Develop (UK magazine)
Develop was a monthly UK trade magazine devoted entirely to the video game industry, serving as a professional hub for developers, studios, and everyone who built the games that millions played. For years it was more than a publication: it ran ranking systems, hosted awards ceremonies, and maintained an online portal with a digital edition of the print magazine, active from July 2007. Three questions shape the story of Develop: how did a trade publication earn enough trust to rank the world's best studios, what did its awards mean to the industry, and what happened when its owner decided the market had changed?
Once a year, Develop published a ranking it called the Develop 100, measuring the world's games development studios against one another. The criteria were not simple: studios were assessed on sales data, critical success, and industry standing, a combination that rewarded both commercial performance and peer reputation. This kind of composite ranking was unusual in trade publishing. Most rankings relied on revenue alone. By folding in critical reception and standing within the industry, the Develop 100 gave smaller studios a pathway to recognition that pure sales charts could not offer. A studio producing a critically acclaimed but modestly selling game had a chance to appear alongside giants. That breadth made the list a reference point for developers tracking their own position in a fast-moving global market.
Alongside the Develop 100, the magazine ran an annual awards program called the Develop Industry Excellence Awards. The awards honoured the development of video games and distributed recognition across a range of categories, putting studios of different sizes and specialisms in contention with each other. Trade awards serve a particular function: they let professionals signal achievement to peers, to publishers, and to potential recruits. For a sector as project-driven and talent-dependent as game development, that signal matters. The Develop Industry Excellence Awards gave studios a public credential that could outlast any individual game release.
In November 2017, NewBay Media, the owner of Develop at that time, made an announcement that changed the shape of both Develop and its sister magazine Esports Pro. The websites, magazines, and events of both titles would be absorbed into MCV, another trade publication, by early 2018. The combined magazine would move to a monthly frequency. The merger brought two specialist trade titles into a broader industry publication, ending the distinct identities of Develop and Esports Pro as standalone brands. MCV, absorbing both, inherited their audiences and their event properties at the start of 2018.
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Common questions
What was Develop UK magazine?
Develop was a monthly UK trade magazine for the video game industry. It covered professional development, ran an annual studio ranking called the Develop 100, and hosted the Develop Industry Excellence Awards.
When did Develop magazine's online portal launch?
Develop's online portal, which included a digital version of the print publication, launched in July 2007.
What was the Develop 100 ranking?
The Develop 100 was an annual ranking of the world's games development studios produced by Develop magazine. Studios were assessed on sales data, critical success, and industry standing combined.
What did the Develop Industry Excellence Awards recognise?
The Develop Industry Excellence Awards honoured the development of video games and recognised studios across a range of categories on an annual basis.
Who owned Develop magazine before it closed?
NewBay Media owned Develop magazine at the time it was shut down. In November 2017, NewBay Media announced the title would be absorbed into MCV.
What happened to Develop magazine in 2018?
Develop and its sister magazine Esports Pro were absorbed into MCV by early 2018, following an announcement by owner NewBay Media in November 2017. The combined publication continued at a monthly frequency.