The name, a registered trademark, is adapted from the Middle English word scry meaning "to foretell the future through a suitable medium".

Sales were not strong enough to support a separate publication and the features of Mastyr were rolled into SCRYE after a single issue.

White sold the magazine on November 15, 1999, to Krause Publications,[1] which was later acquired by F+W Publications Inc. John Jackson Miller became the editor and added collectible miniatures game coverage to the magazine in 2000 prior to the release of Mage Knight.

In that issue, the magazine's editors suggested that the decision to cease publication was due, at least in part, to financial problems resulting from the economic crisis in the United States: "The reason behind this decision should come as no surprise to anyone who's been paying attention to recent events, both within our hobby and in the world in general...as things stand, we cannot continue to publish the magazine profitably while still providing the level of quality entertainment and information that you, our readers, need and deserve in exchange for your money.

The magazine has produced a number of affiliated one-shot publications, including ones devoted to Pokémon, Magic, and The Lord of the Rings collectible card games.