Eurogamer

History

Eurogamer (initially stylised as EuroGamer was launched on 4 September 1999 under company Eurogamer Network. The founding team included John Bye, the webmaster for the PlanetQuake website and a writer for British magazine PC Gaming World; Patrick Stokes, a contributor for the website Warzone; and Rupert Loman, who had organised the EuroQuake esports event for the game Quake. It became the official online media partner of the 2002 European Computer Trade Show. By the end of 2012, visits to the Eurogamer website and its ten European foreign-language versions had increased by over ten percent compared to the previous year.

In February 2015, Eurogamer abandoned its ten-point scale for review scores in favor of highlighting games the reviewer felt particularly strongly about with labels such as "Essential", "Recommended" or "Avoid". The change was driven by doubt about the score system's usefulness and its desire to be delisted from review aggregator Metacritic because of its "unhealthy influence" on the games industry. In May 2023, Eurogamer returned to scoring reviews, opting for a five-point scale due to them being "universally understood, simple to take in at a glance, and easily shared."

In February 2018, Eurogamer's parent company, Gamer Network, was acquired by Reed Exhibitions, a division of RELX. In September 2021, the community forum for Eurogamer closed, with the site recommending other platforms such as Discord instead.

In May 2024, Gamer Network was sold to IGN Entertainment, a subsidiary of Ziff Davis.

Editors

In January 2008, Tom Bramwell succeeded Kristan Reed as editor-in-chief, a position he held until November 2014, marking the end of his 15-year tenure with Eurogamer. Afterwards Oli Welsh served as editor for Eurogamer, followed by Martin Robinson, Wesley Yin-Poole, and Tom Phillips, with Tom Orry as the current editor.

Regional websites and other outlets

Current

Eurogamer has several regional publications:

• Eurogamer.de for Germany; launched in co-operation with Extent Media on 24 August 2006 to coincide with that year's Games Convention exhibition.
• Eurogamer.es for Spain.
• Eurogamer.pl for Poland.
• Eurogamer.pt for Portugal; launched in partnership with LusoPlay in May 2008.

Former

• Eurogamer.cz for the Czech Republic.
• Eurogamer Benelux for Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg (under Eurogamer.nl); launched in August 2008 and headed by Steven De Leeuw.
• Brasilgamer for Brazil; established in 2012.
• Eurogamer.dk for Denmark; launched in June 2009 and headed by Kristian West.
• Eurogamer.fr for France; launched as a joint venture with Microscoop in October 2007.
• Eurogamer.it for Italy; closed in 2022.
• Eurogamer.ro for Romania.
• Eurogamer.se for Sweden; established in 2015, closed in 2016.

Digital Foundry

Digital Foundry, a video game technology blog founded in 2004 by Richard Leadbetter and Gary Harrod, analyses games and hardware based on performance. Since 2007, Eurogamer hosts Digital Foundry content due to a deal arranged by Leadbetter, who later sold parent Eurogamer Network half of it to support his video content. The Ringer recognized Digital Foundry for establishing the approach game technology videos employ and the outlet was used by Microsoft to unveil the Xbox One X hardware.

When Eurogamer's ownership first shifted in 2018, Leadbetter began seeking full control of Digital Foundry again. In August 2025, owner IGN agreed to sell Digital Foundry back to Leadbetter, with both Leadbetter and Eurogamer founder Rupert Loman paying equally for the cost of completing the sale. Leadbetter said that the outlet was profitable due to its Patreon funding of about $200,000 a year.

Reception

Eurogamer has won several trade awards, including:

• 2007–2011 Best Website at the Games Media Awards.
• 2018 Online Editorial Team and Best Streamer at the Games Media Brit List.
• 2022 and 2024 Media Brand of the Year at MCV/Develop.

References

References

1. Bowden, Mike. (20 October 2008). "Loman on EE2008: "Our biggest inspiration is probably the Penny Arcade Expo"". [[VG247]].
2. Alexander, Leigh. (October 9, 2013). "This Is What Video Games Are: A Dispatch From A Crowded Gaming Expo". [[Kotaku]].
3. Sinclair, Brendan. (November 16, 2020). "USgamer staff laid off". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
4. Eurogamer Staff. (4 September 1999). "EuroGamer opens!". Eurogamer.
5. Schofield, Jack. (29 August 2002). "Live from ECTS....". [[The Guardian]].
6. Cullen, Johnny. (February 17, 2011). "Eurogamer hits 5.2 million unique visitors". [[VG247]].
7. Martin, Matt. (February 17, 2011). "Eurogamer passes 5.2m unique users". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
8. Pearson, Dan. (January 30, 2012). "Eurogamer's unique traffic surges 10% to 5.7m monthly users". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
9. Orland, Kyle. (February 16, 2015). "The spotty death and eternal life of gaming review scores". [[Ars Technica]].
10. Scimeca, Dennis. (29 May 2021). "Here's why you won't find review scores on Eurogamer anymore". [[The Daily Dot]].
11. Calvin, Alex. (23 February 2015). "Why Eurogamer ditched review scores".
12. (2023-05-10). "Eurogamer reviews are changing". Eurogamer.
13. Frank, Allegra. (2018-02-26). "PAX organizer acquires USgamer, Eurogamer and more".
14. Plunkett, Luke. (2021-09-16). "Please Stop Closing Forums And Moving People To Discord".
15. Webster, Andrew. (May 21, 2024). "IGN scoops up Eurogamer, Rock Paper Shotgun, and more". [[The Verge]].
16. Martin, Matt. (14 January 2008). "Bramwell steps up to editor role at Eurogamer.net". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
17. Sinclair, Brendan. (September 9, 2014). "Tom Bramwell leaving Eurogamer". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
18. Dickens, Anthony. (27 November 2014). "Ninterview: Tom Bramwell On Nintendo and 15 Years at Eurogamer". [[Nintendo Life]].
19. "Oli Welsh Profile and Activity". [[Polygon (website).
20. Handrahan, Matthew. (September 4, 2019). "Eurogamer at 20: Adapting to a changing industry". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
21. Dring, Christopher. (November 26, 2021). "ReedPop restructures editorial leadership team". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
22. (2024-12-07). "Wesley Yin-Poole".
23. Phillips, Tom. (2023-04-28). "Hello from Eurogamer's new editor-in-chief".
24. Phillips, Tom. (2025-05-16). "A farewell from Tom Phillips".
25. Günsch, Michael. (2024-05-22). "Spiele-Websites: IGN übernimmt Gamer Network mit Eurogamer und Digital Foundry".
26. Bramwell, Tom. (4 August 2006). "Eurogamer.de announced".
27. Gibson, Ellie. (21 May 2008). "New Eurogamer Portugal site launches".
28. Bramwell, Tom. (18 August 2008). "Eurogamer Benelux launches!".
29. Loureiro, Jorge. (1 March 2013). "Eurogamer Network é agora Gamer Network".
30. Gibson, Ellie. (25 June 2009). "Eurogamer Denmark launches".
31. Eurogamer staff. (25 October 2007). "Eurogamer France launches!".
32. (2022-11-04). "La fine di un bel viaggio". Eurogamer.it.
33. Göransson, Andréas. (11 December 2016). "Eurogamer.se lägger ner – tack för att du läste".
34. Lindbergh, Ben. (February 26, 2021). "The Rise of the Video Game Graphics Guru". [[The Ringer (website).
35. Hollister, Sean. (August 7, 2025). "Digital Foundry, the most trusted name in game console analysis, is going independent". [[The Verge]].
36. MCV Staff. (15 October 2010). "PC Zone heads roll call of winners at Games Media Awards".
37. MCV Staff. (27 October 2011). "GMA 2011: Eurogamer takes Best Website award fifth year running".
38. MCV Staff. (18 May 2018). "All the winners from the Games Media Brit List".
39. Taylor, Ivy. (May 18, 2018). "Eurogamer scoops multiple awards at first-ever Games Media Brit List". [[GamesIndustry.biz]].
40. Wallace, Chris. (3 May 2022). "Announcing the winners of the 2022 MCV/DEVELOP Awards!".
41. Shoemaker, Richie. (21 June 2024). "The winners of the MCV/DEVELOP Awards 2024!".