I subscribe to Famitsu Wave, a great monthly DVD-based magazine in Japan from Enterbrain. Each issue comes with a 2 DVD set chock-full of interviews, previews, and game trailers. But most important, and entertaining, are the regular segements produced by the staff. It’s kind of like a milder Jackass based around videogames, except the people are actually likeable and shower from time to time. If you want a preview, check out my YouTube site, as I periodically post videos from the DVDs I find particularly entertaining.

Travelling five thousand miles across the Pacific, the US has their own DVD-based gaming magazines: Official Playstation Magazine from Ziff Davis, and Official Xbox Magazine (OXM) from Future. These DVDs contain game videos, previews, and playable demos for their specific consoles, and this format has been since the days of the original Playstation, when CD-based content could be easily distributed.

However, Microsoft has stole the show from OXM with the Xbox Live Marketplace. Videos, game content, and demos can now be delivered directly to the user, without the need to distribute a physical disc. This also has the benefit of being timely content, as in the case with the E3 videos. It will be at least a month before we see similar content on an OXM disc, because of the lead time necessary to manufacture and distribute on DVD. And lastly, Microsoft is delivering high definition content, something that can’t yet be produced on a DVD. Even if the OXM crew score an exclusive agreement for a demo, it will probably be freely available via Xbox Live a month or two later. However, if that exclusive content is hot, like a Gears of War demo, I guarantee Future will be on the losing side of a struggle for content with Microsoft. Having high profile content appear on the Marketplace is much more of a coup for Microsoft, which will help push consoles in the market. Don’t forget – it’s Microsoft’s console to sell, not Future’s.

Saying all of that, it seems like the OXM disc has become obsolete, but I have an idea of how it can be relevant again. Future needs to hire a production team to create exclusive programming and content for the disc, much in the same way Enterbrain does for Famitsu Wave. Start providing more making-of, documentary-style content and entertaining segments with OXM personalitites – borrowing a bit from Ziff Davis’ own 1UP Show. And make it more enticing for Xbox owners to have the disc, aside from a couple of inconsequential gamer pictures. Avoid Xbox 360 content at all costs – Microsoft wants it all to themselves so they can sell on the Marketplace. Instead, make it DVD-based so they can watch not just on their Xbox, but on any DVD player they choose. This might even sway non-Xbox owners to pick up an interesting-looking issue to sample for themselves, and even push them toward buying an Xbox.

The magazine itself isn’t great shakes, either. A couple of months ago they received a lot of negativity from gamers for giving Fight Night 3 a review score of 10 out of 10, the first perfect score ever from the magazine, even though a barrel of better games came before it. Quietly, the magazine moved to an eleven-point scale, as to avoid calling Fight Night 3 a “perfect” game. This greatly reduces the integrity of their review staff.

Then, their rumor mole column provided some juicy tidbits:

• Virtua Fighter 5 would appear on the Xbox 360, which at E3 it was announced it would be exclusive to the PS3
• Square-Enix would make “‘a bunch’ of Xbox 360 announcements at E3 2006. Just don’t expect a single-player Final Fantasy to be among them.” We all know how this turned out, I don’t think Square can even spell Xbox…

I know these are rumors, but could they be a little more on the mark without violating their NDAs? These are so off, it makes me believe they don’t get any notice from the gaming industry.

Again with Famitsu Wave, the magazine is primarily to provide a map to the content on the DVD, with advertising thrown in. The result is a glossy ten-page companion to the real content on the DVD. OXM would be wise to relaunch using this format as a guide.

The bottom line is they have to restructure the disc to add some value. Otherwise they will lose valuable subscriber base, like myself. And my subscription is expiring soon…