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 The March 2009 issue ofYour guide to... mobile games byPocket Gamer | |
| Editor | Dann Sullivan[1] |
|---|---|
| Categories | Video games |
| Publisher | Steel Media Ltd |
| Founded | April 2005; 20 years ago (2005-04) |
| Company | Steel Media |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Website | pocketgamer |
Pocket Gamer is avideo gaming website and former print magazine that focuses on mobile, portable and handheld games. It was launched in 2005 by Steel Media Limited.
The publication covers portable andmobile gaming formats, including iPhone, iPad, Android, Nintendo Switch and others. Steel Media has created many brand spin-offs, including the industry-facingPocketGamer.biz site and a series of conferences called Pocket Gamer Connects.
Launched in April 2005 with the subtitle 'play as you go',Pocket Gamer set out to provide professional editorial coverage of mobile and handheld gaming formats which they saw as the future of gaming. At launch the site focused on mobile phones (java and brew), the NokiaN-Gage, Nintendo'sGame Boy series as well as the then newly launchedNintendo DS. They also mentionedPDAs and handheld console pretenders such asGizmondo and theTapwave Zodiac. TheSony PSP was added to the site soon after. When the Apple iPhone arrived in June 2007, followed by the subsequent launches of theiPod Touch in September 2007 and theApp Store in July 2008, it grew to increasingly dominate the editorial agenda. The site subsequently addedNintendo 3DS,PlayStation Vita,Android,BlackBerry,Windows Phone 7,MeeGo andPalm to the roster of covered formats, although latterly it's concentrated just on iOS and Android, plus theNintendo Switch in its portable mode.
In October 2007,Pocket Gamer launched thePocket Gamer Guide to Mobile Games magazine, which was first featured byT-Mobile, where it is published bi-monthly in all of their stores in the United Kingdom. It was expected to have a circulation of 150,000 copies.[2] A digital version ofPocket Gamer was also available on the websites ofVodafone and3 UK.[3] In May 2008, British company Steel Media (founders of thePocket Gamer website) announced that it partnered withO2 to produce thePocket Gamer Guide to Mobile Games magazine, which had an initial print run of 500,000 copies and was made available in all O2 UK stores, making O2 the 4th UK mobile network to feature thePocket Gamer magazine.[3] In May 2008, the magazine's circulation reached 700,000 copies, with a total audience of 1.5 million when including web andWAP readership, and syndication reviews toVodafone live! and the Samsung Fun Club.[4]
In May 2008, Steel Media Ltd expanded thePocket Gamer stable with the launch of a b2b-based sister site.PocketGamer.Biz[5] focuses on covering the business of mobile games. Steel Media Ltd also launched Quality Index[6] which tracks review scores of leading mobile games and publishers.PocketGamer.Biz produces quarterly industry reports.[7]Pocket Gamer launched the weekly Pocket Gamer Podcast on 1 December 2008.[8] Ten years later in May 2018, Steel Media Ltd expanded the international reach ofPocketGamer.Biz by partnering with Maysalward in Jordan to launch a b2b Arabic-language mobile gaming site,PocketGamer.me.[9]
In October 2008,Pocket Gamer launched its first foreign edition aimed at consumers, PocketGamer.Fr,[10] providing news and reviews on mobile and iPhone apps to a French language audience. The site grew steadily and launched its own iPhone app as well as providing syndicated content to several third party magazines. In August 2010 the site merged with number two in the market, JMobil[11] and relaunched with a new design, new features and coverage of a wider number of platforms including Android.
In October 2018, Steel Media Ltd undertook a major redesign ofPocket Gamer and unveiled a new look for the site, its first refresh in many years. At this point the site changed to a .com domain, to reflect the site's growing international appeal, from its previous .co.uk homepage. Its publisher Steel Media was acquired byEnthusiast Gaming in 2019.[12]
Pocket Gamer has been listed as one of the top 100 websites byThe Guardian newspaper two years running (2009 and 2010)[17] as well as being named in The Sunday Times newspaper's Top 5 Websites for Gaming (2010).[18] The British newspaperThe Guardian at one time syndicated a list of recommended mobile games fromPocket Gamer, especially the list of recommended games for each month.[19]