Gameplanet
Encyclopedia
Gameplanet is a video gaming website
that provides news
, review
s, preview
s, downloads, and other information. It is the largest video gaming website in New Zealand. Gameplanet also operates GP Forums, an online forum
community site covering video games as well as various other topics.
Gameplanet runs game servers
for various multiplayer games, such as Counter-Strike
and Call of Duty
.
Gameplanet has won the NetGuide
People's Choice Web Award for "Best Game Related Site" four years running, in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. It also won the award for "Best Youth Site" in 2002.
game server in New Zealand. At that time, Garner was involved in the development and hosting of the web site for GameZone, a small games retail business owned by fellow entrepreneur Simon Barton. The Counter-Strike server was run under the GameZone name.
The GameZone Counter-Strike server quickly became popular (and was soon followed by servers from other providers operating at the time, such as Paradise.Net and Jetstream Games). In early 2000, Simon Garner launched a Counter-Strike community site called Counter-Strike NZ (CSNZ). The site covered the latest news about the game and provided forums for players to discuss topics related to the game, arrange matches and form clans
.
Gameplanet was the brainchild of GameZone owner Simon Barton. The original concept of the site was to combine magazine-style editorial content such as news and reviews with an interactive online gaming community, expanding upon the success of CSNZ by incorporating forums
, game servers
, tournaments and competitions for a range of different games. Simon Garner designed and developed the Gameplanet website, which launched in September 2000. Thomas Mahoney was the site's first editor in chief
.
After the launch of Gameplanet, Counter-Strike NZ was folded into Gameplanet as part of the "Gameplanet Network", which was over time expanded with additional community sites covering PlayStation 2 (PS2NZ), Day of Defeat (DODNZ), Black & White (BWNZ), Xbox (XBNZ) and Half-Life 2 (HL2NZ). Each site had its own homepage and standalone community forum.
In 2002, the forums from each of the Gameplanet Network sites were merged to form a single combined forum, branded as GP Forums. This eliminated duplication of user accounts across all the sites allowing users to browse and post in any of the forums using a single account.
Initially, Gameplanet was operated informally as a non-profit venture supported by the GameZone retail business. In order to grow, however, it would need to become self-sustaining, so in late 2002 Simon Barton incorporated Gameplanet (NZ) Ltd as a limited liability company. Simon Garner became an equal partner in the business in early 2003. At the same time, Gameplanet began selling advertising
on its website to generate revenue for the business.
Today, Gameplanet is the leading video games web site in New Zealand. It is fully funded by sales of online advertising, and employs several full time staff.
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
that provides news
News
News is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
, review
Review
A review is an evaluation of a publication, a product or a service, such as a movie , video game, musical composition , book ; a piece of hardware like a car, home appliance, or computer; or an event or performance, such as a live music concert, a play, musical theater show or dance show...
s, preview
PREview
PREview is a requirements method which focuses on the early stage of Requirements Engineering: discovering and documenting requirements. PREview uses a Viewpoint-Oriented Approach to enable the conversion of top-level goals into requirements and constraints...
s, downloads, and other information. It is the largest video gaming website in New Zealand. Gameplanet also operates GP Forums, an online forum
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
community site covering video games as well as various other topics.
Gameplanet runs game servers
Game server
A game server is a remotely or locally run server used by game clients to play multiplayer video games. Most video games played over the Internet operate via a connection to a game server...
for various multiplayer games, such as Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike is a tactical first-person shooter video game developed by Valve Corporation which originated from a Half-Life modification by Minh "Gooseman" Le and Jess "Cliffe" Cliffe...
and Call of Duty
Call of Duty
Call of Duty is a first-person shooter video game developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision in 2003. It is the first game in a series with the same name. The game simulates the infantry and combined arms warfare of World War II. The game is based on the Quake III: Team Arena engine...
.
Gameplanet has won the NetGuide
NetGuide
NetGuide is a monthly New Zealand technology magazine.It was launched in September 1996 by an independent Auckland-based publisher, then owned by Australian Consolidated Press 2003 to 2008 and now is owned by TechDay...
People's Choice Web Award for "Best Game Related Site" four years running, in 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. It also won the award for "Best Youth Site" in 2002.
History
In 1999, Simon Garner created the first Counter-StrikeCounter-Strike
Counter-Strike is a tactical first-person shooter video game developed by Valve Corporation which originated from a Half-Life modification by Minh "Gooseman" Le and Jess "Cliffe" Cliffe...
game server in New Zealand. At that time, Garner was involved in the development and hosting of the web site for GameZone, a small games retail business owned by fellow entrepreneur Simon Barton. The Counter-Strike server was run under the GameZone name.
The GameZone Counter-Strike server quickly became popular (and was soon followed by servers from other providers operating at the time, such as Paradise.Net and Jetstream Games). In early 2000, Simon Garner launched a Counter-Strike community site called Counter-Strike NZ (CSNZ). The site covered the latest news about the game and provided forums for players to discuss topics related to the game, arrange matches and form clans
Clan (computer gaming)
In computer and video gaming, a clan or guild is an organised group of players that regularly play together in a particular multiplayer games. These games range from groups of a few friends to 1000-person organizations, with a broad range of structures, goals and members. The lifespan of a clan...
.
Gameplanet was the brainchild of GameZone owner Simon Barton. The original concept of the site was to combine magazine-style editorial content such as news and reviews with an interactive online gaming community, expanding upon the success of CSNZ by incorporating forums
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
, game servers
Game server
A game server is a remotely or locally run server used by game clients to play multiplayer video games. Most video games played over the Internet operate via a connection to a game server...
, tournaments and competitions for a range of different games. Simon Garner designed and developed the Gameplanet website, which launched in September 2000. Thomas Mahoney was the site's first editor in chief
Editor in chief
An editor-in-chief is a publication's primary editor, having final responsibility for the operations and policies. Additionally, the editor-in-chief is held accountable for delegating tasks to staff members as well as keeping up with the time it takes them to complete their task...
.
After the launch of Gameplanet, Counter-Strike NZ was folded into Gameplanet as part of the "Gameplanet Network", which was over time expanded with additional community sites covering PlayStation 2 (PS2NZ), Day of Defeat (DODNZ), Black & White (BWNZ), Xbox (XBNZ) and Half-Life 2 (HL2NZ). Each site had its own homepage and standalone community forum.
In 2002, the forums from each of the Gameplanet Network sites were merged to form a single combined forum, branded as GP Forums. This eliminated duplication of user accounts across all the sites allowing users to browse and post in any of the forums using a single account.
Initially, Gameplanet was operated informally as a non-profit venture supported by the GameZone retail business. In order to grow, however, it would need to become self-sustaining, so in late 2002 Simon Barton incorporated Gameplanet (NZ) Ltd as a limited liability company. Simon Garner became an equal partner in the business in early 2003. At the same time, Gameplanet began selling advertising
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
on its website to generate revenue for the business.
Today, Gameplanet is the leading video games web site in New Zealand. It is fully funded by sales of online advertising, and employs several full time staff.
Awards
| Net Guide Web Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Category | Result |
| 2002 | Best Youth Site | Won |
| 2003 | Best Entertainment Site | Finalist |
| 2006 | Best Game Related Site | Won |
| 2007 | ||
| 2008 | ||
| 2009 | ||