Magazine publisher Future is partnering with Blizzard Entertainment to create a quarterly magazine that caters specifically to World of Warcraft players. The first issue is due this fall and will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the popular massively multiplayer online role-playing game.
"Each collectible issue will be packed with engaging, entertaining and comprehensive articles that cover all aspects of World of Warcraft through insider insights and player perspectives," the publishing company said in a press release.
World of Warcraft: The Magazine will not be available on newsstands. Rather, fans can subscribe through the World of Warcraft account-management page or directly from the publication's website once it goes live. Attendees at the BlizzCon convention this weekend in Anaheim, California, can subscribe there and score a limited-edition plush murloc for doing so.
With advertising revenues down, this may seem like a bad time to launch a new magazine. But some ideas are so crazy they might just work: Last year, Blizzard said World of Warcraft was played by more than 10 million paying subscribers. Only a fraction of those players need to fork over the $40 annual subscription fee to make the magazine a success.
Game Informer is the current leader in the videogame magazine market, with more than 3 million subscribers, according to BurrellesLuce. A cozy relationship with videogame retailer GameStop helps Game Informer remain among the top 20 magazines in the country: The store's employees regularly push customers to buy subscriptions. Future could reap similar benefits through its partnership with Blizzard.
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