While it wasn't my gateway into gaming, Dragon's monthly release was a way to keep the game fresh for me and so many others.
I started gaming in 1977 in Aurora, CO- a suburb of Denver- but moved mere months after picking up the dice to Manhattan...KS. The Little Apple®. Population 10k (@35k when K State was in session). Hometown of Cassandra Peterson (Elvira, Mistress of the Dark).
Yay.
Within a few months, I had bought every different game supply in Varney's- every TSR module they had, and at least one of each kind of mini- but its not like it was a huge selection. I had to save up for weeks for the trip to Kansas City or Topeka or Witchita just to get a slightly different selection of goodies...and we only went to one of those cities every other month or so.
But Varney's had Dragon. Every month, Dragon let me get new ideas, new fiction, art and so forth that helped keep interest high.
I suspect that I'd be less gung-ho about gaming if Dragon hadn't been there.