New Game Network
Encyclopedia
New Game Network is an independent Canadian
-based website
that covers news, articles, previews, reviews and blogs about videogames
. New Game Network has offices in Canada, USA, Australia and UK. The website was founded in January 2009, and contains over 300 articles and features, with 2,700+ news items. Primary focus is on the PC, Xbox 360
and PlayStation 3
platform coverage.
. The new design went live on January 17, 2009 and remained active for several months.
With the traffic gradually increasing, the website founders have decided to expand the operations, but a new system was required to handle the content and visitor numbers. A new website design went live on August 3, 2009 with the staff also shifting the coverage to include the Playstation 3
and Xbox 360
alongside the PC. Nintendo Wii was also initially supported, but was shutdown sometime later due to lack of popularity.
After upgrading to a new content management system
, the website went through a traffic resurgence. In 2010, a new marketing campaign helped pushed the website to over 2,000 unique visitors per day, which placed the site in the top 100,000 on Alexa
.
The website has also received regular coverage within the gaming community, such as from Frozenbyte
, InCrysis, NeoGAF
and VideoGamesBlogger.
Many news items have also been sourced in various well known media publications such as VE3D
, Tech Report
, MS Xbox World, VG Releases
and IncGamers.
New Game Network has been present at number of industry events, including PAX East, GDC Canada
, E3 and PAX Prime
. The website has provided extensive coverage for all of these conventions, including previews and interviews with high ranking members of the industry.
The website’s review scores are currently tracked at GameStats, TestFreaks
, and N4G
.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
-based website
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 covers news, articles, previews, reviews and blogs about videogames
VideoGames
VideoGames may refer to:*VideoGames, a mid-1990s magazine about video games.*Video games in general....
. New Game Network has offices in Canada, USA, Australia and UK. The website was founded in January 2009, and contains over 300 articles and features, with 2,700+ news items. Primary focus is on the PC, Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
platform coverage.
History
The website was founded in January 2009, when two colleagues and gamers thought of an idea. The site began as a basic HTML template, later being moved on and integrated into the PHP Nuke CMSContent management system
A content management system is a system providing a collection of procedures used to manage work flow in a collaborative environment. These procedures can be manual or computer-based...
. The new design went live on January 17, 2009 and remained active for several months.
With the traffic gradually increasing, the website founders have decided to expand the operations, but a new system was required to handle the content and visitor numbers. A new website design went live on August 3, 2009 with the staff also shifting the coverage to include the Playstation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
alongside the PC. Nintendo Wii was also initially supported, but was shutdown sometime later due to lack of popularity.
Notability
As of August 2010, New Game Network's database has expanded substantially since the website's origination. Approximately, there are:- Over 350 original articles
- Over 3,500 screenshots
- Over 2,700 news pieces
- 850+ games in the database
After upgrading to a new content management system
Content management system
A content management system is a system providing a collection of procedures used to manage work flow in a collaborative environment. These procedures can be manual or computer-based...
, the website went through a traffic resurgence. In 2010, a new marketing campaign helped pushed the website to over 2,000 unique visitors per day, which placed the site in the top 100,000 on Alexa
Alexa Internet
Alexa Internet, Inc. is a California-based subsidiary company of Amazon.com that is known for its toolbar and Web site. Once installed, the toolbar collects data on browsing behavior which is transmitted to the Web site where it is stored and analyzed and is the basis for the company's Web traffic...
.
The website has also received regular coverage within the gaming community, such as from Frozenbyte
Frozenbyte
Frozenbyte Inc. is a Finnish game-developer founded in 2001 and based in Helsinki, Finland. The company has now grown to a professional team of almost 20 people, with its first commercial game being Shadowgrounds for Microsoft Windows...
, InCrysis, NeoGAF
NeoGAF
NeoGAF is an internet forum that discusses video games, founded as an adjunct to , a video game news site. Since April 4, 2006, the site has been independently hosted and administered....
and VideoGamesBlogger.
Many news items have also been sourced in various well known media publications such as VE3D
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
, Tech Report
The Tech Report
The Tech Report is a web site dedicated to covering personal computing technology and culture, and is regularly linked to by sites such as Slashdot and Digg.com...
, MS Xbox World, VG Releases
VG Chartz
The VGChartz Network is a network of five video game websites - VGChartz, gamrFeed, gamrReview, gamrTV and gamrConnect. VGChartz itself sits at the centre of the VGChartz Network and is a video game sales tracking website that provides weekly sales figures of console software and hardware by...
and IncGamers.
New Game Network has been present at number of industry events, including PAX East, GDC Canada
Game Developers Conference
The Game Developers Conference is the largest annual gathering of professional video game developers, focusing on learning, inspiration, and networking...
, E3 and PAX Prime
Penny Arcade Expo
The Penny Arcade Expo is a semi-annual gamer festival held in Seattle and Boston. PAX was created by Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik, the authors of the Penny Arcade webcomic, because they wanted to attend a show that gave equal attention to console gamers, computer gamers, and tabletop...
. The website has provided extensive coverage for all of these conventions, including previews and interviews with high ranking members of the industry.
Review Scoring
New Game Network rates titles based on a free-form system that includes category scores and a final score out of 100. The categories scored include Presentation, Gameplay, Single Player, Multiplayer, and Performance. The overall rating is determined based on category scores, but not as a mathematical average. There is also a tiered system for the overall score that gives readers an overall impression of the game based on the number.The website’s review scores are currently tracked at GameStats, TestFreaks
TestFreaks
The website TestFreaks is a review site launched in Sweden in 2007, in several different languages. The United States site was also launched in 2007. The commercial headquarters are in Stockholm, Sweden...
, and N4G
N4G
N4G is an international video game discussion forum. It relies on user submitted content, where registered contributors submit news about gaming and the industry from all across the internet, borrowing articles from established gaming news websites...
.