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Type of site | Gaming |
|---|---|
| Created by |
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| Parent | Gamerhub [1] |
| URL | shacknews |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Launched | 1996 |
Shacknews is a website about the computer games industry. The site publishes news articles, reviews, and cheat codes.
Shacknews was founded in 1996 by Steve Gibson, nicknamed 'Scary Steve'. The website, originally named 'Quakeholio', was dedicated to the then-upcoming id Software game Quake. [2] Over time the site evolved to cover a wider range of topics, prompting a name change.
FileShack, a spinoff-site for game demos, patches, videos, and miscellaneous game-related assets for Shacknews users and others, was launched in August 2002. [3]
For much of the site's history, little original research was involved in Shacknews content. However, in recent years, the site has shifted away from the "link-and-quote" news method. Shacknews now largely features internally researched news, in-house feature content, and industry event coverage.
Typical articles on the site focus on and discuss a featured topic. The site also has twice-daily community posts with titles such as Evening Reading, First Post, and Morning Discussion. This creates a space for a "free-for-all" discussion in the comments section, where community and staff can interact with one another.
On February 3, 2009, Shacknews and all related Shacknews destinations were purchased by GameFly. [4]
In January 2014, Shacknews was acquired by Gamerhub Content Network, and the sister site FileShack was shut down. [1] [5] Asif Khan, a financial analyst, had contributed to purchasing the site from Gamefly near the end of 2013 and became the site's CEO.
Since 2014, David L. Craddock who is one of the site's editors and a video game historian, has published several long reads on Shacknews. These have covered topics such as the development of various games and are based on interviews with people involved in their development, publishing, and marketing. Some of these have been published as eBooks and physical books, with editing assistance from Khan. [6]
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