For several years now, ActuGaming is a media specializing in video games that relays news and offers reviews of many games. Made up of enthusiasts, the team has always been very close to the community. Those who have read us for several years know that we started out as a simple forum before becoming the news site that we are today.
An evolution that we owe to our wonderful team but also to our ever more loyal readers. In 2021, you were on average more than 800,000 unique visitors for more than 2 million page views per month. A score that makes 2021 the best since our launch and which is absolutely incredible for us. We have always been close to you and so it makes sense to share some news with you. First some news, then an update on our situation.
A new page for outings and video games
Surprise, in recent weeks we have started rolling out a new design. Some may have already noticed it, but several pages have had a facelift. This is the case with our advanced search, which, in addition to being optimized for mobile devices, makes it easier to filter and find a game or news item on our site.
The page dedicated to our tests has also been modernized with more visual information but also and above all, the appearance of different filters. We think of the possibility of finding our high-tech tests in one click, but also the function of having only the PlayStation or Xbox tests, or even of showing only the good (or bad) notes.
In addition to these redesigns, we have also deployed two new pages that are quite similar: upcoming releases and list of all games. On the first, the video game releases page, you will find the releases of the month with filters that allow you to easily find what is coming out next month or what was released at the beginning of the year.
On the second, the games page, you have here all the games that are listed on ActuGaming. You can filter by console or genre, and easily discover new games. Please note that these two pages are still under development, and other filters and functionalities will be deployed in the coming months, with in particular, a chronological order for the classification of files, or the possibility of seeing the popular games of the moment.
We’ve been growing our game database for a few years and it was time for us to bring it to light. Before, it was quite difficult to navigate by games; now, in just a few clicks, whether via these new pages or the advanced search, you can easily find all the news about a particular video game. We try to maintain this database as well as possible.
A difficult sector
We have other projects to announce to you, but that will come in our next paragraph. Before that, we wanted to share a few words since it had been a while since we had communicated on the state of the site. Whether it’s its content, our editorial line or our projects, we have always been very transparent, and today is an opportunity for us to take stock of the life survival from ActuGaming.
Being a gaming site in 2022 isn’t easy. If you read the specialized press more or less regularly, you know that the majority of newsrooms are struggling to make ends meet. And for good reason, the economic model based on advertising is not (more) viable. Besides another phenomenon, the rise of social networks and influencers that make journalists more dispensable. Two phenomena that are detrimental to the specialized press and which are also intimately linked since advertisers are turning to these new platforms and creators.
Maybe we don’t teach you anything, but the video game world, in the specialized press at least, is not so idyllic as that and no longer makes you dream as much. ActuGaming is obviously affected by this phenomenon, especially since we are a mainly contributor editorial staff and still very young in the field. This decadence of the economic model is of course putting a huge brake on our development.
We may love what we do, but our days are nonetheless particularly trying. We also refer you to the farewell message from Pipomantis when he left Gamekult, a crying testimony of realism through which our team finds itself.
Let’s also put aside this fantasy of the press privileged by the studios, something that no longer exists. The team is always happy to receive games in advance, but let’s be honest, without that, there would be no specialized media, even the biggest ones (with more than 350 tests carried out in 2021, we let you imagine the amount! ). And let’s be honest, test conditions are not always utopian.
The team and I also take this opportunity to send our thoughts to the entire editorial staff of JVFR, whose activity ceased a few days ago. A thought also to the teams of gameblog, whose site was placed in receivership at the beginning of the year. The period is rather gloomy for the specialized press, and we send them all our positive vibes.
For us, as a journalist and editor, we believe that we are all in the same boat and that it is better to support your colleagues. This is why we also invite you to discover the XboxSquad initiative which offers to experience the Xbox & Bethesda conference at the Grand Rex. It is important to support initiatives of this kind, which bring the community to life. Hurry, there are only a few days left!
We are fortunate to be one of the few growing video game sites, but that may not be enough in the future. Today, things seem to be going well, but for how long? Will we still be able to continue to evolve positively while finding real stability? Regardless, we will always make it a point of honor to maintain our transparency and integrity. ActuGaming’s editorial line will undoubtedly evolve over time, but we will notify you of any changes, in particular those that may impact your enjoyment and your browsing of our services.
In the meantime, to ensure the survival of our structure, we have opened the door to sponsored articles, which are coming to our site more frequently (and which will always be clearly indicated to readers with a mention). We also rolled out a shopping guide section a few months ago. It will fill up more in the coming weeks and we strongly invite you to take a look. Know that we collect a (very) small percentage on each sale. It costs you nothing, but it allows us to finance a small part of our technical costs.
What about the future?
For the moment, our site and our editorial line do not change. We simply wanted to share with you this little reflection on the world of the specialized press, since we are still under the pressure of it on a daily basis. We love to share video game news with you, but you can’t imagine what’s behind it. And honestly, it does us a lot of good to talk to you about it and share this feeling with you.
Rest assured, ActuGaming is still very active and we have several projects in the future. In addition to the deployment of the new pages mentioned above, we have other improvements that will arrive on the site in the coming months: the visual overhaul will extend to all of our pages, with better optimized navigation, especially on mobile, and the home page will be completely redone. Then, it will be the turn of our game sheets to be completely redesigned, before deploying other little surprises. Yes yes, don’t worry, we always think of those who ask us for the mobile application.
For additional projects, the AG French Direct will return. For the moment, our teams have nothing to communicate to you but know that a new, even more ambitious edition is being prepared. Be careful, a conference filled with announcements could well take place at the end of the year.
Finally, if we continue to produce ever more traditional content (news, previews & tests), we will increase our pace on interviews and feature articles. Reports and other testimonies take time (and money) but we would like to develop this aspect, just like our editorials and other more personal items. The AG Summer will also return at the end of June for a summer program filled with videos.
How to support us?
After our speech on the specialized press, it’s hard not to leave the door open to your good graces: to support us, simply stay as you are. We love our readers, and you can simply react to the news with comments on our site, opinions on our games, or replies to our posts on social networks: know it, the engagement on our networks or our videos is very important for our visibility. So believe us, an answer, a comment, it helps us enormously.
Also consider disabling AdBlock, since even if we have advertising, we strive to keep it pleasant and non-intrusive. You can also follow us on all of our social networks or even on YouTube. Do not hesitate to pre-order or buy your games via our affiliate links, through our price comparators or our publications on social networks. You can also contact us to share your ideas or opportunities.
Finally, you can also tell us what we can improve on our site and our networks : whether for new features or technical improvements but also on our content. ActuGaming is very close to its community, and your feedback is valuable in offering you the news site that suits you.
A big thank you to all of you for your support and loyalty.