The magazines lexical superiority is confirmed with the very effective use of lexical cohesion. In the opening paragraphs of the review, Edge repeats the phrase ‘six years’ five times. This phrase is also repeated twice during the conclusive paragraph of the review. The impact of this is to link the beginning and ending of the review in the readers mind in order to provide a relevant conclusion relating to the initial points made within the introduction. The reason for repetition will be handled appropriately in the Grammar section.
Grammar
Edge contains some very complex sentences, perfectly exemplified by ‘There was always somewhere to go, always something to do; levels thrilled and baffled in equal measure; there were tiny polished touches that you might not discover for days, months, years’. The example also shows the continuous use of punctuation marks used in order to break up the often-long sentences the magazine contains. However, the magazine also combines very short sentences, particularly clear in the use of repetition in the reviews opening – ‘Six years to marvel at the ingenuity of Tiny-Huge island. Six years in which to dive for coins in Jolly Roger Bay. Six years in which to fly’. The short sentences tighten the gaps between the repetitions of ‘six years’ increasing the emphasis upon the word itself, which is later to have implications for the magazines opinion on the game.
The often short and precise sentences contained in the magazine, such as ‘So lucid and solid too’, ‘No obvious invisible walls’, ‘So much negativity’ and ‘Small flaws, sometimes’ present the direct nature of the magazine, contributing to a generally narrative style which involves the reader. The magazine again uses this method of shortened sentences for another case of repetition when giving its views upon the games flaws – ‘Or the level tasks loop just that fraction more than you’d like. Or the clipping isn’t quite there. Or the game crashes, dead, stop’. By using ‘Or’ to start every progressive sentence, the aim of this function is reinforced. The magazine then links this repetition to the following paragraph (beginning ‘Or bigger issues’) demonstrating the usefulness of cohesion in this case.
My opinion that the review is in a style more spoken than written is influenced by a few extracts from the text. ‘Only once, mind, in so much play time’ is a good example. The word ‘mind’, in this serious context, is quite inappropriate in a text which contains much elevated language and complex grammatical and lexical methods such as cohesion. Further examples of this, which also serve the purpose of involving the audience, are ‘The fault is nearly always yours…’ and ‘if you will…’. The use of the personal pronoun ‘you’ is particularly crucial in maintaining the audiences interest through personal address. The use of a rhetorical question at the beginning of the third paragraph – ‘Perfection?’ – carries this role too, by answering questions the magazine arises itself.
Conclusively, Edge’s use of grammar is irregular due its varying sentence length used for grammatical effect. This results in much comma use. However, every usage seems to serve a purpose which contributes to an overall appealing review.
Graphology
Graphology is another important feature which again distinguishes Edge magazine from the other reviews. Features such as font, font size and amount of images can determine a magazines intended audience. The title of the review, naturally Super Mario Sunshine is typed in a standard ‘Tahoma’ font in a size which remains constant throughout the magazines further reviews. In relation to Games Master (the only comparable alternative in this case), which changes it’s title font and size constantly, Edge presents a professional image.
The screenshot (image) patterns are ordered accurately at the top of the page in a constant fashion. They are also small in order to allow a higher resolution and thus better quality image. The number of images is relatively low demonstrating that Edge is not aimed specifically at a young audience. The number of captioned images is less than in Games Master and often serve a different purpose, which is to review the game, not reveal its storyline. This is also something which the two magazines differ on a larger scale.
Overall, Edge lacks any examples of ‘tabloid’ graphology which compliments its thorough image of formality and professionalism.
Phonology
The phonological features of Edge are present (and focused) from the opening, including examples of alliteration and the previously analysed repetition. Alliteration and repetition are bound together in the beginning paragraph, dominantly due to the short nature of the sentences, which intensifies the pronunciation of the letter ‘s’ in beginning the phrase ‘six years’. Subsequently, the main example of alliteration is bound within the opening sentence and the beginning of the second – ‘So, six years. Six years…’. This simply adds yet another framework feature to an opening paragraph which now appears to carry a lot of implications for the progression of the review.
Discourse
The element of discourse forms an important part of the structure of the Edge review, of which most key point have been previously mentioned. The paragraphs in Edge are frequently linked together through a method of answering the questions and issues raised by the previous or developing those ideas from the previous. Therefore, the text is continuous and only divided from a graphological perspective.
The audience is clearly that of an educated reader, probably in his /hers twenties to thirties. This theory is mainly derived from the amount of specialised lexis within the article and its subsequent basis upon technical aspects of the game.
The purpose of the text is to inform the reader, from a non-biased viewpoint about the game, through defining and analysing its strengths and weaknesses.
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