About the Magazine

- Overview
- CLICK HERE IF YOU ARE A NEW READER
- A Note to Game Publisher PR People
- Target Audience
- Stats
- A Little Bit of History
- Meet the Team
- Submissions
- Content re-publishing & commissions
- Liability Notice
- Small Print

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Overview

Way of the Rodent is a new-generation magazine serving up stories of videogaming's past and present. Indeed we make no distinction between then and now: we love games and we're not afraid to shout that out from the rooftops.

We're here to recapture the Original Spirit of Videogaming.

The jewels in Way of the Rodent's content-crown are the regular and guest columns where we remember why we love games. Stories of first machines, arcade love-affairs and tear-jerking memories of special gaming days lost. Dive on in deep and re-live those wonderful times that made us gamers.

Our editorial policy is about feel not form. A WotR review could be 500 words or a single photograph. What is more, we only ever publish reviews of the games we love. There is no point telling you about the ordinary, that's what Official-Xbox-100%-Unofficial-PlaySchool4-PCCC-Gooner Magazine is there for. WotR deals in 'fuck-me that's fantastic' and nothing else.

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New to WotR?

First of all, WotR? That's the shortening of www.wayoftherodent.com, we use WotR to try to make us seem cooler than we really are. Other abbreviations that do the same include 'EA', which is short for 'Edible Arserims' and 'EC', which is short for 'Edible Arserims' as well. Next week we'll take a look at baseball hats - oooh those are cool.

So, the original videogaming spirit: which teat needs a-suckling for a gob full of that sweet, sweet liquid candy? Why it would be a regular Friday teat, and it'll be found right here at WotR. Below is a sampler from deep within the magazine, as a little collection these columns, reviews and unclassifiable 'others' represent a great starting point for your dirty Rodent affair.

Pop in every friday and you'll find a shiny fresh batch just waiting for a good eyeball fondling. That's your eyeballs we're talking - live the dream. Umm, be the ball...

We like to revel in the original spirit. sickboy

That memory can often be raucous. mamemeister

Or it can just be raw. KOWORLD

Guest writers come to rant. JEDBURGH

To explain. EUGENE JARVIS with SICKBOY

Or just to remember. JEFF ‘YAK’ MINTER

Our reviews might be 500 words on feel. BOG

Or just a single picture that says it all. ahchay

Sometimes, we're silly. ATLAS’ APPRENTICE

Other times we're, umm, well. KUN-TOR

Whatever bits you like, we hope you enjoy lots in WotR. Come on over to the forum sometime and tell us what you think of all this. We're not bad company really.

Cheers

The WotR Team, February 2004.

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A note to Game Publisher PR People

Firstly thank you to those of you who have helped us with review-code, previews and advice. You know who you are and you know that we love you.

For those who still haven't, we challenge you to get involved now. You cannot lose - a WotR review of your game represents a unique underground stamp on it's brilliance, playability, or downright grin-factor. And you can't lose because we will only review your title if it's fantastic - that means no more po-faced sniffy mainstream reviews for you. Either it's great or it isn't in.

Confident in your title? Tried the mainstream? Now try us.

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Target Audience

Way of the Rodent is pitched to a mature gaming audience. Measured by age that suggests a thirty-something constituency; the original videogaming generation. Measured by attitude then we are also encompassing the 18 to 29 age group that is sophisticated enough to feel disenfranchised by the primary-colours of the mainstream videogaming press.

Our older readership can be characterised as high-disposable income, multiple-console owing regular game buyers. These are the people who are clicking-through to our associates in order to make impulse purchase of games recommended by WotR.

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Stats - UPDATED - May 2004

Frankly these are rattling up so fast that its making our heads spin. But, for what it's worth here is the lastest set (May 31st - June is already waaaay ahead of these):

Unique Readers: 23,000
Unique Visits: 31,000
Page Views: 96,000
Hits: 1.7m

Unique Visits/day: 1000
Page Views/day: 3100
Hits/day: 57,000

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A little bit of history

Back in 1984 my pal Mark and I made a fanzine. It had monochrome photocopied covers. And it really did win 'Fanzine of the Year' in Computer & Video Games. Or it came second. I forget which. C&VG let me and some mates go to a computer show at Olympia and meet the PRs of various game companies. We got loads of freebie games and stuff. Hewson, I think, were especially generous. I remained on some of the distribution lists for review games, at least for a while.

I even made fucking Way of the Rodent T-Shirts for the trip. Jesus, I was 14? I wore a suit jacket and took a vinyl briefcase with me. Comical stuff. I've still got the press pass somewhere too.

But C&VG stiffed me on the Commodore C64 that was supposed to be part of the prize. Might be fun to turn-up and claim it now I suppose? Anyone got a collection of Computer & Video Games mags from the early '80s? If you have then you can look us up; there's a picture of WotR in one of them.

And then Mark and I met-up again, 16 years after last having seen each other. Mark was just launching the wonderful RetroVision live events and a re-launch of our long-dead fanzine seemed to make sense. One year later and it suddenly dawns on me that WotR isn't just welcome back but that it is part of something special

Thanks C&VG

Richard Hammond, October, 2003

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Meet the team

Editor - ANDY LOWE - EMAIL
A wasted youth spent jacking Discs of Tron and hunting for Star Wars cabs has segued nicely into a life of videogame and film journalism. 2003 is Andy's first year without dependency on Music Trivia. In addition to editing WotR Andy is currently working on a novel, the big puff.

Deputy Editor - CHRIS AHCHAY
An arcade collector nut with a heart of gold. Chris is still in recovery from his time at the controls of Joust. When not acting as the rock of WotR, he can be found coding for money.

Publisher - RICHARD HAMMOND - EMAIL
School gave his class a Wednesday choice between rugby or £5/head to go play snooker. One Return of the Jedi cabinet at the Park End Snooker & Billiards Club later and the boy never recovers. Writes dry books on how to be good at shops. Indeed his latest, Smart Retail, can be had for a penny shy of fifteen of your Earth pounds.

Editorial and Business Commitee

Writer - ALAN STEWART - EMAIL
Writer - IAN BOFFIN
Writer - JAMES COPE
Writer - MARK ELLIOTT
Live Event Supremo - MARK RAYSON
Writer - SIMON BARNETT
Writer - SIMON FOSTER - EMAIL
Writer - STEVE MEADOWS Polymath - STEVIE POND - EMAIL

Friends and contributors

Monkey, very much Muttley, Matt Allen, Rod S, Mark Hennesy, Seedy Santa, Junosix, Atlas' Apprentice, PaulEMoz, Gribbles, Stark, Tracey Stewart, Ellie, Cippy, Tina, Barry X, MrsTheMeadows, www.shmups.com, Bubba, Jaqui Liveston, PAP, Larry Giddon, Jeff Minter, Stuart Campbell, Mrs Sickboy, www.robotstreetgang.com, www.1up-zine.com, Sarah Rayson, Jedburgh, Michelle Ahchay, MrsB, Korruptor, FlojoMojo, Ewok, Louise, and last-but-not-least Thunder-Boy Jonny Roberts.

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Submissions

Copyright of submissions remains property of the individual authors, however by submitting a piece authors grant license to Smart Circle Limited to reproduce that piece, in edited form, on the Way of the Rodent website. That license shall also be extended to further collective use of pieces, such as publication in book form. Where Smart Circle Limited receives payment for such further use all profits (monies remaining after coverage of actual-costs-only such as; production, printing and distribution costs) shall be returned to the individual authors. Payment will be made on a pro rata per-word basis. SMART CIRCLE IS DENIED ANY RIGHT TO RETAIN PROFIT FROM SUCH USE OF SUBMITTED MATERIAL - ALL PROFITS WILL RETURN TO THE INDIVIDUAL AUTHORS.

Individual authors also retain the right to submit pieces for publication elsewhere. It would be nice if such submissions could be accompanied by a notice that reads 'First published at www.wayoftherodent.com Home of the “Original Spirit of Videogaming”'.

We've taken this route to give all authors some protection over their submissions. We all 'own' Way of the Rodent under the Smart Circle license, as well as you holding on to your rights to use the stuff elsewhere. I hope that's okay.”

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Content re-publishing & commissions

Content must not be reproduced unless you have first discussed reproduction with the relevant author (via the editor). Our authors own all copyright relating to their work. In most cases permission is given freely.

All of WotR's authors are available for freelance commission, especially where hefty fees, much beer, or groupies are used to sweeten-the-deal. Seriously; the team is realistic, keen and ready to offer a fresh perspective on popular culture. Look in the team section on this page to check individual e-mail addresses. Where no address is listed , or where you have no preference in terms of an individual writer please contact the publisher.

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IMPORTANT LEGAL NOTICE

Way of the Rodent and Smart Circle Limited accept no responsibility for the content of the related forum or for the content of articles, written by third-parties, re-published on this site. Writers' opinions are their own and do not reflect those of the owners of WotR or of Smart Circle Limited. WotR and Smart Circle Limited disclaim all liability for such content to the fullest extent permitted by law.

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Small Print

Way of the Rodent is published weekly by Smart Circle Limited.
Registered office: The Firs, Eynsham Road, Farmoor, Oxfordshire.
Registered in England No. 4840671
VAT Registration Number: 685 6766 69

Way of the Rodent, Original Spirit of Videogaming, The WotR website design style and names of features, magazine components and aliases are all trademarks of and copyright (2003) of Smart Circle Limited.

All manufacturer logos, typefaces, game screenshots, game characters and recognised trademarks are the property and copyright of their respective commercial owners. Any reproduction is by kind permission of property owners. Please do not link to these or other images contained within WotR. It's not polite.

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