+orpheuswaking Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 With the upcoming issue #6 of Excel magazine now is the perfect time to catch up with the first 5 issues. As a limited offer we have 4 sets of issues #1-5 available at a bundle price Regular US price is $10.00 per issue (shipped) Buy a full set of 5 issues for the special price of $35.00 (shipped) If you have been on the fence, or if you have purchased the PDF version and would like to upgrade to print please PM me directly. For interested non US customers please visit http://excel-retro-mag.co.ukdirectly. Excel is a full color, full size, professional quality Atari 8bit focused magazine. 11 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 (edited) Great offer, I own both the printed and PDF's and can't recommend enough how great the mags are and how great an offer price this is... The mags are a real treat, proper professional layout, great articles and something for EVERYONE, so US folk, grab 'em Nice one OrpheusW.... Edited January 25, 2019 by Mclaneinc 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6BQ5 Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 Looking forward to my bundle! This will make for some good "analogue" reading. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+slx Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 Very well done, a pleasure to look at and to read. Coffee table quality. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 Very well done, a pleasure to look at and to read. Coffee table quality. They genuinely are, when I saw the first one I was blown away, its what you want from a mag, visually sumptuous, great quality paper and printing, articles that are very well written featuring past articles that many may have missed and just a great read. Its also nice that it has input from many in here so its almost an AA mag as well. Top work by all and cheers Bob who also happens to be a lovely bloke as well.... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Stephen Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 I'll also chime in and I have all 5 so far. The quality of both the physical magazine and the content is top notch. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 I'm biased, but IMHO they are a must-have for any Atari Age 8-bit forum regular who love 8-bit games, classic and new. Even the guys that prefer programming and hardware hacking to gaming get DIY projects too, from some of our community best, like Flashjazzcat as one example. And all of us writers put our best foot forward because we do it for fun and the love of our Atari's. I'm never satisfied with my review writing myself, I did at least a half-dozen re-writes on all my reviews. And by the time I see them in print, I still wish I could have them back and do even better. I suspect that all who contribute would agree they feel the same. So the magazine will only improve. Look for issue 6 soon guys and thanks for your support! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted January 26, 2019 Author Share Posted January 26, 2019 Issue #6 "should" be out in February but as always remember Bob is one guy and he has to put these together himself. With that said, I have 1 bundle remaining I know someone here would like some weekend reading material Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erichenneke Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 I'm buying the bundle! Can't wait. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted January 28, 2019 Author Share Posted January 28, 2019 (edited) Thanks to everyone who purchased a bundle. All full sets are sold, I do have a few copies of issue 2/4/5 - If anyone is looking to pick these up PM me and we can figure out a price. Edited January 28, 2019 by orpheuswaking 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_The Doctor__ Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 what a shame so few to be purchased, a good deal of folks are on limited budgets, no longer disposable funds, retired etc.... they forever miss out on these deals, and they need the deals the most... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob The Bug Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 There will be a fresh supply of previous issues sent to the US when #6 comes out... soon... 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6BQ5 Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 I just received my bundle. First word that comes to mind : excellent!! The magazines are truly top notch quality and I’m not just talking about the heavyweight glossy paper that is a pleasure to handle. I really enjoyed the articles I read on my first glance. There is a perfect balance of game reviews, historical article reprints, and modern hw/sw developments. Now I will go back there issue #1 and start reading properly, cover to cover. One comment : the game reviews are very positive with ratings like 8/10 to 10/10. Those ratings are warranted for those games because they are indeed very good games. Now show me a stinker that gets 3/10 and tell me why. I want to see the whole scale exercised to show the true value of a 10/10. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 (edited) Reviews are awkward, as an ex real world reviewer the initial reaction is to love your computer and almost love every thing that comes on it due to a loyalty bond but you really have to step back and look at the product. There are of course some great games out which warrant a good score but 10 / 10 should really be a rarity, add to that the obvious case of if its your sort of game or even a sort of game you don't like then the scores can be a bit risky as like or dislike takes hold. All that being said I think the people who did the reviews did a pretty damn good job, you have to forgive the scores a little though Edited February 5, 2019 by Mclaneinc 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6BQ5 Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 Reviews are awkward, as an ex real world reviewer the initial reaction is to love your computer and almost love every thing that comes on it due to a loyalty bond but you really have to step back and look at the product. There are of course some great games out which warrant a good score but 10 / 10 should really be a rarity, add to that the obvious case of if its your sort of game or even a sort of game you don't like then the scores can be a bit risky as like or dislike takes hold. All that being said I think the people who did the reviews did a pretty damn good job, you have to forgive the scores a little though Agree! The reviews are indeed very good both in style and substance. I also understand that every page has a cost in terms of space and printing price. Why spend those precious resources to print a 2/10 review that seemingly bashes a software package that someone probably worked really hard on? We should be highlighting the best of the best, right? I still think there is a way (or there should be) a way to write a compassionate but critical review that takes into account a retrospective view. We can't compare a 1982 title to 1987 let alone 2019. However, there ought to be a way to compare a 1982 title to everything that came before it. There should never be a need to tear into someone's work but we can always say where the title missed the mark or could have done better relative to that time period. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mclaneinc Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 A review should always be honest and accurate, if a game has faults then list them but don't list them for the sake of destroying the game because you don't like it, they must be to point out failings that could be improved or be used for further titles. I never ever belittled an author because I didn't like what they had done, I looked at the good and bad and explained them. The last thing as a reviewer I want to do is stifle another persons creativity no matter what I think of it hence I hate reviews that say "this is the worst game in the world and should never have been written". Even if that was the case the author deserves another chance to fix and better themselves. If the author continues with poor output then the public will speak via their wallets and simply not buy..... We still get some amazing titles on the Atari 8 bit and we get the odd not so good one but its just nice to see people bothering.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Robot Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 Reviews of titles not up to par with the best could be made much shorter so they don't take up too much magazine real estate but the title is still fairly covered. Just a brief summary, a screenshot, and a reason for the low score. Maybe 4 per page or something. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gunstar Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 (edited) One comment : the game reviews are very positive with ratings like 8/10 to 10/10. Those ratings are warranted for those games because they are indeed very good games. Now show me a stinker that gets 3/10 and tell me why. I want to see the whole scale exercised to show the true value of a 10/10. Obviously you haven't gotten around to reading my reviews of ABBUC contest software (issue 4, IIRC) I didn't pull any punches if the game stinks. Issue 5 also has a review or two I wrote, not in the most glowing terms...but yes, most of the new home-brew games I've reviewed thus far have high scores because they ooze quality most of the time, given the time, care and attention Atari 8-bit games, especially ports from the C64, just didn't get back in the day. And except for the occasional stand-out killer app (Space Harrier, etc.) I think most should be compared to games done in the era, just to show how much better they can be when not done on a tight schedule with small budget and by people who programmed more on the C64 or other 8-bit than the Atari. The handful of games from back then, like Lucasfilm titles, Alternate Reality games, and others that were labors of love and/or with teams and big budgets, (and no two-week deadlines to get the port done from start to abysmal finish) that pushed the hardware still hold up perfectly well alongside new home-brew games. And the Atari versions were head-and-shoulders above all the other systems that got ports from the Atari instead of the other way around for a change. As yo will be able to compare yourself right in the pages of Excel since there was a huge spread on the Lucasfilm games and other classics already. The old and new should be compared side-by-side, IMHO, it's not like we are comparing Xbox One games to 2600 games here you know...it's still the same hardware, mostly, maybe an extra memory chip or two... Edited February 7, 2019 by Gunstar 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob The Bug Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 (edited) It's nice to read people's feedback on the magazine! Of course, we concentrate on the newer games - which are on the whole very high quality programs created by real Atari 8bit enthusiasts and these obviously get higher scores. The reviews are also written by real Atari enthusiasts - nobody gets paid to write a review - the whole ethos of the magazine is a labour of love by people who adore these wonderful old Atari machines. We have had a few not-so-good reviews... but I wouldn't like to waste magazine space on games which are only worth 3/10... As Gunstar said, his Abbuc game reviews were very honest and a couple of the older games (which are rarely reviewed as there is so much good modern stuff to cover) didn't fare so well, i.e. Yogi's Great Escape and the original Jetset Willy. I did choose to review some of my all time favourites in the first few issues which were always going to get top marks - Bounty Bob, Dropzone, International Karate and the Lucasfilm games. We used to read about a games's "value for money" in the old days but most of the new games really are labours of love and cost nothing to add to your collection, which is quite a nice situation for us all. Long may it continue! And of course, one man's favourite game is another man's stinker! Edited February 7, 2019 by Bob The Bug 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pseudografx Posted October 21, 2020 Share Posted October 21, 2020 It's been quite a while since we last heard about the Excel magazine. Is the project dead or can we hope for another issue? 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted October 22, 2020 Author Share Posted October 22, 2020 16 hours ago, pseudografx said: It's been quite a while since we last heard about the Excel magazine. Is the project dead or can we hope for another issue? @Bob The Bug hasn't logged in since May, I see him active on Facebook but I don't have any updates about issue #6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob The Bug Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 Hello ! I still plan to release issue #6 of Excel but right now I’m working very hard at just trying to make a living and sort out the train wreck that my life became a couple of years ago. Things are improving, slowly, but it won’t be this year. You good people on Atari Age will be the first to know. ? thanks Robert 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nysavant Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 Great to hear Robert. Excel was/is the best magazine I've read for the 8bits. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+orpheuswaking Posted October 22, 2020 Author Share Posted October 22, 2020 (edited) 16 minutes ago, Bob The Bug said: Hello ! I still plan to release issue #6 of Excel but right now I’m working very hard at just trying to make a living and sort out the train wreck that my life became a couple of years ago. Things are improving, slowly, but it won’t be this year. You good people on Atari Age will be the first to know. ? thanks Robert Great to hear Robert!!! (well not the train wreck part) Edited October 22, 2020 by orpheuswaking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Stephen Posted October 22, 2020 Share Posted October 22, 2020 40 minutes ago, Bob The Bug said: Hello ! I still plan to release issue #6 of Excel but right now I’m working very hard at just trying to make a living and sort out the train wreck that my life became a couple of years ago. Things are improving, slowly, but it won’t be this year. You good people on Atari Age will be the first to know. ? thanks Robert Good to hear. Hope things in your life improve! Take care of yourself first, this is just a fun hobby. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.