Game Informer Is Back — But Its New Owner Has Some Explaining to Do
Gunzilla Games resurrected Game Informer, but staff say they haven't been paid in months. Here's what's going on with gaming's most iconic magazine.
Game Informer is back. If you grew up tearing open that magazine in the 90s or 2000s, that headline probably hit different. But the comeback story isn't all good news — in fact, it's getting messy, and the gaming community is watching closely.
The Quick Version
Gunzilla Games — the studio behind the blockchain-infused battle royale Off The Grid — acquired Game Informer and relaunched it in 2026. On paper, that sounds like a lifeline for one of gaming journalism's most storied brands. In practice, staff members are publicly claiming they haven't been paid in months.
That's a serious allegation. And it's the kind of thing that overshadows whatever editorial ambitions Gunzilla might have had for the publication.
Why Game Informer Matters
For anyone who needs the context: Game Informer was one of the longest-running and most-read gaming publications in history, running from 1991 until GameStop shut it down in August 2023. The closure hit hard — not just because of nostalgia, but because it was a genuine sign of how rough the media landscape had gotten for games journalism.
So when news broke that it was coming back, there was real excitement. Gaming media has taken hit after hit in recent years, and a resurrection of a major brand felt like a win.
The Gunzilla Problem
Here's where it gets complicated. Gunzilla Games is not a traditional publisher. The company is deeply tied to blockchain gaming and NFT integration through Off The Grid, which already made some corners of the gaming community skeptical about their intentions with Game Informer.
That skepticism looks more justified now. According to reporting from Goonhammer's games industry roundup, multiple staffers have come forward saying salaries have gone unpaid for an extended period. That's not a minor accounting hiccup — that's a structural problem that raises real questions about whether Gunzilla has the resources and commitment to run a media operation sustainably.
What This Means for Games Journalism
This situation is a microcosm of a larger crisis in gaming media. Publications are struggling to find sustainable business models, and that opens the door to buyers who might not have the best track record or intentions.
- Editorial independence is at risk. When a game studio owns a games journalism outlet, there's an obvious conflict of interest. Will Game Informer give honest coverage to competitors of Off The Grid? To blockchain gaming skeptics?
- Staff wellbeing matters. Writers and editors are real people with bills. Unpaid salaries aren't just a business story — it's a labor story.
- Brand trust is fragile. Game Informer built decades of reader trust. That trust doesn't automatically transfer to whoever owns the nameplate.
What Happens Next
Gunzilla hasn't issued a detailed public response addressing the salary allegations at the time of writing. That silence is notable. If the company wants to build credibility with both staff and readers, it needs to get ahead of this — acknowledge the situation, explain what happened, and show a concrete path forward.
For readers, the practical question is whether Game Informer under Gunzilla can produce journalism worth trusting. That's hard to answer right now. The publication's relaunch had potential, and there are clearly people there who care about the work. But an outlet where staff aren't being paid isn't a stable foundation for quality journalism.
Keep an eye on this one. The gaming media landscape doesn't have many names left with Game Informer's legacy — and how this plays out will say a lot about whether that legacy survives the comeback.