FileFront
Encyclopedia
GameFront is a video game website that provides patch
es, demos
, mod
ifications, and other user generated game related content.
in the late half of 2005.
On January 6, 2009, UGO
acquired 1UP.com
. FileFront was not part of the purchase and became part of the PC Magazine
Digital Network.
Ziff Davis Media entered chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March 2008. On March 26, 2009, Ziff Davis Media announced that FileFront site operations were to be indefinitely suspended on March 30, 2009. All of the Staff in Ziff Davis's Filefront division were made redundant at this time. Due to this, a massive undertaking by a large number of the former FileFront employees and network staff to backup all the downloads for the network sites (formerly known as the FilesNetwork) was started.
However, past March 30 and into April, the FileFront website appeared to continue working well, with no visible loss of hosted files. This led some people to believe that the announcement had been a poorly executed April Fools'
joke. On April 2, 2009, the farewell message posted by Ziff Davis Media, was removed and replaced by a message from a consortium of former staff who had bought FileFront from Ziff Davis Media, informing users that FileFront had been bought from ZDM and saved from closure.
On February 11, 2010, Break Media acquired Filefront.
On November 30, 2010, FileFront was renamed to GameFront.
websites according to Alexa
. The main focus of GameFront is to provide a download service to its users, from its Houston-based servers. In addition to this, GameFront also provides gaming-related news and articles. The news and articles were provided by Computer Gaming World
, a sister-site and offspring from Ziff Davis Media
.
After FileFront purchased the Network in 2004, Pro-Filer remained as the manager of FileFront Network. Each one of these sites has its own unique color scheme and style, but the layout maintains the fundamental principals of each other network site to provide a uniform feeling from site to site. Typically each network site will be named after the game it provides for, usually in abbreviated form, along with the suffix 'files'. For instance, the network site catering for Half Life 2 is called 'HL2Files' and the site for the game Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis uses 'OFPFiles'. Each site may also be accessed via a subdomain which is typically formatted as 'gamename.filefront.com'. These sites are usually run by administrators and volunteers. The Network is constantly expanding and shrinking as new games are released and older games die out, leaving new sites to be created and older ones to be archived.
Due to the nature of these sites, people who create unofficial add-ons for the game, or "mod
ders", are a large part of the community as well as the players who wish to stay informed about things related to that game. The sites also provide patches and updates for the games they cover, as well as trailers and demos for upcoming games. FileFront Network sites tend to launch in the weeks coming up to a game's release, however occasionally sites launch on a games release date or later. Each site has a corresponding forum
for discussions such as help with games' technical issues and clan
recruitment as well as general chat about the game. Every FileFront Network site's forums are located on FileFront Forums, which is an area separate from FileFront Network.
and graphics
.
Originally, the forums were a combination of FilesNetwork's (predecessor to FileFront Network) forums, IO Error's forums, and Voodoo Extreme's (VE3D) forums. Posts
date back to 1998. FileFront's Forums have been through several different names and incarnations, including Gaming Forums, and FileFreak Forums.
The FileFront Forums are governed by forty-five moderators, seven super moderators, and five administrators. These members have the ability to edit, delete, move and merge threads and posts made within the forum, and the administrators control the technical aspects of the site.
A section of the forums is dedicated to users' images, called the Image Gallery. Here, users are able to upload their own images and write a description about them. Larger questions about graphics are placed in The Graphics Department forum, where a group of members called the FileFront Graphics Team offers advice.
Users requiring technical help with their computers often make use of the Tech Discussion forum, where articles about technology
itself are also written.
Patch (computing)
A patch is a piece of software designed to fix problems with, or update a computer program or its supporting data. This includes fixing security vulnerabilities and other bugs, and improving the usability or performance...
es, demos
Game demo
A game demo is a freely distributed demonstration or preview of an upcoming or recently released video game. Demos are typically released by the game's publisher to help consumers get a feel of the game before deciding whether to buy the full version....
, mod
Mod (computer gaming)
Mod or modification is a term generally applied to personal computer games , especially first-person shooters, role-playing games and real-time strategy games. Mods are made by the general public or a developer, and can be entirely new games in themselves, but mods are not standalone software and...
ifications, and other user generated game related content.
History and ownership
FileLeech was created by I/O Error Development and first launched in 1999. In 2001 FileLeech was renamed FileFront.com and re-launched. It was bought by the Ziff Davis Media Game GroupZiff Davis
Ziff Davis Inc. is an American publisher and Internet company. It was founded in 1927 in Chicago by William B. Ziff, Sr. and Bernard G. Davis. Throughout most of its history, it was a publisher of hobbyist magazines, often ones devoted to expensive, advertiser-rich hobbies such as cars,...
in the late half of 2005.
On January 6, 2009, UGO
UGO
UGO Entertainment, Inc. is a website providing coverage of online media in entertainment targeting males age 18–34. The company is currently based in New York, New York, United States. On July 24, 2007 it was announced that Hearst Corporation would acquire UGO Entertainment...
acquired 1UP.com
1UP.com
1UP.com is a video game website owned by IGN Entertainment, a division of News Corporation. Previously, the site was owned by Ziff Davis before being sold to UGO Entertainment in 2009....
. FileFront was not part of the purchase and became part of the PC Magazine
PC Magazine
PC Magazine is a computer magazine published by Ziff Davis Publishing Holdings Inc. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009...
Digital Network.
Ziff Davis Media entered chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March 2008. On March 26, 2009, Ziff Davis Media announced that FileFront site operations were to be indefinitely suspended on March 30, 2009. All of the Staff in Ziff Davis's Filefront division were made redundant at this time. Due to this, a massive undertaking by a large number of the former FileFront employees and network staff to backup all the downloads for the network sites (formerly known as the FilesNetwork) was started.
However, past March 30 and into April, the FileFront website appeared to continue working well, with no visible loss of hosted files. This led some people to believe that the announcement had been a poorly executed April Fools'
April Fools' Day
April Fools' Day is celebrated in different countries around the world on April 1 every year. Sometimes referred to as All Fools' Day, April 1 is not a national holiday, but is widely recognized and celebrated as a day when many people play all kinds of jokes and foolishness...
joke. On April 2, 2009, the farewell message posted by Ziff Davis Media, was removed and replaced by a message from a consortium of former staff who had bought FileFront from Ziff Davis Media, informing users that FileFront had been bought from ZDM and saved from closure.
On February 11, 2010, Break Media acquired Filefront.
On November 30, 2010, FileFront was renamed to GameFront.
Main site
GameFront is currently one of the 1000 highest-traffickedWeb traffic
Web traffic is the amount of data sent and received by visitors to a web site. It is a large portion of Internet traffic. This is determined by the number of visitors and the number of pages they visit...
websites according to Alexa
Alexa Internet
Alexa Internet, Inc. is a California-based subsidiary company of Amazon.com that is known for its toolbar and Web site. Once installed, the toolbar collects data on browsing behavior which is transmitted to the Web site where it is stored and analyzed and is the basis for the company's Web traffic...
. The main focus of GameFront is to provide a download service to its users, from its Houston-based servers. In addition to this, GameFront also provides gaming-related news and articles. The news and articles were provided by Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
, a sister-site and offspring from Ziff Davis Media
Ziff Davis
Ziff Davis Inc. is an American publisher and Internet company. It was founded in 1927 in Chicago by William B. Ziff, Sr. and Bernard G. Davis. Throughout most of its history, it was a publisher of hobbyist magazines, often ones devoted to expensive, advertiser-rich hobbies such as cars,...
.
Network
The FileFront Network is a collection of over fifty-five specific game-related sites dedicated to providing news and files to its visitors. It was originally named FilesNetwork, and was launched in January 2000 by its founder, Jos Jongejan (aka Pro-Filer). It's very first game-specific site was SoFFiles covering Soldier of Fortune, today it is still as active at it was back in 2000 and it's one of the few surviving SoF sites.After FileFront purchased the Network in 2004, Pro-Filer remained as the manager of FileFront Network. Each one of these sites has its own unique color scheme and style, but the layout maintains the fundamental principals of each other network site to provide a uniform feeling from site to site. Typically each network site will be named after the game it provides for, usually in abbreviated form, along with the suffix 'files'. For instance, the network site catering for Half Life 2 is called 'HL2Files' and the site for the game Operation Flashpoint: Cold War Crisis uses 'OFPFiles'. Each site may also be accessed via a subdomain which is typically formatted as 'gamename.filefront.com'. These sites are usually run by administrators and volunteers. The Network is constantly expanding and shrinking as new games are released and older games die out, leaving new sites to be created and older ones to be archived.
Due to the nature of these sites, people who create unofficial add-ons for the game, or "mod
Mod (computer gaming)
Mod or modification is a term generally applied to personal computer games , especially first-person shooters, role-playing games and real-time strategy games. Mods are made by the general public or a developer, and can be entirely new games in themselves, but mods are not standalone software and...
ders", are a large part of the community as well as the players who wish to stay informed about things related to that game. The sites also provide patches and updates for the games they cover, as well as trailers and demos for upcoming games. FileFront Network sites tend to launch in the weeks coming up to a game's release, however occasionally sites launch on a games release date or later. Each site has a corresponding forum
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
for discussions such as help with games' technical issues and clan
Clan (computer gaming)
In computer and video gaming, a clan or guild is an organised group of players that regularly play together in a particular multiplayer games. These games range from groups of a few friends to 1000-person organizations, with a broad range of structures, goals and members. The lifespan of a clan...
recruitment as well as general chat about the game. Every FileFront Network site's forums are located on FileFront Forums, which is an area separate from FileFront Network.
Forums
The FileFront Forums are a large community of around 4 million posts and close to 200,000 members covering a range of countries, ranging from gamers discussing upcoming game releases to members debating in The Pub about politics and life, as well as general browsers looking for something that interests them. As such, the forums are not limited to just game-related discussion, but also general topics such as sports, artArt
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
and graphics
Graphics
Graphics are visual presentations on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, computer screen, paper, or stone to brand, inform, illustrate, or entertain. Examples are photographs, drawings, Line Art, graphs, diagrams, typography, numbers, symbols, geometric designs, maps, engineering drawings,or...
.
Originally, the forums were a combination of FilesNetwork's (predecessor to FileFront Network) forums, IO Error's forums, and Voodoo Extreme's (VE3D) forums. Posts
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
date back to 1998. FileFront's Forums have been through several different names and incarnations, including Gaming Forums, and FileFreak Forums.
The FileFront Forums are governed by forty-five moderators, seven super moderators, and five administrators. These members have the ability to edit, delete, move and merge threads and posts made within the forum, and the administrators control the technical aspects of the site.
A section of the forums is dedicated to users' images, called the Image Gallery. Here, users are able to upload their own images and write a description about them. Larger questions about graphics are placed in The Graphics Department forum, where a group of members called the FileFront Graphics Team offers advice.
Users requiring technical help with their computers often make use of the Tech Discussion forum, where articles about technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
itself are also written.