Submissions

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Submission Preparation Checklist

As part of the submission process, authors are required to check off their submission's compliance with all of the following items, and submissions may be returned to authors that do not adhere to these guidelines.
  • The submission has not been previously published, nor is it before another journal for consideration (or an explanation has been provided in Comments to the Editor).
  • The submission file is in Microsoft Word.
  • The text adheres to the stylistic and bibliographic requirements outlined in the Author Submission Guidelines.
  • All images/figures/tables are uploaded together in a single ZIP file (not embedded in the main document) and are accompanied by a separate caption sheet.
  • Author acknowledges sole responsibility to obtain image permissions (if applicable) should the submission be accepted for publication.
  • If submitting an article manuscript for peer review, the author/s of the document have deleted their names from the text, with "Author" and year used in the references and endnotes, instead of the authors' name, article title, etc. With Microsoft Office documents, author identification has been removed from the properties for the file.

Author Guidelines

Submission Types 

ROMchip welcomes submissions of four types of content: 

  • Articles: 7,000-10,000 word academic essays intended for peer review.  
  • Interviews: 4,000-9,000 word edited transcripts from interviews or recently-conducted oral histories with individuals related to the game industry (historical or present) and cultural institutions. Our Interviews section serves as both a service to our contemporary community and an archive for future game historians. 
  • Materials: Short essays (4,000 words maximum if written) on museum, library or archival acquisitions, newly located or accessioned artifacts, or strange and unique historical finds related to game history. This section is open to experimental or less traditional forms, and work can be presented as a photo essay, game walkthrough, video essay, etc. Our Materials section is also a space to spread the news about recently acquired collections and draw attention to conservation and preservation issues. Additionally, it is an ideal place for accessible public writing, especially by non-academics. 
  • Translations: This is ROMchip's space dedicated to hosting translated work, including translations of English-language ROMchip content into non-English languages, translations of historical materials and sources, as well as significant scholarship published in other venues (with permission). Translations can operate across any two languages and are not required to originate in or be translated into English. This section is available to anyone with translation experience. Word count varied with source material. 

Word count is inclusive of bibliography and notes.  

General Author Guidelines 
All submissions must follow our author guidelines below for Format, Length, Style, Images and Permissions, as well as the author guidelines specific to the submission type, as submission requirements for Articles are slightly different than those for Interviews and Materials. Submission of a manuscript to ROMchip implies that it is original and unpublished work and that it is neither under active consideration for publication elsewhere, nor has been accepted for publication elsewhere.   

Format 
The font for all text should be 10 or 12-point, in a standard serif typeface, such as Times New Roman. Manuscripts should be double-spaced throughout the document’s main body, and include page numbers somewhere in the document. Endnotes are requested. Bold should be used for the manuscript’s title and sub-section headers. 

Length 
Word counts are inclusive of notes. Article manuscripts are 7,000-10,000 words; Interviews are 5,000-9,000 words; Materials should not exceed 4,500 words; Translations are flexible, depending on source material. 

Citation Style
For the purposes of review, work may be submitted in any citation style the author is familiar with, so long as it is consistently and correctly applied. However, if accepted to ROMchip, citations must be revised to adhere the Chicago Manual of Style, using endnotes with full citations. Endnotes should appear at the end of a sentence, and authors should only use one endnote per sentence (combining multiple citations into a single entry). A bibliography is not necessary. Please consult the print manual for complete guidance. For issues not addressed in the Chicago Manual of Style (particularly related to contemporary technological and cultural terms), please refer to the Buzzfeed style guide.

Images/Figures/Tables  
Images should be of good resolution quality, submitted in JPEG file format, and uploaded together in a single ZIP file. File names should read: "FigureXX.jpg" with "XX" referring to the image's order in the manuscript and on the caption sheet. Do not embed images in your document. Author submitting images must also upload a separate caption sheet detailing all caption content.

Please use the phrase "(See Figure XX)" in your manuscript to specify where an image should be inserted. Please submit captions as a seperate document, and clearly identify which images they refer to. Captions should include a brief description of the image, the image source, and acknowledgement of right to reproduce (if applicable). 

Image Permissions 
It is standard practice in academic journals to require authors to obtain written permission to reproduce any images. Authors are not required to provide image permissions at time of submission, but should be prepared to solicit permissions immediately upon manuscript acceptance. Please be aware, securing image permissions can be a time consuming process, and authors should investigate feasibility of obtaining permissions prior to submission.  ROMchip does not provide financial support for permissions and reproduction costs.  If you have questions regarding how to solicit image permissions, or whether an image you want to include requires written rights for reproduction, please contact the Managing Editor. 

Specific Guidelines for Articles
Review for Article manuscripts is a two-tiered process. First, the Editors review submissions to evaluate whether a particular manuscript is suitable for consideration in relation to the scope, mission, and aims of the Journal. Manuscripts judged unsuitable for consideration in ROMchip will be rejected without peer review. If a manuscript demonstrates a solid fit, it will move to the next stage and be reviewed by two anonymous peer reviewers. The author will not be identified to the reviewers and the reviewers will not be identified to the author. Peer review will be provided by members of the editorial board and/or additional experts pending manuscript subject matter. Peer reviewers advise on the originality, rigor, and criticality of a manuscript; the editors decide on publication based upon these reports. Manuscripts will either be accepted, recommended for publication upon revision, or rejected. In cases where the Editors accept a paper subject to revisions, the author will normally be asked to complete all revisions by a specific deadline. The revised manuscript will be subject for further review based upon the discretion of the Editors. Manuscripts that require substantial revisions will not be considered for publication. 

Authors will be informed that a submission has been received. Once a manuscript has entered the review process it may take up to six months to receive notification. All editorial decisions will be communicated via email. Accepted manuscripts will be published online in accordance with ROMchip’s semi-annual schedule. Typically, manuscripts accepted for publication will be published within 6-12 months of notification. 

The main document under review must include the follow components:

  1. Title 
  2. Abstract (200 words max.) 
  3. 4-5 Keywords 
  4. Main body
  5. Acknowledgements (if applicable) 
  6. Endnotes in Chicago style
  7. Biographical Note consisting of: the author's title and institutional affiliation, relevant recent publications, and current research (100 words max.) [only required upon acceptance]

Specific Submission Guidelines for Interviews and Materials
Interviews and Materials are typically not peer-reviewed for content but must meet all other requirements for Format, Length, Style, Images and Image Permissions as detailed in the General Author Guidelines. We strongly recommend prospective authors pitch their ideas to the Editorial Group by emailing Editor Laine Nooney [laine.nooney@gmail.com]. If you are unfamiliar with academic submission procedures, we are happy to assist you in putting together your submission.  

Once the Editorial Group expresses interest in a pitch, the final work must be uploaded through the ROMchip submission portal. The main document under review must include the follow components:

  1. Title 
  2. Keywords 
  3. Main body
  4. Acknowledgements (if applicable)
  5. Endnotes in Chicago style (if applicable) 
  6. Biographical Note consisting of: the author's title and institutional affiliation, relevant recent publications, and current research (100 words max.) 

Articles

This section hosts the standard currency of academic writing, the peer-reviewed article. Submissions are intended to run 7,000 to 9,000 words, and should offer a contribution to academic conversation within the professional field of game history. Articles should be legible and welcoming to non-academic audiences (clearly written, free of jargon). All approved submissions will be peer reviewed by members of the Editorial Board and are expected to engage in field-specific debates. 

Interviews

This section hosts 5,000-9,000 word edited oral history transcripts or interviews with individuals related to the game industry (historical or present) and cultural institutions. We expect these to be thoughtful, deep engagements that go beyond basic chronology or biography. Our Interviews section serves as both a service to our contemporary community and a repository for future game historians.

Materials

This section hosts short, object-lesson-style essays of no more than 4,000 words, focused on specific game-historical objects. These may include a museum, library, archival or non-institutional acquisition, newly located or accessioned artifacts, or strange and unique historical finds related to game history. This section is inclusive of physical objects, as well as software objects, such as algorithms, assets, music, etc.

Copyright Notice

ROMchip is an open access journal. It is published under the Creative Commons BY-NC-ND license.  This license allows others to download your contributions to ROMchip, as long as they credit you and do not change your work in any way or reuse it for commercial purposes.

 Authors, photographers and others (collectively: “authors”) who publish with ROMcChip agree to the following terms: 
(1) Authors retain ownership of copyright and can re-use their work for any purpose, including commercial reuse. 
(2) Authors grant ROMchip a perpetual, royalty-free license to publish their work.
(3) Authors allow anyone to download, reprint, modify, redistribute and/or copy their work published in ROMchip for scholarly and educational purposes, but not for commercial purposes. Scholarly and educational use is free. Other uses require explicit and written permission of authors. 
(4) In cases of first publication, authors will cite the original appearance of their work in ROMchip when republishing this work in any form.

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