[citation needed] In the month of February 1999, issue 42 (cover game: Metal Gear Solid), according to ABC the magazine managed a record 453,571, beating the UK's biggest lads magazines FHM, Maxim and Loaded.

[7] In the beginning, OPS2 was designed for the early adopter, encompassing hardcore gamers and previous readers crossing over from the original Official UK PlayStation Magazine.

Starting from issue 26, the magazine was set the task of attracting a more mass market, mainstream audience, including a full redesign.

In a drastic attempt to attract a more young male demographic — similar to that of the independent PlayStation magazines of the '90s — the publication decided to "review" readers' girlfriends and their mothers and increased the number of scantily-clad women, even to the point of including bare breasts.

OPS2 would retain this middle ground for the next three years, neither employing an overly male nor hardcore adult gamer stance.

[citation needed] The disc contains game demos and other PlayStation-related content which have to be downloaded and installed onto the PS3's hard drive.

And as with the "2up" segment, there is a "dev talk" article giving a short statement from the games developer.

The magazine also presents its "highest accolade", the Gold Award, to any game that its staff believe "demonstrates significant innovation, near-flawless gameplay, great graphics and long-lasting appeal."

Games do not necessarily have to have a perfect 10 out of 10 score to receive it; those that have received this award include FIFA 09, FIFA 11, Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots,[9] Mirror's Edge, Grand Theft Auto IV, Warhawk, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Siren: Blood Curse, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Soulcalibur IV, LittleBigPlanet, Resistance 2, Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction, Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time, Infamous, BioShock, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, Killzone 2, Assassin's Creed II, Heavy Rain, and Red Dead Redemption for the PlayStation 3; Tomb Raider: Anniversary for the PlayStation 2; and God of War: Chains of Olympus and Final Fantasy Tactics: The War of the Lions for the PlayStation Portable.

[10] In the final March 2004 issue, the magazine published their list of the official top 10 PlayStation games of all time.