When the UK based Fleetway launched Sonic the Comic in 1993 it’s doubtful they realised how popular it would become, finally trailing off into the sunset in 2002 – roughly a year after SEGA revealed plans to go multi-format, and even outliving the Dreamcast. The runaway success of StC inspired another UK publishing house to create a rival comic/gaming magazine hybrid filled with similar ‘90s energy. Sadly, the odds were stacked against Max Overload from the moment it hit newsstands in 1993.

Competition came not from Future, EMAP, Paragon or any other big UK gaming magazine publisher, but rather the London based Dark Horse – best known for Manga Mania, currently on its 12th issue when Max Overload debuted. While video game coverage was outside their wheelhouse, comic strips were very much their forte, having recently launched tie-in comics for Alien 3 and Jurassic Park.
Although the timing was right for such a product, Max Overload only lasted two issues before being shuttered. This wasn’t due to a lack of interest, but rather Dark Horse’s decision to close their UK arm completely. It’s easy to wonder if this was a last-ditch effort to gain a stronger foothold in the UK.
Closing so suddenly, Max Overload didn’t have the chance to acquire a fanbase let alone become a recognisable fixture within the newsstands like StC, Games Master and CVG before it. It also appears that cashflow problems impacted marketing, with little in the way of promotion in the run-up to release outside of a few adverts found in the likes of Manga Mania.
All the elements were in place for a successful product. More or less, at least. Whereas StC was aimed squarely at SEGA fans, Max Overload was all-encompassing, allowing it to appeal to a broader audience. Deals had been signed to feature four video game franchises as long-running comic strips, each provided by different writers and artists. Together, they populated half the magazine.
JVP and SEGA of America allowed the use of ToeJam & Earl, which was due an imminent sequel on Mega Drive. Greendog the Beached Surfer Dude’s license was credited not to SEGA but creator Ric Green. Psygnosis and Link Licensing provided the loveable Lemmings – the cover stars of the Max Overload’s debut issue – while Core Design gave their blessing to immortalise Chuck Rock in comic strip form. Lemmings and Chuck Rock were, of course, available on a plethora of formats – including SNES, Mega Drive, PC, Amiga, and more.




Incidentally, if you’ve ever wondered why ToeJam & Earl and Greendog never featured within the pages of StC, the simple reason is that Max Overload snapped up the rights first. Word has it Chuck Rock was primed to feature in StC, only for the deal to fall through in the eleventh hour. Again, this was seemingly due to Dark Horse pipping Fleetway to the punch. Decap Attack was called in as a replacement, becoming a long running favourite.

Issue one of Max Overload launched in March 1994, priced £1.95 and including free stickers, while issue two followed in April and featured ToeJam & Earl on the cover. Both issues boasted 64 pages, comprising of gaming news, reviews, previews and the aforementioned comic strips, most of which are six pages long.
With only 64 pages to fill, it doesn’t come as a surprise to find that the team sticks to covering only biggest game releases of that month, with only a few reviews present in the two available issues. The news section was reasonably in-depth though, even squeezing in new Game Gear and Game Boy software announcements. Issue two also looked at the 3DO, including previews of launch software. Max Overload wasn’t limited to consoles either, with DOOM and Sim City 2000 on PC gaining the review treatment. Generally, the quality of writing is par for the course of the era, throwing in a little bit of humour. Page layouts are reminiscent of ’90s Games Master, with reviews awarding individual percentages for graphics, sound, and gameplay before an overall verdict.
Issue one reviewed ToeJam & Earl 2, Secret of Mana, Young Merlin and Lost Vikings while previewing DOOM, Theme Park, and Marko’s Magic Football. A good mix of SEGA and Nintendo. Issue two followed suit, reviewing Rainbow Bell Adventures, Sonic 3, Castlevania Bloodlines, Skitchin’ and Sim City 2000. The developers behind Lemmings and ToeJam & Earl were also interviewed.
As for the comic strips, the writing was snapper than StC and the stories more text heavy, suggesting Max Overload was aimed at a slightly older demographic. Each strip had a slightly different art style, varying from ToeJam & Earl’s chunky and vivid aesthetic, to Chuck Rock’s thin line art and oddly proportioned characters. ToeJam and Earl, Greendog and Chuck Rock were intended to be multi-part stories – which, of course, were never concluded.

The Lemmings strip focused on the history of each tribe and had the most detailed artwork while featuring suggestive jokes. The more abstract and cartoony ToeJam & Earl strip sees the duo crash land on Earth, skilfully employing some of the game’s power-ups as they avoid the grasp of humans. Greendog sees the surfer wash up on a dinosaur-filled island, now accompanied by a small white dog that can talk, while Chuck Rock involves the caveman entering the Stonehenge GP using a car carved from stone. Despite similarities, it doesn’t appear to be a BC Racers tie-in – and the timing is off by around a year.

Max Overload is pretty obscure nowadays and rarely mentioned on social media. Copies surface on eBay quite often despite their rarity, although issue two is far harder to track down than the premier issue. This would suggest issue one had a large print run, while issue two had just a fraction of that. Either that or issue two wasn’t a big seller. It’s difficult to say.
Browsing through both issues today is a pleasurable pursuit. They’re fun reads, with each comic strip as light-hearted as the last. The gaming coverage, while well-written and moderately in-depth, is eclipsed by the comic strips – it’s difficult to imagine avid gamers picking up a copy each month when only around four games were reviewed per issue. Had the magazine lasted longer, it may have ended up blessed with additional pages. And of course, it’s only possible to speculate which other video game characters could’ve potentially featured.
Max Overload is, regrettably, a magazine killed before it could find its footing and an audience. Something that is evident in the two existing issues is that it could’ve easily given StC a run for its money, offering something similar but cheekier with it. It certainly seems that it caused some concern to Fleetway during its conception, snatching Chuck Rock from under their noses, and it’s not hard to imagine the rivalry that could’ve ensued had it lasted longer than two issues.