Gamefan

Gamefan was a North American magazine dedicated to console gaming. Published from 1992 to 2000, the title provided extensive coverage of roleplaying games, games imported from Japan, and the early emergence of Japanese anime as a popular culture interest in North America. Emerging from humble beginnings in an early game importing store under the name Diehard Gamefan, the periodical contained unique design elements that allowed it to become one of the more famous magazines of the time. The artwork and writing provided a different approach than those found in alternative titles, while printed screen shots often featured greater quality.

Financial troubles often followed Gamefan as it changed hands to different publishers over the years. Eventually, these caused the final parent company to declare bankruptcy, leading to the closing of the magazine and a matching website.

Members of the Gamefan staff went on to work on several other gaming magazines. The founder, Dave Halverson, later launched Gamer's Republic and Play magazines. Another staffer edited the short lived GameGo!, while several others launched Hardcore Gamer. Halverson revived Gamefan in 2010.

Featuring Phantasy Star

Gamefan Volume 3, Issue 1 (Original Series)

The cover artwork simulates a Phantasy Star IV battle in Motavia's desert. The party of Chaz, Alys, and the Gamefan mascot face off against a crawler and locusta. Pages 34 through 37 provide a guide for Phantasy Star IV, ending with the destruction of Seed and a promise to continue in the next issue. The guide consists of 71 unique screen shots of the game, plus one title screen shot each from Phantasy Star, Phantasy Star II, and Phantasy Star III. Most of the screen shots have captions relating tips and story spoilers.

Gamefan Volume 3, Issue 2 (Original Series)

Phantasy Star IV is mentioned on the cover. Details on the interior articles are not available at this time.

Gamefan Volume 8, Issue 6 (Original Series)

The online gameplay and simultaneous Japan, Europe, and North American release Phantasy Star Online is discussed during a Dreamcast article. Four screen shots are included.

Gamefan Volume 8, Issue 7 (Original Series)

Phantasy Star Online is listed among the editors' Top Ten Most Wanted games on page 8. It tops the list, but the list is described as having no particular order. The game is also listed as #5 in a readers' version of the Most Wanted list. This issue contains a preview article for Eternal Arcadia (released outside Japan as Skies of Arcadia); this includes brief mentions of Phantasy Star sharing development staff members on page 78 and Phantasy Star Online as an upcoming Dreamcast RPG on page 79.

Release History