History of IGN in Timeline

IGN is an American video game and entertainment media website founded in 1996 by Chris Anderson and currently operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. Headquartered in San Francisco and led by Peer Schneider, IGN focuses on providing news, reviews, previews, and features related to video games, films, anime, television, comics, technology, and other media. Originally a desktop website, IGN has expanded its distribution to mobile platforms, console programs, and streaming services like YouTube, Twitch, Hulu, and Snapchat.

September 1996: Creation of Imagine Games Network

In September 1996, the Imagine Games Network was created by Jonathan Simpson-Bint. It started as five individual websites: N64.com, PSXPower, Saturnworld, Next-Generation.com and Ultra Game Players Online.

September 29, 1996: IGN Website Launch

On September 29, 1996, the IGN website, the brainchild of Chris Anderson, was launched. The website focuses on video games, films, anime, television, comics, technology, and other media.

1998: IGN Brand Consolidation

In 1998, the IGN network launched a new homepage that consolidated the individual sites as system channels under the IGN brand. This exposed content from more than 30 channels.

February 1999: IGN Named One of the Best Websites

In February 1999, PC Magazine named IGN one of the hundred-best websites, alongside competitors GameSpot and CNET Gamecenter. Also in February, Imagine Media incorporated a spin-off that included IGN and its affiliate channels as Affiliation Networks.

1999: IGN Acquires Vault Network

In 1999, IGN acquired the role-playing video game interest website Vault Network.

2000: Snowball.com IPO

In 2000, Snowball.com held an IPO, but shed most of its other properties during the dot-com bubble.

2000: Snowball.com Purchases Internet Wrestling Organization

In 2000, Snowball.com purchased the Internet Wrestling Organization (IWO), which became IGN's first official E-Fed with a column on the website.

October 2, 2001: IGN For Men Section Closes

On October 2, 2001, the IGN For Men section officially closed down and is no longer updated.

May 10, 2002: Adoption of IGN Entertainment Name

On May 10, 2002, Snowball shed its name and adopted IGN Entertainment following audience growth and the success of the IGN Insider subscription service.

2002: IGN Launches Video Game FAQs Site

In 2002, IGN launched a dedicated video game FAQs site following the cancellation of affiliation with GameFAQs.

2002: IGN Wrestling Ends

In early 2002, IGN Wrestling met its end when many staff departed. Wrestling coverage was folded into IGN Sports.

2003: Acquisition of TeamXbox and VE3D

In 2003, IGN acquired the Xbox interest site, TeamXbox, and the PC game website VE3D.

2004: IGN Found GameStats

In 2004, IGN founded GameStats, a review aggregation website.

2004: IGN Launches GameStats and Direct2Drive

In 2004, IGN launched GameStats as a more unbiased rating network and also launched Direct2Drive.com for digital downloads of PC and Mac games, anime, comics, and game guides.

June 2005: IGN Reports 24 Million Unique Visitors

In June 2005, IGN reported having 24,000,000 unique visitors per month and 4.8 million registered users.

September 2005: IGN Acquired by News Corporation

In September 2005, IGN was acquired by News Corporation for $650 million.

2005: IGN Merges with GameSpy Industries and Acquires AskMen

In 2005, IGN Entertainment merged with GameSpy Industries, bringing FilePlanet into the IGN group. IGN Entertainment also acquired the online male lifestyle magazine AskMen in 2005.

2005: IGN Launches Comics Site

In 2005, IGN launched its comics site, devoted to Marvel and DC titles, manga, graphic novels, statues, and toys.

May 30, 2006: IGN Dreamcast Restarted

On May 30, 2006, IGN Dreamcast was restarted; however, updates were not posted on the main IGN webpage.

2006: IGN Launches Television Site

In 2006, IGN launched its television site, providing interviews, schedules, trivia, and news related to TV.

2006: IGN Begins Launching Regional Versions

Since 2006, IGN Entertainment began launching regional versions of the website, initially opening new offices and later franchising its brand.

2007: IGN Launches Anime Site

In 2007, IGN launched its anime site, featuring content like trailers, free episodes, and reviews of manga and anime. The channel was later dropped after a site redesign.

2007: Accusation of Journalistic Misconduct

In 2007, Video Game Media Watch accused former IGN editor Doug Perry of "journalistic misconduct" for an exclusive review of Prey.

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January 12, 2008: IGN's 10th Anniversary

On January 12, 2008, IGN celebrated its 10th anniversary.

April 29, 2008: IGN Launches GTA 'Hood Website

On April 29, 2008, IGN launched a GTA 'Hood website for Grand Theft Auto IV, similar to the Super Smash Bros. World site.

March 29, 2010: IGN Relocates to San Francisco

On March 29, 2010, IGN relocated its headquarters from Brisbane, California, to San Francisco.

August 3, 2010: IGN Announces New Scoring Scale

On August 3, 2010, IGN announced it would be changing to a new 20-point scoring scale for reviews, where games are scored in increments of 0.5, but keeping the maximum score at 10.0. This change was not retroactive.

2010: GameFest hosted by T-break Media

In 2010, GameFest, a biannual gaming gallery, was hosted by IGN Middle East's parent company T-break Media.

2010: IGN Sells Rotten Tomatoes to Flixster

In 2010, IGN sold the film review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes to Flixster.

May 25, 2011: IGN Sells Direct2Drive to GameFly

On May 25, 2011, IGN sold its Direct2Drive division to Gamefly for an undisclosed amount.

2011: FilePlanet and GameSpy still operating

As of 2011, both FilePlanet and the GameSpy website still operate as video game-related web sites.

2011: IGN Acquires UGO Entertainment

In 2011, IGN Entertainment acquired its rival UGO Entertainment (owners of 1Up.com) from Hearst Corporation.

2011: IGN Launches Pro League

In 2011, IGN launched IGN Pro League, a professional esports circuit.

September 13, 2012: IGN Reveals New Review Format

On September 13, 2012, IGN revealed a new review format with a 100-point scale, but later decided to retain the decimal point in all upcoming scores.

2012: GameFest hosted by AMD EMEA

In 2012, the hosting duties for GameFest were taken over by AMD EMEA.

February 4, 2013: IGN Sold to Ziff Davis

On February 4, 2013, News Corp. sold IGN Entertainment to Ziff Davis. Following the acquisition, IGN announced staff layoffs and the closure of GameSpy, 1UP.com, and UGO to focus on IGN and AskMen.

February 2013: IGN Sold to Ziff Davis

In February 2013, IGN was sold to publishing company Ziff Davis.

March 6, 2013: IGN Cancels IPL Finals

On March 6, 2013, IGN abruptly canceled the finals of IPL 6 in Las Vegas, discontinuing the league.

April 8, 2013: Blizzard Acquires IPL Staff

On April 8, 2013, Blizzard Entertainment announced that it had acquired the staff and assets of the IPL from IGN.

2014: IGN Introduces Game Re-Reviews

In early 2014, IGN introduced a new policy where a game's review score can be re-reviewed and improved if continuous updates form a significant change since launch. Examples include League of Legends, Heroes of the Storm, Warframe, and the pocket edition of Minecraft.

2016: Kallie Plagge alleges sexual harassment by Vince Ingenito

In 2016, Kallie Plagge, a former IGN editor, alleged that another editor, Vince Ingenito, sexually harassed her and another female employee and made inappropriate comments.

October 2017: IGN Acquires Humble Bundle

In October 2017, Humble Bundle announced that it was being acquired by IGN.

November 2017: IGN employees show solidarity with Kallie Plagge

In November 2017, some IGN employees refused to work in solidarity with Kallie Plagge, a former editor who alleged sexual harassment by another editor, Vince Ingenito, in 2016.

August 2018: IGN reviewer Filip Miucin accused of plagiarism and dismissed

In August 2018, Filip Miucin, an IGN reviewer, was accused of plagiarizing a video review of the game Dead Cells from YouTube channel Boomstick Gaming. On August 7, 2018, IGN stated they found substantial similarities, apologized, and dismissed Miucin. On August 10, 2018, IGN published a new review of Dead Cells by Brandin Tyrrel.

April 19, 2019: Filip Miucin admits plagiarism and issues an apology

On April 19, 2019, Filip Miucin admitted to plagiarism and issued an apology on his YouTube channel regarding the Dead Cells review.

January 2020: IGN Reverts to 10-Point Review Scale

In January 2020, IGN revealed that reviews would be reverted to a 10-point scale, from 1 to 10, finding that the finer distinction of the 100-point scale was difficult to maintain.

2021: IGN Has 28 Editions

As of 2021, IGN has 28 editions in 25 languages, with US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand editions operated by Ziff Davis subsidiaries.

2021: IGN posts and removes article regarding the 2021 Israel-Palestine crisis

In 2021, during the Israel-Palestine crisis, IGN posted an article on May 14, 2021, urging donations to Palestinian charities, which was condemned by IGN Israel. The article was deleted on May 16, 2021, but reinstated on August 24, 2021, with a statement of new editorial policies after staff condemnation.

May 2024: IGN Acquires Gamer Network

In May 2024, IGN Entertainment acquired Gamer Network and its properties, including Eurogamer, Rock Paper Shotgun, and VG247. This led to some layoffs due to redundancies.