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Dave Halverson

Editor-in-Chief / Founder · GameFan / Play Magazine · 1992–2019 · American

Dave Halverson founded GameFan in 1992 and introduced a visually distinctive, unabashedly enthusiast style of games criticism that prioritised import coverage and aesthetic presentation over consumer-guide utility.

Dave Halverson launched GameFan as a deliberate alternative to EGM's functional review format, modelling it instead on Japanese gaming magazines with their emphasis on full-bleed screenshots, stylised layouts, and evangelical coverage of Japanese games before their Western release. GameFan reviewers wrote in a personal, enthusiastic register that eschewed objectivity for declared taste — a position that divided readers but built an intensely loyal audience. Halverson's magazine was among the first American publications to give extended coverage to the Saturn, to PlayStation RPGs including Final Fantasy VII before its Western release, and to fighting games as an art form. When GameFan ceased publication in 2000, Halverson immediately launched Play Magazine, which continued his editorial philosophy until 2009. He has faced serious misconduct allegations that emerged publicly in 2019.

Notable Work:
  • Founded GameFan in 1992, introducing a Japanese-magazine aesthetic to American games publishing
  • Early and extensive coverage of the Sega Saturn at a time when most American press was dismissive of it
  • Published pre-release coverage of Final Fantasy VII and numerous PlayStation RPGs that influenced Western adoption of the genre
  • Founded Play Magazine in 2000, continuing independent enthusiast games criticism through 2009
Key Facts:
  • GameFan's review scores were notorious for being unusually high — a policy Halverson defended as reflecting genuine enthusiasm rather than grade inflation
  • The magazine's import coverage gave American readers access to Japanese game information months before official localisations
  • GameFan was instrumental in building awareness of the Saturn's Japanese library, which Halverson considered superior to the PlayStation's for dedicated players
  • Halverson faced allegations of sexual misconduct published in 2019, which led to his removal from ongoing projects