| Game Network | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Launched | 1998 |
| Closed | February 27, 2006 |
| Owned by | Cellcast |
| Audience share | N/A (Channel, Closed) |
| Replaced by | Babestation |
|
Availability At time of closure |
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| Satellite | |
| Sky Digital | Channel 172 |
| SKY Italia | Channel 816 |
Game Network was a European online game and television network company. It was initially owned by Digital Bros. group, but was later sold to Cellcast. Game Network was, during its broadcast, the only television channel in Europe dedicated to covering multimedia entertainment, and generally focussed on video games.
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Originally, Game Network's television channel was available all over Europe, with the UK version (produced by Cellcast) overlaying their own regional content to the channel, with programs including Game Guru, Reloaded, Livewire, and most recently, Evolution. The channel expanded in 2003 with the launch of non-gaming programmes such as Babestation, a late-night "tease" show. The success of this show lead to many other clone programmes appearing on other channels, and this alternative revenue stream lead to a later influx of phone-in quiz shows, of which Game Network shows many. As of 2005, Game Network's UK games programming is largely limited to a block of raw games footage from 5:30am - 10am, with Game Guru airing from 5pm until 7pm, followed by programmes such as Psychic Interactive, which continue until Babestation starts.
The major gaming shows, such as LiveWire was cancelled in May 2005, and the Italian-language feed from Hotbird ceased in September 2005. At this time, Digital Bros. sold Game Network in the UK, to a company called Cellcast. The channel was run in tandem by Sem Mioli (Digital Bros.) and Jonathan French/Craig Gardiner (Cellcast). 2003 to 2006.
As of 20 February 2006, Game Network UK had been renamed Babestation, with all video game content being dropped. On the 28 February the channel was moved to the adult section of the Sky EPG.
The future of the British version of Game Network is uncertain, though there are plans to return several of its shows onto YOU TV (Now known as SUMO TV), another TV channel owned by Cellcast.
Game Guru
(December 2002 – February 2006)
See the Game Guru Wikipedia Page for more details...
LiveWire
(November 2004 - June 2005)
A live Saturday news, reviews and previews show, presented by Gareth Williams, Chris Jeffery and, in later shows, Stuart Headlam. Often with a special guest from the gaming industry. The show once even had a special guest appearance from Goldie Looking Chain.
Reloaded
Series 1 (January 2005 - June 2005)
(AKA Game Guru Reloaded) Another Live show, originally a daily, then a Saturday show, where the Game Gurus would challenge the public to bouts of various games online, either over PS2, Xbox Live (Original and 360) or PC. The show would often be presented by a random presenter (see the presenter list above). The Game Gurus would usually play games like Halo 2, Rainbow Six 3 Black Arrow and PGR2 via Xbox Live. (Gamertags: GameGuruUk and GameGuruUK2)
Series 2 (November 2005 - February 2006)
On The second series, Reloaded also incorporated the features of LiveWire, which did not return due to copyright reasons with the name.
Evolution
(September 2005 - February 2006)
One of Game Networks only pre-recorded shows. The concept was quite bizarre, originally meant to be presented from DJ NES's (Daniel Scammel) and Peter Browning's (Game Network Producer) Flat. It consisted of news, reviews, interviews and previews presented by a naked man in a towel, a guy who called himself "Duck Recon", and Game Guru's "Guru Larry" (Larry Bundy Jr) streaming video over a PC Monitor. The show moved direction to be presented in the usual Game Network Studio (grey sofa, large plasma TV in the background) and then into a more information based show with the main screen in a window, with information, text, release dates etc. filling the rest of the screen.
7 Days in LA
A short lived documentary based on the E3 conference of 2005. 3 show regulars (Mike Rushton, Chris Jeffery and Dom Lawler) along with 2 randoms (Scott Doherty and Ryan Hadley) took part in this observational documentary that not only focused on the goings on of the exhibition but also the behind the scenes action. Due to the cancellation of Game Guru in early June 2005, only 4 of the 12 episodes aired. Though many of the later episodes did eventually appear on websites.
Guru Larry's Hack Job
An all out comedy show involving Guru Larry presenting the show with his own bizarre and funny twist on the industry, often making fun of people in the games biz' such as Jack Thompson. Although a series was made, it sadly never made it to air because of the cancellation of the channel. Some clips of the show remain on the internet.
Quite possibly the most important aspect of the channel over the years has been the presenters. Coming from all walks of life, they each had their own unique personality. As they were all massive game fans themselves, it really helped convey a rapport with the audience.
There have been numerous Gurus that have presented the show over the four years including:
The GJ's (game jockeys) were the original presenters of the station and presented during Digital Bros' reign over the channel. The people who coined the name "GJ" were -
Game Network provides the massively multiplayer online role-playing game The Myth of Soma. They also have a contract with Wemade Entertainment, to provide The Legend of Mir 2 and The Legend of Mir 3 in Europe, as well as another contract with Artifact Entertainment, to provide Horizons: Empire of Istaria.
There was a weekly television show for both The Legend of Mir 2 and The Myth of Soma, which attracted new people to the games. Both were cancelled in 2003.
An official communication about Legend of Mir 2 and 3 server shutting down on March 31 has been recently published from Game Network Online, concerning also the refunding procedure for the remaining active subscriptions.[1]
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   | Video Highlights from Reloaded's Xbox 360 Launch Special - YouTube - Game Network : Reloaded Xbox 360 Launch Special |
| | Reloaded's Ident/TestCard "ITV School's Spoof" Screen. - YouTube - Game Network : Game Guru Reloaded Ident (2005 Version) |
| | Reloaded's Game Guru Vs. Friendly TV's Gamerweb Special - YouTube - Game Network : Dead or Alive 4 (With Match Commentary) |
| | Additional Highlights from the Reloaded Xbox 360 Launch Special - YouTube - Game Network : UK Xbox 360 Launch |
| | XLEAGUE.TV: Game Network's Spiritual Sucessor Channel - Enemy Down - XLEAGUE Welcome Page |
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