TouchArcade is closing its doors after more than 16 years. The publication was founded in 2008 and aimed to cover the (then) emerging mobile gaming market.
In a long post on the TouchArcade websiteEditor-in-Chief Jared Nelson explained that normal day-to-day operations will cease before a full shutdown.
“This is a post I've known was coming for a while now, but that doesn't make it any easier to write. After more than 16 years, TouchArcade will be closing its doors and ceasing operations,” he wrote.
“We may have an additional post here and there in the coming weeks as we try to honor any previously agreed upon commitments, and a proper farewell post is in the works, but for now our normal day-to-day operations have ceased. The reason we are closing is probably not surprising: money.”
Nelson said the outlet had been struggling to make ends meet for years and suggested it was a “miracle” it had survived this long. “The truth is a website like ours doesn't make any money anymore,” he continued.
“To our detriment, we have resisted things like obnoxious and indiscriminate advertising, outrageous clickbait headlines, or ethically questionable sponsorships, which are sadly the kinds of things that still make money on the Internet today.”
TouchArcade currently calls itself the “largest dedicated site for iPhone and iPod Touch gaming,” although it also includes other portable hardware like the Steam Deck, Nintendo Switch, and peripherals.
In addition to impacting the livelihoods of Nelson and freelancers like Shaun Musgrave and Mikhail Madnani, TouchArcade’s closure will likely make it even more difficult for mobile developers to stand out in a crowded, competitive market.
TouchArcade preserves content archive and continues podcast with support from Patreon
The complete archive of TouchArcade content will remain freely accessible for the “foreseeable future.” This means that over 33,000 published articles have been preserved, including over 4,000 game reviews.
“We hope that all of these will live on into the future for reference purposes and just to look back and see how drastically the mobile gaming landscape has changed in the last fifteen years,” Nelson said. “We also hope to continue with our podcast, The TouchArcade Show, which just celebrated its 600th(!) episode.”
Nelson will now look to pivot TouchArcade's Patreon toward podcast support, but noted that this could still allow the team to do “occasional posts or special content.”
“It’s just an early idea right now, but it would be great to see TouchArcade survive even in this small way,” he added. “Whatever happens, I will be explicitly changing our Patreon text to state that it’s no longer about supporting the website, and if people choose to stop contributing, that’s completely understandable.”
Whatever happens, TouchArcade as we know it will largely cease to exist. It’s a reality that demonstrates how hostile the video game industry has become to workers of all persuasions, including members of the press.
The news comes after IGN Entertainment has acquired Gamer Network Publishing including GamesIndustry, biz, Rock Paper Shotgun, VG247 and others, only to immediately proceed with a round of layoffs. Kotaku Australia was also shut down by parent company Pedestrian Group in July.
