Reality Check Network

Reality Check Network was a diskmag warez magazine that existed from November 18, 1995, to Summer 1997 with two breaks in Spring 1996 and Winter 1996/1997.

With origins as a promotional magazine for the Legacy group, it evolved into a general magazine describing various aspects of the warez scene. It contained interviews with key group leaders and described gossip and fights in the warez world. They would list each period's various releases, FTP and BBS courier MB totals, and up-to-date NFO files for each group. This was during a period when private Internet accounts were becoming widespread in the United States and increasingly in Europe and the Internet-based warez scene was expanding rapidly. They also had an open IRC channel #rcn where people would gossip about the activities of various groups under the watch of the magazine's chief editor Rebel Chicken.

Its front-end and graphical design were considered excellent and based on efficient assembly code. The magazine also sometimes embedded small games like space shooters into the code. As the magazine became more sophisticated in its graphics, its size in kilobytes grew, but until close to its end fit onto a single floppy disk.

It was controversial for its frank discussion of government busts and its indirect involvement in various feuds. Although it was frequently criticized for this and other various reasons, most groups interacted with it because of its popularity.

Issues

 * RCN 1 - "MindCrash Who?" - 18 November 1995
 * 2 - "Malice #1?" - 25 November 1995
 * 3 - "Fake Releases" - 2 December 1995
 * 4 - "TDU-Jam Retires" - 9 December 1995
 * 5 - "Hybrid's WarCraft 2" - 15 December 1995
 * 6 - "Drink or Die vs Demolition" - 22 December 1995
 * 7 - "Best of 1995" - 31 December 1995
 * 8 - "Exclusive FBI Interview" - 7 January 1996
 * 9 - "Hybrid Leaders on the Warpath" - 14 January 1996
 * 10 - "Passing Of Spyder-X" - 21 January 1996
 * 11 - "Anarchist Bust" - 28 January 1996
 * 12 - "Apogee/Distinct" - 4 February 1996
 * 13 - "Farewell" - 11 February 1996
 * 14 - "James Makes His Visit" - 19 May 1996
 * 15 - "Malice Downfall" - 26 May 1996
 * 16 - "Passing of Zieg" - 2 June 1996
 * 17 - "Dr Jekyll Busted" - 7 June 1996
 * 18 - "GODS Meeting Logs" - 16 June 1996
 * 19 - "Chris Carter Revealed" - 23 June 1996
 * 20 - "Amnesia Falls" - 30 June 1996
 * 21 - "ROR Dead? I wish" - 7 July 1996
 * Reality Check Network Theme Pack - "Designed for Windows 95" - 7 July 1996
 * 22 - "United Cracking Force" - 14 July 1996
 * 23 - "Amnesia's Catch 22?" - 21 July 1996
 * 24 - "AMN vs. RISC" - 4 August 1996
 * 25 - "DOD vs. MTY" - 18 August 1996
 * 26 - "Group Trickery?" - 1 September 1996
 * 27 - "Rebel Chicken No More?" - 20 October 1996
 * 28 - "Rebel Chicken No More?" - 20 October 1996
 * 29 - "Orion's New PWA!" - 26 October 1996
 * 30 - "Razor Busts Supplier" - 11 November 1996
 * 30 - "Art Edition" - 13 November 1996
 * 31 - "One Year Anniversary" - 24 November 1996
 * 32 - "The End of a Chapter" - 8 December 1996
 * 33 - "We're Back" - 6 April 1997
 * 34 - "The Kings of the Scene" - 20 April 1997
 * 35 - "The Death of Reflux" - 4 May 1997
 * 35 - "Art Edition" - 11 May 1997
 * 36 - "X-Force versus GLOW" - 18 May 1997
 * 36 - "Art Edition" - 25 May 1997
 * 37 - "Lester Removed From DOD" - 25 June 1997
 * 37 - "Art Edition" - 29 June 1997
 * 38 - "Another Chapter Ends" - 13 July 1997
 * 38 - "Art Edition" - 31 August 1997