UK · 1990–1996
A UK console-only spin-off from CVG that became the defining voice of British 16-bit gaming coverage, celebrated for its irreverent editorial style and detailed multiformat reviews during the Mega Drive and SNES era.
Mean Machines launched in October 1990 as a dedicated console magazine spun off from CVG by EMAP, founded by editors Julian Rignall and Matt Regan who had cultivated a loyal readership through their CVG work. The timing was perfect: the 16-bit console war between the Sega Mega Drive and Super Nintendo was just beginning, and Mean Machines positioned itself as the authoritative UK voice for both platforms without the computer coverage that still dominated CVG. The editorial style — irreverent, personality-driven, frequently self-deprecating — was a deliberate departure from the drier tone of CVG and gave the magazine a strong identity among teenage readers. Mean Machines split into two successor magazines in 1992 — Mean Machines Sega and Nintendo Magazine System — which ran until the late 1990s. Staff alumni went on to found or edit most of the significant UK games publications of the following decade.