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About Paul McNally
A working biography for a journalist who came through magazines, moved through digital publishing, and still thinks old machines have useful things to teach new media.
BIOGRAPHY
Paul McNally is a games journalist, editor and writer with a career that runs through print magazines, websites, guides, podcasts, events and publishing. He has written about games for long enough to remember when screenshots arrived in the post and when a review copy could involve more bubble wrap than bandwidth.
The useful part of that history is perspective. Games culture has changed repeatedly, but readers still need clear writing, honest judgement and someone willing to separate the genuinely interesting from the very loud.
EDITORIAL WORK
Editing is partly taste, partly logistics, and partly knowing when a sentence is trying to sneak past you. Paul has worked across news, reviews, features, guides, commerce and publishing operations, with the practical experience that comes from getting work shipped rather than merely discussed.
That includes commissioning, rewriting, production planning, traffic-aware editorial work, and helping writers keep their own voice while still serving the reader.
MAGAZINE HISTORY
Magazine work teaches useful habits: make the point, respect the space, meet the deadline, and never assume the reader has seen the same demo you have. Those habits still matter online, even if the page furniture has changed.
RETRO COMPUTING
The retro interest is not just nostalgia. Old systems explain why modern interfaces feel the way they do, and why some apparently obsolete ideas still work. Micronet, Prestel, Teletext and early BBS culture all treated navigation as part of the experience. This site borrows that idea without asking anyone to wait for a modem.
CURRENT PROJECTS
Current work spans games journalism, editorial projects, retro archive material, and writing about the places where games, technology and media history overlap. More detail can be added here as the archive fills out.