dig in to NG's big interview with Sid Meier, and super-ambitious feature declaring the six essential elements of great game design.
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https://gamehistory.org/computerentertainer/
Other sources include thehttps://archive.org/, https://www.retromags.com/, our original research, and our personal magazine collections.
The FunFactor theme, and all other original songs, are composed and performed by Millennium Falck. Check out his work at http://millenniumfalck.com/
Ty Schalter (VICE, FiveThirtyEight) and Aidan Moher (WIRED, Vulture) review what rocked and what sucked about the classic video game magazines that inspired them to become professional journalists, authors, and...
show more
Ty Schalter (VICE, FiveThirtyEight) and Aidan Moher (WIRED, Vulture) review what rocked and what sucked about the classic video game magazines that inspired them to become professional journalists, authors, and critics—and what they can tell us about today's digital media and games.
New episodes drop every other Tuesday!
show less
New episodes drop every other Tuesday!
Information
| Author | Ty Schalter |
| Organization | Michael Schottey |
| Categories | Video Games , Books , Tech News |
| Website | www.funfactorpod.com |
| funfactorpod@gmail.com |
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