The Secret History of Mac Gaming


Book Description

The Macintosh challenged games to be more than child’s play and quick reflexes. It made human–computer interaction friendly, inviting, and intuitive. Mac gaming led to much that is now taken for granted by PC gamers and spawned some of the biggest franchises in video game history. It allowed anyone to create games and playful software with ease, and gave indie developers a home for their products. It welcomed strange ideas and encouraged experimentation. It fostered passionate and creative communities who inspired and challenged developers to do better and to follow the Mac mantra ‘think different’. Drawing on archive material and interviews with key figures from the era – and featuring new material from Craig Fryar, Apple’s first Mac games evangelist and the co-creator of hit game Spectre – The Secret History of Mac Gaming is the story of those communities and the game developers who survived and thrived in an ecosystem that was serially ignored by the outside world. It’s a book about people who followed their hearts first and market trends second, showing how clever, quirky, and downright wonderful video games could be.







Shareware Heroes


Book Description

Shareware Heroes is a comprehensive, meticulously researched exploration of an important and too-long overlooked chapter in video game history Shareware Heroes: Independent Games at the Dawn of the Internet takes readers on a journey, from the beginnings of the shareware model in the early 1980s, the origins of the concept, even the name itself, and the rise of shareware's major players – the likes of id Software, Apogee, and Epic MegaGames – through to the significance of shareware for the ‘forgotten’ systems – the Mac, Atari ST, Amiga – when commercial game publishers turned away from them. This book also charts the emergence of commercial shareware distributors like Educorp and the BBS/newsgroup sharing culture. And it explores how shareware developers plugged gaps in the video gaming market by creating games in niche and neglected genres like vertically-scrolling shoot-'em-ups (e.g. Raptor and Tyrian) or racing games (e.g. Wacky Wheels and Skunny Kart) or RPGs (God of Thunder and Realmz), until finally, as the video game market again grew and shifted, and major publishers took control, how the shareware system faded into the background and fell from memory.




The CRPG Book: A Guide to Computer Role-Playing Games


Book Description

Reviews over 400 seminal games from 1975 to 2015. Each entry shares articles on the genre, mod suggestions and hints on how to run the games on modern hardware.




Samak the Ayyar


Book Description

The adventures of Samak, a trickster-warrior hero of Persia’s thousand-year-old oral storytelling tradition, are beloved in Iran. Samak is an ayyar, a warrior who comes from the common people and embodies the ideals of loyalty, selflessness, and honor—a figure that recalls samurai, ronin, and knights yet is distinctive to Persian legend. His exploits—set against an epic background of palace intrigue, battlefield heroics, and star-crossed romance between a noble prince and princess—are as deeply rooted in Persian culture as are the stories of Robin Hood and King Arthur in the West. However, this majestic tale has remained little known outside Iran. Translated from the original Persian by Freydoon Rassouli and adapted by Prince of Persia creator Jordan Mechner, this timeless masterwork can now be enjoyed by English-speaking readers. A thrilling and suspenseful saga, Samak the Ayyar also offers a vivid portrait of Persia a thousand years ago. Within an epic quest narrative teeming with action and supernatural forces, it sheds light on the lives of ordinary people and their social worlds. This is the first complete English-language version of a treasure of world culture. The translation is grounded in the twelfth-century Persian text while paying homage to the dynamic culture of storytelling from which it arose.




Game Master: Mansion Mystery


Book Description

New York Times bestselling authors and creators of the mega-popular YouTube series Game Master Network Matt and Rebecca Zamolo return with a brand-new adventure about everyone’s favorite mystery-solving team. Rebecca Zamolo has managed to foil the Game Master’s plans before, but this time the Game Master has snake-napped Nacho, her good friend Miguel’s pet. No way is Becca going to let the Game Master get away with this dastardly plan. But when the clues lead Becca and her new friends in the direction of the one house in their entire neighborhood that none of them ever want to go near, they know they have no choice but to screw up their courage and dare to investigate, if they want to rescue Nacho. But the problem is that getting into the superspooky house is way easier than getting out. The Game Master is up to their old tricks, and Becca, Matt, Kylie, Frankie, and Miguel are going to have to face their fears and use all their smarts and strengths to solve the puzzles and games and save the day. Mansion Mystery is another action-packed adventure from New York Times bestselling authors and super-sleuthing team Rebecca and Matt Zamolo, stars of the hugely popular Game Master Network. Read the book and unlock special clues that will open exclusive content online!




The Encyclopedia of Arcade Video Games


Book Description

Arcade video games have become one of the hottest collectibles around and this book features over 600 photos of the machines that filled arcades during the 1970s and '80s. Includes information about the manufacturers who produced these classic games, a section about video game collectibles, and information on how to start your own collection. Beginning collectors and long-time game enthusiasts alike are sure to enjoy this nostalgic and informative look at the world of arcade video games.




Gambler Way


Book Description

The first book ever to examine Indian gaming myths on a continental scale, "Gambler Way" reveals that not only was gamblinguin practice as well as in mythucommon to nearly all of the indigenous peoples of North America, but also that the games and stories were universally part of the sacred lore and rituals of the tribes. Every area from the subarctic to the Southwest and parts of Mexico is covered. Games and their sometimes lethal stakes are described in detail, along with their place in the sacred world-view of each people. The result is a fascinating and unique look at the way humans strive to recognize a link between divine intent and chance. Based on massive research in historical and archaeological records, "Gambler Way" is not only a fascinating contribution to the study of ancient Native American culture, but it also provides valuable context for the current controversies surrounding Indian-run casinos.




A Slow Year


Book Description

A collection of four one kilobyte games for the Atari Video Computer System, one for each seasosn, about the experience of observing things. Neither action nor strategy, each game requires a different kind of sedate observation and methodical iput. Accompanying the game are essays about the commonalities between videogames and poetry and 1,024 machined haiku--poetry generated by computer--9 bits worth for each season."--Unedited summary from back cover.




1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die


Book Description

In fewer than fifty years videogames have become one of the most popular forms of entertainment, but which are the best games, the ones you must play? This action packed book presents the best videogames from around the world - from 80's classic Donkey Kong to Doom, Frogger and Final Fantasy. Covering everything from old favourites to those breaking new ground, these are the games that should not be missed. Video game expert Tony Mott presents 1001 of the best video games from around the world and on all formats, from primitive pioneering consoles like Atari's VCS to modern-day home entertainment platforms such as Sony's PlayStation 3. 1001 VIDEO GAMES defines arcade experiences that first turned video gaming into a worldwide phenomenon such as Space Invaders, Asteroids, and Pac-Man - games that made the likes of Atari, Sinclair and Commadore household names. It also includes the games that have taken the console era by storm from Nintendo Wii to Sony Playstation and beyond - games of the modern era that have become cultural reference points in their own right including multi-million selling series such as Halo, Grand Theft Auto and Resident Evil. For aficionados this is a keepsake - charting the highlights of the past fifty years giving them key information for games they must play. For those just discovering the appeal of gaming this extensive volume will provide everything they need to ensure they don't miss out on the games that revolutionized this overwhelmingly popular medium.