Issue #1 released

Tangerine · May 13th, 2009, 2:10:29 PM

Sorry for the unexpected delays, but it's up.
http://www.smogon.com/smog/

Please post feedback/thoughts/comments here.

iKitsune · May 13th, 2009, 2:16:24 PM

This is such a great job and i've only seen the front page!

Cookie was hilarious.

Favourite part the Q&A; a revolutionary proposal.

I loved LR's and Imran's lead discussion. That was really informative.

Caelum, i adored the prediction "introduction"; very comprehensive.

X-act's submission scared me.

I urge you all to read this marvel. A strong start.

zarator · May 13th, 2009, 2:18:06 PM

Very interesting, indeed. On a general basis, I found it very well written and organized. More specifically...

I loved the "topic-related" articles such as the UU metagame one or the other about prediction. I really would like to see more like these coming.

The interview to Chaos was a masterpiece^^ Good job!

The "Pokemon-history" part is also interesting. Can't wait to see more of these, too.

To sum this up: Great job guys! This magazine seem amazing just from the start! Keep this up!

gorm · May 13th, 2009, 2:30:22 PM

Excellent work guys, much more content than i expected. long live the smog!

Abacus · May 13th, 2009, 2:52:32 PM

I wasn't sure what to expect from the Smog. It just seemed that there wasn't anything for it to cover that the pokemon analysis or the D/P resource thread didn't.

Then I read the issue and was blown away. Everyone who contributed did an excellent job; there is a definite place for the magazine on the website. This has inspired me to become more involved in the community.

Huntofthelion · May 13th, 2009, 2:57:15 PM

Nice work guys.

Jimbo · May 13th, 2009, 2:59:58 PM

I'm really glad it turned out so nicely ^__^ Special thanks to bk, darkie, chaos, and stellar who helped with the final push (feel better tangi!!)

The next issue will be out in July (on schedule this time) Remember if you have article ideas feel free to pm me.

Wes · May 13th, 2009, 3:21:38 PM

Great job guys! The articles are really good and the interview with chaos was as funny as his beard.

I also like the fact that cookie has a column...

The artwork is amazing too.

**locopoke** · May 13th, 2009, 3:26:41 PM

Wow, you guys did an awesome job, congrats on the first issue. I enjoyed reading it.

Atlas · May 13th, 2009, 4:05:29 PM

i found it to be pretty underwhelming as a whole.

in my mind i saw it more "magazine" styled. firstly i disliked the layout, specifically the home page where you had to choose where to go. of course, you choose the first option and then click next continuing on to the next article etc., but i found it irritating that you had to go back to click a new article that youve already passed.

i would have gone the route in which it looked more like a webpage layout where you had all your articles on the left and the articles on the right. although both present a problem, spacing, but i think the webpage layout would have worked better. back to spacing, i felt that there was just too much blank space. most of the instances came from when you used pictures, instead of working the text you just pasted it.

thirdly, where the pictures at? with all the work people do in smeargles studio i had expected an art section. even without an art section there were too few pictures. also, no CAP section? that didnt warrant an article or two? "But one of the most important things I want to highlight is that the web-zine will not be a medium solely for competitive Pokémon." why is it that all we saw? i know a lot of this paragraph has to do with user input and created content but i felt even if i, or other people, contributed there probably still have been something you could have written about these subjects, even a link to a thread.

fourthly, what the fuck cookie? youve never heard of Cigar Aficianado (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cigar_Aficionado)? you didnt see my link where i suggested it so people who dont know that its not just some italian douche baggery addition? did you not think it was clever how "cigar" and "gengar" sound similar thus make a humourus pun? do you know how many question marks are acceptable in a paragraph? i dont.

lastly, to go with my first point of being so underwhelming, there just wasnt enough content, especially being bi-monthly. again, i know, first issue, not enough contributors, etc. but even within what you did cover, you could have went further such as doing more than one q&a question, posting the entire battle log from the st5 final match, (for me) dumbing down the equations in the math section.

ps. the graphs on the "OU Leads" article is too small. if i need to put on my glasses and still cant read what the text says, its too small.

Zak91 · May 13th, 2009, 4:11:29 PM

This looks great, some really nice articles. Hope to see more issues.

~~Olie~~ · May 13th, 2009, 4:12:58 PM

The quality of everything looks very nice, but I have to agree with Atlas, clicking back all the time gets a bit repetative.

Fuzznip · May 13th, 2009, 4:18:37 PM

This is truly amazing. I enjoyed every part of it. Good job everyone.

There needs to be a famous art section. :P

Unownasofyet · May 13th, 2009, 4:39:07 PM

The magazine was really well done, but I have a few quips. First, more Q+A should be done. Second, there should be a well known player giving a RMT to a team that looks interesting but might need some help. Third, we need a completely commentated war story, as well as metagame descriptions. The magazine was great, though!

Joatmon · May 13th, 2009, 5:49:33 PM

Great job on the first issue! I already submitted my Poll/Trivia questions, and I have to say that the effort on this was fantastic, and I look foward to contributing on the next issue! One thing I do have to address is, yes, I too wish that there would be more than one Q&A, but I think the quality of that question made up for that in this situation. More in the future would be nice though.

CKY · May 13th, 2009, 5:51:43 PM

I really liked this first issue, good job to everyone who was involved. I especially liked the articles that were looking at different metagames from the usual. The featured RMT was good, and I love the idea of looking at how a Pokemon has changed through each generation.

The only things I would suggest changing are basically reiterating what Atlas said. Include more artwork (there is a lot of talent and excellent work in Smeargle's Studio) and making navigation between articles more convenient. I'd also like more articles, but obviously that will happen as the magazine grows.

Again, good job (also the chaos interview was very interesting, more please).

auramaster · May 13th, 2009, 6:00:28 PM

Great first issue. Every article was interesting, though there are a few things that could be added to make it better. Along with more then one Q&A and an art section, where's the warstories? In general, more content is never a bad thing, especially for something only shown bi-monthly.

But why is it only bi-monthly? I think with interest growing you could make an issue every month.

darkie · May 13th, 2009, 6:06:57 PM

Remember that not only is this the first issue, April/May is also a bad time of year for most people still in school. Although it is the first issue, it's more of a trial than anything. What we learn from this issue will help us put out better products every other month from now. Speaking of the bimonthly schedule, do you want a quality product every two months or a substandard product monthly? We really don't have the manpower to make an issue every month, although this may change in the future.

Matthew · May 13th, 2009, 6:10:50 PM

As a whole, it was pretty good, the clicking back and forwards did get a little obnoxious, but nothing too serious. I would like the authors of the articles written beside the piece they wrote. That way we can see a writer who we like and read that one first, followed by the ones we like less and less.

Good job guys

Diana · May 13th, 2009, 6:52:19 PM

Okay, I think I can safely say the first issue was good. It was repetitive at times, but this is Smogon, and there is a slant to competitive battling.

By the way, tennisace, keep it up, that was one amazing article.

Chaos interview was good too.

Flashstorm1 · May 13th, 2009, 7:02:40 PM

I have to tell you, I enjoyed looking through the magazine. I found the articles very enjoyable to read. I'm expecting the high-quality work I saw in this issue in July. I'd like to thank The Smog staff for the hard work they put into writing and publishing this issue for the community.

august · May 13th, 2009, 7:06:39 PM

It was very enjoyable from what ive read so far, the interview with chaos was great!

reyscarface · May 13th, 2009, 7:08:27 PM

I think it was a great read and i liked the sections a lot, loved the drawings a lot too x)

**locopoke** · May 13th, 2009, 7:20:03 PM

Quote:

It was very enjoyable from what ive read so far, the interview with chaos was great!

Hah yes, the interview with chaos was great.

Xaqwais · May 13th, 2009, 7:47:24 PM

Wow. When I saw the voting for the name, I was like, oh that's a cool little project. This blew me out of the water.

Props for making it so diverse, with practical Pokemon info, theorymon, comedy, etc.

I agree, though, an Art section couldn't hurt, you could make it a contest or something.

Again, great job guys, I can't wait for the next one.

May 13th, 2009, 2:16:24 PM	#2
iKitsune Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 805 Mirrodin	This is such a great job and i've only seen the front page! Cookie was hilarious. Favourite part the Q&A; a revolutionary proposal. I loved LR's and Imran's lead discussion. That was really informative. Caelum, i adored the prediction "introduction"; very comprehensive. X-act's submission scared me. I urge you all to read this marvel. A strong start. __________________ <&GEC> crazy dont like you baby Kiss my bloodclot! yeah you know what i mean Last edited by iKitsune; May 14th, 2009 at 5:27:59 PM.

May 13th, 2009, 2:30:22 PM	#4
gorm Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 1,191 ½gone	Excellent work guys, much more content than i expected. long live the smog! __________________ pretentious like a 7th son infectious like h1n1

May 13th, 2009, 2:57:15 PM	#6
Huntofthelion Live for the nights you can't remember Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 858 Mentor	Nice work guys. __________________ Help out with OU Team Building Quality over Quanity

May 13th, 2009, 3:21:38 PM	#8
Wes Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 339 Die! eter?	Great job guys! The articles are really good and the interview with chaos was as funny as his beard. I also like the fact that cookie has a column... The artwork is amazing too. Last edited by Wes; May 13th, 2009 at 3:24:26 PM. Reason: don't forget the art!

May 13th, 2009, 3:26:41 PM	#9
locopoke indulges in unsavory behavior Moderator Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 2,746	Wow, you guys did an awesome job, congrats on the first issue. I enjoyed reading it. __________________

May 13th, 2009, 2:10:29 PM	#1
Tangerine Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 3,133	Issue #1 released Sorry for the unexpected delays, but it's up. http://www.smogon.com/smog/ Please post feedback/thoughts/comments here.

May 13th, 2009, 2:18:06 PM	#3
zarator Don't cry, little one Join Date: Mar 2008 Posts: 3,490 Italy	Very interesting, indeed. On a general basis, I found it very well written and organized. More specifically... I loved the "topic-related" articles such as the UU metagame one or the other about prediction. I really would like to see more like these coming. The interview to Chaos was a masterpiece^^ Good job! The "Pokemon-history" part is also interesting. Can't wait to see more of these, too. To sum this up: Great job guys! This magazine seem amazing just from the start! Keep this up!

May 13th, 2009, 2:52:32 PM	#5
Abacus Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 303	I wasn't sure what to expect from the Smog. It just seemed that there wasn't anything for it to cover that the pokemon analysis or the D/P resource thread didn't. Then I read the issue and was blown away. Everyone who contributed did an excellent job; there is a definite place for the magazine on the website. This has inspired me to become more involved in the community.

May 13th, 2009, 2:59:58 PM	#7
Jimbo it's a revolution, i suppose Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 3,575 New Jersey	I'm really glad it turned out so nicely ^__^ Special thanks to bk, darkie, chaos, and stellar who helped with the final push (feel better tangi!!) The next issue will be out in July (on schedule this time) Remember if you have article ideas feel free to pm me.

May 13th, 2009, 4:05:29 PM	#10
Atlas I'm the Mary! Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 3,489 Alliston, Ontario	i found it to be pretty underwhelming as a whole. in my mind i saw it more "magazine" styled. firstly i disliked the layout, specifically the home page where you had to choose where to go. of course, you choose the first option and then click next continuing on to the next article etc., but i found it irritating that you had to go back to click a new article that youve already passed. i would have gone the route in which it looked more like a webpage layout where you had all your articles on the left and the articles on the right. although both present a problem, spacing, but i think the webpage layout would have worked better. back to spacing, i felt that there was just too much blank space. most of the instances came from when you used pictures, instead of working the text you just pasted it. thirdly, where the pictures at? with all the work people do in smeargles studio i had expected an art section. even without an art section there were too few pictures. also, no CAP section? that didnt warrant an article or two? "But one of the most important things I want to highlight is that the web-zine will not be a medium solely for competitive Pokémon." why is it that all we saw? i know a lot of this paragraph has to do with user input and created content but i felt even if i, or other people, contributed there probably still have been something you could have written about these subjects, even a link to a thread. fourthly, what the fuck cookie? youve never heard of Cigar Aficianado (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cigar_Aficionado)? you didnt see my link where i suggested it so people who dont know that its not just some italian douche baggery addition? did you not think it was clever how "cigar" and "gengar" sound similar thus make a humourus pun? do you know how many question marks are acceptable in a paragraph? i dont. lastly, to go with my first point of being so underwhelming, there just wasnt enough content, especially being bi-monthly. again, i know, first issue, not enough contributors, etc. but even within what you did cover, you could have went further such as doing more than one q&a question, posting the entire battle log from the st5 final match, (for me) dumbing down the equations in the math section. ps. the graphs on the "OU Leads" article is too small. if i need to put on my glasses and still cant read what the text says, its too small. __________________ Last edited by Atlas; May 13th, 2009 at 4:10:52 PM.

May 13th, 2009, 4:11:29 PM	#11
Zak91 Silent waters run deep Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 244 London, England.	This looks great, some really nice articles. Hope to see more issues.

May 13th, 2009, 4:12:58 PM	#12
~~Olie~~ Banned deucer. Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 2,182 Edmonton	The quality of everything looks very nice, but I have to agree with Atlas, clicking back all the time gets a bit repetative.

May 13th, 2009, 4:18:37 PM	#13
Fuzznip Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 2,243 Calgary, Alberta	This is truly amazing. I enjoyed every part of it. Good job everyone. There needs to be a famous art section. :P __________________ DougJustDoug: Fuzznip -- you are more altruistic than I am. http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs41/f/20...urple_hill.png

May 13th, 2009, 4:39:07 PM	#14
Unownasofyet Join Date: Apr 2007 Posts: 128 at Warp 10	The magazine was really well done, but I have a few quips. First, more Q+A should be done. Second, there should be a well known player giving a RMT to a team that looks interesting but might need some help. Third, we need a completely commentated war story, as well as metagame descriptions. The magazine was great, though! __________________ I have accepted Rachel's Challenge. Help Start a Chain Reaction! Chess League pairings for round 1 are up, but you can still sign up! Check the games forum for news.

May 13th, 2009, 5:49:33 PM	#15
Joatmon Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 143	Great job on the first issue! I already submitted my Poll/Trivia questions, and I have to say that the effort on this was fantastic, and I look foward to contributing on the next issue! One thing I do have to address is, yes, I too wish that there would be more than one Q&A, but I think the quality of that question made up for that in this situation. More in the future would be nice though. __________________ I will be gone until the weekend. If need to contact me, PM me and I will get back to you asap.

May 13th, 2009, 5:51:43 PM	#16
CKY Join Date: Jul 2007 Posts: 7 Carver City	I really liked this first issue, good job to everyone who was involved. I especially liked the articles that were looking at different metagames from the usual. The featured RMT was good, and I love the idea of looking at how a Pokemon has changed through each generation. The only things I would suggest changing are basically reiterating what Atlas said. Include more artwork (there is a lot of talent and excellent work in Smeargle's Studio) and making navigation between articles more convenient. I'd also like more articles, but obviously that will happen as the magazine grows. Again, good job (also the chaos interview was very interesting, more please). __________________ Now I call upon you. Come to me, my unborn children of sodomy and devour all the ignorants. So hideous in your beauty, my new vogue children.

May 13th, 2009, 6:00:28 PM	#17
auramaster Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 764	Great first issue. Every article was interesting, though there are a few things that could be added to make it better. Along with more then one Q&A and an art section, where's the warstories? In general, more content is never a bad thing, especially for something only shown bi-monthly. But why is it only bi-monthly? I think with interest growing you could make an issue every month. __________________ † I trust Science, therefore I am a Christian † Proud host of three Mafia games.

May 13th, 2009, 6:06:57 PM	#18
darkie coolcoolcool Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 5,361 Plano, TX	Remember that not only is this the first issue, April/May is also a bad time of year for most people still in school. Although it is the first issue, it's more of a trial than anything. What we learn from this issue will help us put out better products every other month from now. Speaking of the bimonthly schedule, do you want a quality product every two months or a substandard product monthly? We really don't have the manpower to make an issue every month, although this may change in the future. __________________

May 13th, 2009, 6:10:50 PM	#19
Matthew I love weather; Sun for days Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 3,581 Where the Sun finally sets	As a whole, it was pretty good, the clicking back and forwards did get a little obnoxious, but nothing too serious. I would like the authors of the articles written beside the piece they wrote. That way we can see a writer who we like and read that one first, followed by the ones we like less and less. Good job guys __________________ ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻ What bitgamer tehconnection popcorn last.fm

May 13th, 2009, 6:52:19 PM	#20
Diana Fennekin the cutest Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 1,258	Okay, I think I can safely say the first issue was good. It was repetitive at times, but this is Smogon, and there is a slant to competitive battling. By the way, tennisace, keep it up, that was one amazing article. Chaos interview was good too. __________________ C&C work: 34 done, 2 partly done, finished 4th gen moveset errors

May 13th, 2009, 7:02:40 PM	#21
Flashstorm1 Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 1,373 Texas	I have to tell you, I enjoyed looking through the magazine. I found the articles very enjoyable to read. I'm expecting the high-quality work I saw in this issue in July. I'd like to thank The Smog staff for the hard work they put into writing and publishing this issue for the community. __________________ But everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked... Feel free to message me if you would like to add me on Skype, PSN, or Steam.

May 13th, 2009, 7:06:39 PM	#22
august atlas shrugged Join Date: Nov 2007 Posts: 2,857 endlesshighways.tumblr.com	It was very enjoyable from what ive read so far, the interview with chaos was great! __________________ (00:06) main: nice flinch hax (00:06) main: also fuck you (00:06) The other party left the server, so the window was disabled. PROUD MEMBER OF CRYSTAL SOLDIERS #1 POKEMON MEXICO CLAN Marth: august is shit i can take that guy in any tier

May 13th, 2009, 7:08:27 PM	#23
reyscarface Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 5,046	I think it was a great read and i liked the sections a lot, loved the drawings a lot too x)

May 13th, 2009, 7:47:24 PM	#25
Xaqwais Join Date: Dec 2008 Posts: 1,663	Wow. When I saw the voting for the name, I was like, oh that's a cool little project. This blew me out of the water. Props for making it so diverse, with practical Pokemon info, theorymon, comedy, etc. I agree, though, an Art section couldn't hurt, you could make it a contest or something. Again, great job guys, I can't wait for the next one. __________________ A gentleman celebrates quietly.