Julian Rignall

Last updated

Julian Rignall
Jaz Rignall headshot.jpg
Undated photography
Born (1965-03-06) 6 March 1965 (age 59)
London, England
Occupationwriter, editor
SubjectVideo games and gaming

Julian "Jaz" Rignall (born 6 March 1965, London, England) is a writer and editor. He has also produced content for corporate websites such as GamePro Media, publisher of GamePro magazine and GamePro.com, marketing collateral and advertising campaigns.

Contents

Career

Early 1980s: Teenage gaming journalist

Rignall at ZZAP! 64 offices in Somerset, 1985 Jaz Rignall at ZZAP! 64's offices in Yeovil, Somerset, 1985.jpg
Rignall at ZZAP! 64 offices in Somerset, 1985

Rignall's career as a gaming journalist began in London in the early 1980s as a student competing in video game tournaments. During his teenage years, Rignall held the UK and World Record high scores on video games such as Defender , Pole Position and Crossfire . He also won Computer and Video Games magazine's 1983 UK Video Arcade Game Championship, beating more than 500 of the country's top arcade players to win the title. [1] Rignall's success at winning international video game tournaments launched his career as a video game journalist writing gaming hints and tips for magazines such as Computer and Video Games and Personal Computer Games . [2]

1985–1988: First magazine launch

In 1985, the former editor of Personal Computer Games , Chris Anderson, invited Rignall to join the launch team for Newsfield Publications' Commodore 64 magazine, Zzap!64 . Rignall admitted that when asked about Commodore 64 games he described his experience of playing the Atari versions, as he had no experience of the 64 at the time. [3] As a staff writer, Rignall continued to display his gameplaying abilities as he repeatedly emerged the victor of the monthly ZZAP! Challenge, where readers challenged the magazine's reviewers to one-on-one gaming contests.

In December 1987, Rignall became editor of Zzap!64, a position he retained until August 1988 (Issue 39). [4]

1988–1993: EMAP publications, media appearances

Rignall and Jonathan Ross at the 1990 Golden Joystick Awards 1990 Golden Joystick Awards (Paul Patterson, Jaz Rignall, Jonathan Ross).jpg
Rignall and Jonathan Ross at the 1990 Golden Joystick Awards

In 1988, Rignall joined Computer and Video Games magazine, an EMAP publication. Upon his promotion to editor, Rignall changed the magazine's editorial direction focusing more on the newly emerging Japanese video game consoles instead of the fading 8-bit generation of microcomputers. [5]

In 1990, recognising the console market was large enough to warrant a magazine of its own, Rignall launched Mean Machines . [6] Covering the top-selling video game systems of the time, such as the Super NES and Mega Drive, Mean Machines became the largest-selling multi-platform publication in the United Kingdom. [7] At first the print run of the magazine was kept limited, to create demand. [3] In 1992, Mean Machines was split into two separate publications: the officially endorsed Nintendo Magazine System, now known as Official Nintendo Magazine , and Mean Machines Sega. [5]

In late 1993, Rignall launched his final British publication, the officially endorsed Sega Magazine .

During this period, Rignall appeared regularly on TV as a games reviewer on the British TV programme GamesMaster , and made numerous appearances on BBC Television and BBC Radio as an industry commentator and field expert.

1994–1997: US software development

In 1994, Rignall transitioned from magazine publishing to software development, joining Virgin Interactive Entertainment [8] in Irvine, California. As vice-president of design, he was responsible for product design and licensing acquisitions from other game developers and publishers. While at Virgin, Rignall contributed to such titles as Agile Warrior F-111X , NanoTek Warrior , The Lion King , The Jungle Book and the highly anticipated, but never published, Thrill Kill . [9]

1997–2002: IGN expansion

In 1997, Rignall left Virgin and moved to San Francisco, California, to join the Imagine Games Network (IGN). As editorial director, he led the expansion of the online network guiding it to its market leadership position. [10] In 2001, IGN was awarded a People's Voice Webby Award. [11] The editorial tone and style Rignall helped establish in IGN's early years still continue to this day.

2002–2007: Online retailing and marketing

During 2002, Rignall shifted from the games business into online retailing and marketing. He became editorial director at Walmart.com responsible for the content of the world's biggest retailer's online presence. Rignall has stated that he did not enjoy the experience but "did learn an unbelievable amount from [it]." [3] In 2004, Rignall moved to Haggin Marketing, a San Francisco advertising agency where he created print advertisements and other marketing vehicles for Dell, Inc. In 2006, Rignall became the vice-president and editorial creative director with Bank of America's user-centred design and research division where he developed consumer, business and marketing content for the company's 22 million website customers.

2007–2010: Future Plus Custom Publishing

In August 2007, Rignall rejoined Future US (formerly Imagine Media) to help launch the US branch of their UK-based custom publishing division, Future Plus. He spent three years at Future Plus writing for companies such as Best Buy, Kmart, Apple, Blizzard-Activision, Toys "R" Us and Research in Motion/BlackBerry. Future US's custom content portfolio included publications like Best Buys @gamer magazine [12] and Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft: The Magazine. [13] In 2008, Future Plus was awarded a Pearl "Gold" Award by the Custom Publishing Council for its Guide 2 Gaming produced on behalf of Best Buy. [14]

2010–2011: GamePro Media

On 8 November 2010, GamePro Media appointed Rignall as vice-president of content. [15] His first "From the Editor" column appeared in GamePro's February 2011 issue.

2013–2017: USGamer

In March 2013 Rignall developed the USGamer website for Gamer Network, [16] and was the Editorial Lead before moving to Editor-at-Large. [17]

Related Research Articles

<i>Amstrad Action</i>

Amstrad Action was a monthly magazine, published in the United Kingdom, which catered to owners of home computers from the Amstrad CPC range and later the GX4000 console.

<i>Rick Dangerous</i> 1989 video game

Rick Dangerous is a platform game developed by Core Design for the Acorn Archimedes, Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, and MS-DOS. The game was released in 1989 and published by MicroProse on the Firebird Software label in the UK, and on the MicroPlay label in America. It was also published in Spain by Erbe Software. Later, it was released with two other games, Stunt Car Racer and MicroProse Soccer, on the Commodore 64 Powerplay 64 cartridge. The game was followed by a sequel, Rick Dangerous 2, in 1990. Loosely based on the Indiana Jones film franchise, the game received mixed reviews from critics.

<i>Boulder Dash</i> (video game) 1984 video game

Boulder Dash is a maze-based puzzle video game released in 1984 by First Star Software for Atari 8-bit computers. It was created by Canadian developers Peter Liepa and Chris Gray. The player controls Rockford, who tunnels through dirt to collect diamonds. Boulders and other objects remain fixed until the dirt beneath them is removed, then they fall and become a hazard. Puzzles are designed around collecting diamonds without being crushed and exploiting the interactions between objects. The game's name is a pun on balderdash.

Newsfield Publications Ltd was a British magazine publisher during the 1980s and early 1990s.

<i>Zzap!64</i> Computer games magazine

Zzap!64 was a computer games magazine covering games for computers manufactured by Commodore International, especially the Commodore 64 (C64). It was published in the UK by Newsfield Publications Ltd and later by Europress Impact.

1990 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake, Dr. Mario, Dragon Quest IV, Final Fantasy III, Phantasy Star II, and Super Mario World, along with new titles such as Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light and Magic Sword. The year's highest-grossing arcade video games were Final Fight in Japan and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the United States. The year's best‑selling system was the Game Boy, while the year's best-selling home video game was Super Mario Bros. 3 for the Nintendo Entertainment System.

1989 saw many sequels and prequels in video games, such as Phantasy Star II, Super Mario Land, Super Monaco GP, along with new titles such as Big Run, Bonk's Adventure, Final Fight, Golden Axe, Strider, Hard Drivin' and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. The year also saw the release of the Sega Genesis and TurboGrafx-16 in North America, and the Game Boy worldwide along with Tetris and Super Mario Land.

<i>Computer and Video Games</i> UK magazine and website

Computer and Video Games was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website was launched in 1999 and closed in February 2015. CVG was the longest-running video game media brand in the world. Several CVG writers led the creation of Video Games Chronicle in 2019.

<i>Retro Gamer</i> UK video game magazine

Retro Gamer is a British magazine, published worldwide, covering retro video games. It was the first commercial magazine to be devoted entirely to the subject. Launched in January 2004 as a quarterly publication, Retro Gamer soon became a monthly. In 2005, a general decline in gaming and computer magazine readership led to the closure of its publishers, Live Publishing, and the rights to the magazine were later purchased by Imagine Publishing. It was taken over by Future plc on 21 October 2016, following Future's acquisition of Imagine Publishing.

<i>Pit-Fighter</i> 1990 video game

Pit-Fighter is a fighting game developed by Atari Games and released as an arcade video game in 1990. It was Atari's first fighting game. The Japanese release was published by Konami. Home versions were published by Tengen.

<i>Trailblazer</i> (video game) 1986 video game

Trailblazer is a racing video game developed by Mr. Chip Software and published by Gremlin Graphics for the ZX Spectrum, Commodore 64, Atari 8-bit computers, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 16 and Plus/4 in 1986. It was ported to the Amiga and Atari ST.

<i>RoadBlasters</i> 1987 video game

RoadBlasters is a combat racing video game released in arcades by Atari Games in 1987. In RoadBlasters, the player must navigate an armed sports car through 50 different rally races, getting to the finish line before running out of fuel.

<i>Spindizzy</i> 1986 video game

Spindizzy is an isometric video game released for several 8-bit home computers in 1986 by Electric Dreams Software. It combines action and puzzle video game elements. Players must navigate a series of screens to explore a landscape suspended in a three-dimensional space. Development was headed by Paul Shirley, who drew inspiration from Ultimate Play the Game games that feature an isometric projection.

<i>Mean Machines</i> UK video game magazine (1990–1992)

Mean Machines was a multi-format video game magazine published between 1990 and 1992 in the United Kingdom.

Paul Glancey is a video game producer and former journalist in the United Kingdom. He made his first steps into the videogame industry as a writer with Zzap!64 and CVG before contributing a few reviews to Mean Machines. Like Julian Rignall and Richard Leadbetter, he tended to appear in both EMAP magazines at the same time.

<i>Commodore Force</i> UK computer games magazine

Commodore Force was a computer games magazine covering games for the Commodore 64. It was published in the UK by Europress Impact. Its predecessor was Zzap!64.

<i>Super Monaco GP</i> 1989 video game

Super Monaco GP is a Formula One racing simulation video game released by Sega, originally as a Sega X Board arcade game in 1989, followed by ports for multiple video game consoles and home computers in the early 1990s. It is the sequel to the 1979 arcade game Monaco GP. The arcade game consists of one race, the Monaco Grand Prix, but later ports added more courses and game modes based on the 1989 Formula One World Championship.

<i>Mega</i> (magazine) Defunct video game magazine 1992-1995

Mega was a British monthly magazine that covered the Mega Drive video game console. During its time as one of the main Mega Drive publications, Mega covered the "golden age" of the Sega Mega Drive from 1992 to 1995. The magazine went through many changes including a re-design in content and layout before being sold to a rival publisher.

<i>Aliens</i> (1990 video game) 1990 video game

Aliens is a 1990 run and gun video game developed and published for arcades by Konami. It is based on the 1986 film of the same title. Two players can play the game cooperatively in addition to single-player.

<i>Intensity</i> (video game) 1988 video game

Intensity is a 1988 action game designed by Andrew Braybrook, developed by Graftgold, and published by Firebird Software. It was released for the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum platforms.

References

  1. ↑ "The History of 8bit Gaming in the UK " July". Zxsoftware.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 November 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  2. ↑ "'Don't burn your bridges' – veteran Julian Rignall reflects on 35 years in games media — Games Media Brit List". www.gamesmediabritlist.com. Archived from the original on 8 May 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 "Julian Rignall: The Definitive Interview / Mean Machines Archive". Meanmachinesmag.co.uk. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  4. ↑ "Zzap! Editorials 1988".
  5. 1 2 ""Oh my god, what have I got myself into?" the inside story of the golden age of video game magazines". January 2020.
  6. ↑ "Julian Jaz Rignall Interview". 27 February 2019.
  7. ↑ "Mean Machines Issues 1 – 24 – Mean Machines Archive". Meanmachinesmag.co.uk. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  8. ↑ "The story of Mean Machines magazine". Eurogamer . 4 June 2017.
  9. ↑ "Julian Rignall". MobyGames. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  10. ↑ "Imagine Games Network Re-Launches Its Popular Site; Largest Computer and Video Game Destination on the Web Takes on a Whole New Look. – Free Online Library". Thefreelibrary.com. 8 September 1998. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "2001 | The Webby Awards Gallery + Archive". Webbyawards.com. Archived from the original on 7 March 2013. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  12. ↑ "Best Buy Launches @Gamer, A New Magazine for Gaming Enthusiasts " Future US, Inc". Futureus.com. 11 June 2010. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  13. ↑ "Future partners with Blizzard Entertainment for World of Warcraft®: The Magazine " Future US, Inc". Futureus.com. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  14. ↑ "CUSTOM MEDIA TAKES CENTER STAGE AT 5TH ANNUAL PEARL AWARDS | Custom Content Council". Custompublishingcouncil.com. 14 November 2008. Archived from the original on 1 January 2011. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  15. ↑ "IDG's GamePro Media Appoints Julian Rignall to Vice President, Content : Page 1 of 2 : Publishing Executive". Pubexec.com. 8 November 2010. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  16. ↑ "Jaz Rignall steps up as editorial director for USGamer".
  17. ↑ https://www.linkedin.com/in/julian-rignall-0493715 [ self-published source ]

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Jaz Rignall at Wikimedia Commons

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.