History of Video Games
Discover the definitive history of video games through five essential books, from Masters of Doom and Game Over to The Video Game Explosion—perfect for gamers and historians.
Book
Game Over
by David Sheff
How did a Japanese company that once manufactured playing cards end up capturing nearly all of America's multi-billion dollar video-game industry in the early '90s? What is it about games that feature an obstinate ape ("Donkey Kong") and an intrepid plumber ("Super Mario Bros.") that make them so addictive to consumers of all ages? And was it inventive genius or business hardball that enabled Nintendo to gross more after taxes in 1992 than Apple, IBM, Microsoft or all the major U.S. film studios combined?
Book
The Xbox 360 Uncloaked
by Dean Takahashi
"The Xbox 360 Uncloaked" is the result of more than a hundred interviews, many at the highest levels of Microsoft, as well as countless months of independent investigative reporting. With unprecedented access, San Jose Mercury News Technology and Gaming Writer Dean Takahashi goes beyond the official story to reveal a true insider's look at the creation of the XBox 360 and Microsoft's multi-billion dollar gamble to become a leading force in the global video game industry. Sony, Nintendo, Electronic Arts, the entire Microsoft Xbox 360 team, and the industry's most celebrated game developers -- all of the major players are included in this captivating book.
Book
The Video Game Explosion
by Mark J. P. Wolf
This title traces the growth of video games, showing how they have become an integral part of popular culture today.
Book
Masters of Doom
by David Kushner
"To my taste, the greatest American myth of cosmogenesis features the maladjusted, antisocial, genius teenage boy who, in the insular laboratory of his own bedroom, invents the universe from scratch. Masters of Doom is a particularly inspired rendition. Dave Kushner chronicles the saga of video game virtuosi Carmack and Romero with terrific brio. This is a page-turning, mythopoeic cyber-soap opera about two glamorous geek geniuses--and it should be read while scarfing down pepperoni pizza and swilling Diet Coke, with Queens of the Stone Age cranked up all the way." --Mark Leyner, author of I Smell Esther Williams Masters of Doom is the amazing true story of the Lennon and McCartney of video games: John Carmack and John Romero. Together, they ruled big business. They transformed popular culture. And they provoked a national controversy. More than anything, they lived a unique and rollicking American Dream, escaping the broken homes of their youth to co-create the most notoriously successful game franchises in history--Doom and Quake--until the games they made tore them apart. Americans spend more money on video games than on movie tickets. Masters of Doom is the first book to chronicle this industry's greatest story, written by one of the medium's leading observers. David Kushner takes readers inside the rags-to-riches adventure of two rebellious entrepreneurs who came of age to shape a generation. The vivid portrait reveals why their games are so violent and why their immersion in their brilliantly designed fantasy worlds offered them solace. And it shows how they channeled their fury and imagination into products that are a formative influence on our culture, from MTV to theInternet to Columbine. This is a story of friendship and betrayal, commerce and artistry--a powerful and compassionate account of what it's like to be young, driven, and wildly creative.
Book
Power-up
by Chris Kohler
Power+Up explores these questions and others in a fresh and completely engaging way. This riveting book includes personal interviews, anecdotes, and accounts of industry giants, such as Shigeru Miyamoto, Hideo Kojima, and others involved in the creation of Donkey Kong, Mario, Pokemon, Metal Gear, Final Fantasy, and many more. Fans of gaming, comic books, anime, popular culture, and technology alike will find Power+Up to be utterly absorbing! Book jacket.
