Let me start off by saying that I hate print gaming publications. They are–in this electronic, online age we live in–essentially worthless. I recently received a free 1-year subscription to Electronic Gaming Monthly. Every bit of information found within its pages I had learned already weeks prior to its arrival in my mailbox. Pointless. Except where the advertising is concerned.

I had never heard of Gazerk before discovering an ad for the video game search engine nestled between reviews of games I will never play. So, on a whim, I decided to check it out and see if it was worth utilizing.

The first thing I noticed upon reaching the site was the absolutely wonderfully clean interface. Black background, logo in the corner, search bar, GO button. That’s it. A little text near the bottom lets you know the service is “powered by Kosmix“. No annoying text or banner advertising, no pop-ups, just careless, wanton usability.

Surely this was a front for something. The minimalist interface was just a way to lure you in; I was certain those pesky ads were saved for the results page. I performed a search for Tales of symphonia.

And then, angels began singing.

The results were relevant and helpful. Still no sign of advertising or endorsement. Simple freedom. My results were even broken down into useful categories, like so:

All Results ( 30,808 )
Reviews ( 1,566 )
Cheats ( 1,177 )
Forums ( 405 )
ScreenShots ( 978 )
Previews ( 367 )
Walkthroughs ( 45 )

I was in heaven. I began checking out results in specific categories and finding highly useful information that wasn’t buried or blocked or otherwise barriered. It was available, it was easy, and it was beautiful.

I think it goes without saying that I am now a hefty proponent of the Gazerk service.

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