We recently reported on the fact that Supercell – famous for its smartphone games – had teamed up with a bunch of former EMAP journalists to create Super Cellphone Gamer, a promotional magazine based on the legendary Mean Machines, one of the UK's best-selling multi-format publications, which first launched back in 1990.
It's no exaggeration to say that I owe my career to Mean Machines and the people who made it; the magazine was a tremendous influence on me as a young gamer, and effectively shaped my gaming tastes at a very early age – as was no doubt the case with thousands of other British kids.
It's also what inspired me to become a games journalist; I created the (sadly now defunct) Mean Machines Archive as a tribute to the publication in the early 2000s, and that site would eventually morph into Virtual Console Reviews, the site that would eventually combine with Nintendo Life to create the genesis of the Hookshot Media empire.
Anyway, history lesson aside, I was dying to find out how this most unlikely of collaborations came to be, so I sat down with Paul Davies to talk about it. Davies, if you weren't aware, started his career on Mean Machines Sega and would edit Nintendo Magazine System (another Mean Machines spin-off) and Computer & Video Games, leading the latter through what many (myself included) feel was the second Golden Age for the long-running publication.
Time Extension: How on earth did a bunch of former (and legendary) games journalists come to create a bespoke magazine for Supercell?
Paul Davies: The team at gaming agency Diva originally pitched the idea of a '90s-themed mag to Head of Marketing, Rob Lowe, at Supercell, to support Sonic the Hedgehog joining Squad Busters. Rob was a massive Mean Machines fan as a kid, so he was really keen to see if that moment of gaming history could be recreated, and he had a really clear vision for it, which was awesome. I’d even say mega.
News of it came to me via Paul Glancey, on behalf of Jaz Rignall, on behalf of Diva! A bit convoluted! Diva had a managing editor in place, Dutch journalist and TV host Simon Zijlemans, who still runs a games magazine [PowerUnlimited].
So, there was Simon and I basically running the show, with Jaz and PG in the wings all ready to contribute, which was great. The Supercell brief was that they wanted a Mean Machines-style one-off '90s games mag, which needed to be authentic and ideally with well-known writers from back then.
Rad (Eddy Lawrence) needed to be in there, too. I was quick to ask Gary Harrod if he’d do the Art Editor honours. Oz Browne and Steve Merrett were lined up too, but Steve was tied up in the launch of DOOM: The Dark Ages and Oz was unable to contribute because design was already underway – we had Nicky Gotobed representing Paragon and Future from that era. It moved so fast!
Rich Leadbetter [Digital Foundry] was another big name that would’ve been so good to include, but Rich is busy beyond belief, which comes with being The Master (as he is sometimes known).
Was it fun for the team to turn back the clock a few decades?
This was the most fun I’ve had working on anything in years. We’re all still in contact to varying degrees, but mailing quips to-and-fro with Jaz, hearty phone calls with Rad and Paul, and the usual Navy Seals work ethic with Gary, combined with great humour, was magical. Or it was for me, you’d have to ask them. It felt like another day in the office.
Was there ever the fear that modern smartphone gamers wouldn’t understand the legacy of Mean Machines?
I think the point was to usher in news of Sonic the Hedgehog in the way that he would’ve been in the '90s. We knew that the Mean Machines name and staff would be an irrelevance to most Squad Busters gamers, the aim was to get the format right so that it could serve as a kind of time machine.
We had to watch some of the language – things like ‘malarkey’ – because they’re too old-fashioned. No in-house jokes and keep it clean. We also worried a bit about the Barbarian Jaz letters page, because some of the responses we had initially were potentially too upsetting for anyone not belonging to Generation X!
What has it been like working with Supercell on this magazine? Were they supportive of your vision?
Because it was Rob’s [Lowe - Head of Marketing at Supercell] vision, Supercell was right behind it. They have a hard-working, upbeat and very supportive team in Helsinki who were a pleasure to work with.
SEGA wanted approval, of course, and I was worried that the entire thing would need to be rewritten despite having the archaic language curtailed. But the comments that came back were minimal for what they called our ‘Nostalgia Magazine’. I think they liked it.
SEGA also contributed retro-style ads that were custom-designed for Super Cellphone Gamer. Everybody involved had a lot of fun with the idea!
Has this given any of your guys an appetite to create more magazines like this in the classic EMAP style?
I didn’t want it to end, to be honest. It would be wonderful to do something more along these lines. I’d like to have a go at a CVG late '90s magazine, if there are any takers. Watch this space, eh?
Smartphone gaming is absolutely massive, yet it is still frowned upon by some sectors of the gaming community. What would you say to those doubters?
I’m massively hooked on mo.co from Supercell, which reminds me of Destiny meets Overwatch. It’s an incredible co-op game in every way. My son, age 13, ignores the PS5 to play Zooba and Roblox on his tablet, and many of his schoolmates are the same. These are rich experiences with huge communities, and it reminds me of the early console generations, where everything felt new and exciting, so many cool ideas.
Mobile gaming is a terrific ‘as well as’ in the same way that Switch complements PlayStation, Xbox and PC. The Supercell mid-core line-up is strong – production is slick, and the games are intelligently tailored for on the move. You can doubt, but you’re missing out.
We'd like to thank Paul for taking the time to speak with us, and Diva and Supercell for granting us access to Super Smartphone Gamer.