The GameStop-owned video game magazine and online portal Game Informer is shutting its doors.

After 33 years of covering games and being the first to get many exclusives for being one of the earlier pioneers of games coverage (and also its unique position of being owned by a major games-selling outlet and getting exclusive access no one else could), the magazine and online portal are shutting down. Furthermore, the entire staff has been laid off. The X post that came out from the publication’s official X page was not written by any of the staff:

“After 33 thrilling years of bringing you the latest news, reviews, and insights from the ever-evolving world of gaming, it is with a heavy heart that we announce the closure of Game Informer.

From the early days of pixelated adventures to today’s immersive virtual realms, we’ve been honored to share this incredible journey with you, our loyal readers. While our presses may stop, the passion for gaming that we’ve cultivated together will continue to live on.

Thank you for being part of our epic quest, and may your own gaming adventures never end.”

The Final Level: Farewell from Game Informer ?? pic.twitter.com/tmrEB2TE7U

— Game Informer (@gameinformer) August 2, 2024

Not many people were happy about this, obviously, as the closure happened abruptly and the former staff being almost done with the next issue. Ex-staff members who formed their own online portals and publications like Ben Hanson (MinMax) also voiced out their anger. After all, every URL for Game Informer now goes to the farewell message, meaning many, MANY articles and coverage pieces are now gone.

Game Informer has been closed down by GameStop and the entire, incredibly talented staff (including myself) have all been laid off. A frustrating turn of events (especially considering we were about 70% done with the next issue and it was going to have a GREAT cover).

— Kyle Hilliard (@KyleMHilliard) August 2, 2024

I'm furious about the end of Game Informer. It was an incredible 33-year run and then GameStop pumps out this phony/empty farewell message. I'd bet money it was written by AI.

Fuck you, GameStop and a huge fuck you to Ryan Cohen. https://t.co/XeTY5HoxNV

— Ben Hanson (@yozetty) August 2, 2024

Apart from its unprecedented access, Game Informer was known for its spiffy magazine covers and its subscription-exclusivity via GameStop. The latter method changed in 2024 where anyone can subscribe to the magazine outside of a GameStop membership, though it matters little now as that method has most likely failed to garner consumer interest in offline magazine ownership. As someone who has worked on a major Southeast Asian offline publication (GameAxis), this really sucks but is inevitable in a time where digital platforms take precedence. While I don’t usually read Game Informer, many others do, and it’s a sad turn of events.