Book picks similar to
The Games That Weren't by Frank Gasking
video-games
nonfiction
gaming
non-fiction
A History of Video Games in 64 Objects
World Video Game Hall of Fame - 2018
Pithy, in-depth essays and photographs examine each object’s significance to video game play—what it has contributed to the history of gaming—as well as the greater culture.A History of Video Games in 64 Objects explains how the video game has transformed over time. Inside, you’ll find a wide range of intriguing topics, including:The first edition of Dungeons & Dragons—the ancestor of computer role-playing gamesThe Oregon Trail and the development of educational gamingThe Atari 2600 and the beginning of the console revolutionA World of Warcraft server blade and massively multiplayer online gamesMinecraft—the backlash against the studio systemThe rise of women in gaming represented by pioneering American video game designers Carol Shaw and Roberta Williams’ game development materialsThe prototype Skylanders Portal of Power that spawned the Toys-to-Life video game phenomenon and shook up the marketplaceAnd so much more!A visual panorama of unforgettable anecdotes and factoids, A History of Video Games in 64 Objects is a treasure trove for gamers and pop culture fans. Let the gaming begin!
The Great Famine: A History from Beginning to End
Hourly History - 2019
More than one-quarter of the population of Ireland died of starvation or associated disease, or were forced to emigrate. Ireland after the famine was a completely different country in many ways.The direct causes of the famine are simple to understand-a large part of the population of Ireland, mainly the poorest families, had become completely dependent on the potato as a source of food. In 1845, the blight appeared, a disease which affected the potato crop. Successive failures of the potato crop in Ireland led to more than one million people dying as a direct result.What is less easy to understand is why this famine was confined to Ireland and why the British government did not do more to help. The potato blight affected parts of Great Britain and other countries in Europe, but nowhere else did it lead to famine. For much of the famine, food continued to be exported from Ireland, and at its height, there was food stored in warehouses which could have been used to alleviate the suffering of the starving-that it was not represents at the very least a complete failure of understanding on the part of the British government.Inside you will read about...✓ Farming in Ireland✓ The Blight Arrives✓ Full-blown Famine✓ Mass Emigration✓ Poor Laws, Revolt, and the Return of the Blight✓ Aftermath and LegacyAnd much more!The Great Famine left a legacy of distrust and animosity between large segments of the population of Ireland and Great Britain, and this in part led to the movements which finally produced Irish independence. The famine also left a deep impression on the psyche of the people of Eire, and even today, Ireland remains at the forefront of international famine relief.This is the story of the Irish Potato Famine.
Dark Souls The Official Guide Collector's Guide
Future Press - 2011
How to Do Things with Videogames
Ian Bogost - 2011
Reviews of new games and profiles of game designers now regularly appear in the New York Times and the New Yorker, and sales figures for games are reported alongside those of books, music, and movies. They are increasingly used for purposes other than entertainment, yet debates about videogames still fork along one of two paths: accusations of debasement through violence and isolation or defensive paeans to their potential as serious cultural works. In How to Do Things with Videogames, Ian Bogost contends that such generalizations obscure the limitless possibilities offered by the medium’s ability to create complex simulated realities.Bogost, a leading scholar of videogames and an award-winning game designer, explores the many ways computer games are used today: documenting important historical and cultural events; educating both children and adults; promoting commercial products; and serving as platforms for art, pornography, exercise, relaxation, pranks, and politics. Examining these applications in a series of short, inviting, and provocative essays, he argues that together they make the medium broader, richer, and more relevant to a wider audience.Bogost concludes that as videogames become ever more enmeshed with contemporary life, the idea of gamers as social identities will become obsolete, giving rise to gaming by the masses. But until games are understood to have valid applications across the cultural spectrum, their true potential will remain unrealized. How to Do Things with Videogames offers a fresh starting point to more fully consider games’ progress today and promise for the future.
Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution
Heather Chaplin - 2005
What started as a game of Pong, with little blips dancing across a computer screen, has evolved into a multi-billion-dollar industry that is changing the future, making inroads into virtually all aspects of our culture.Who are the minds behind this revolution? How did it happen? Where is it headed? In Smartbomb, journalists Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby take the reader behind the scenes at gaming conventions, into powerhouse think tanks where new games are created, into the thick of the competition at cyberathlete tournaments, and into the homes of gamers for whom playing a role in a virtual world has assumed more relevance and reality than life in the real world.
A Conspiracy of Crowns: The True Story of the Duke of Windsor and the Murder of Sir Harry Oakes
Alfred de Marigny - 1990
Its portrayal of the Duke of Windsor as a Nazi sympathizer--who would stop at nothing to hide it--is sure to make headlines. Black-and-white photographs.
St. John Feet, Fins and Four Wheel Drive
Pam Gaffin - 1994
John, Virgin Islands. It tells you exactly where to go, how to get there, and what to do and see when you arrive. It contains everything you need to know about the St. John's beaches and hiking trails, as well as its confusing system, of roads, foot-paths and goat-trails. Recommended by Caribbean Travel and Life and by many St. Johnians since locals are NOT on vacation and can't always take time off from work to be a tour guide for their guests. Best Selling St John Guidebook since 1994. Updated in 2009.
The CRPG Book Project - Expanded Edition
Felipe Pepe - 2018
The completed ebook was first released as a free PDF in 2018, getting over 160,000 downloads. A deal was then made with Bitmap Books, which published a limited hardcover version of the book in 2019. All of the author’s profits (£20.992 as of January 2022) were donated to Vocação, a Brazilian NGO that helps kids and teenagers from poor areas to get a better education and find employment.In 2022, a new expanded edition was released, now with 160 extra pages, addressing issues with the previous release and expanding it to include games that were never released in English, as well as MMOs, MUDs, RPG Maker titles and more.This expanded edition is freely available for download at the project's website.
Gridlock: Crossword Puzzles and the Mad Geniuses Who Create Them
Matt Gaffney - 2006
Tens of millions of Americans solve crossword puzzles regularly, but few know a thing about their genesis. Who writes crosswords, how--and for God's sake, why? Matt Gaffney is one of two dozen people who earns a living as a cruciverbalist. In Gridlock he provides an insider's look at the people who put that puzzle in your paper every day. With verve and gusto, Gaffney traces his own starving-artist struggle to find paying puzzle gigs, including marketing hip crosswords to the Gen-X market. He then moves on to topics like the effect of computers on crossword writing, including a man versus machine battle he stages to see who writes better crosswords; the ever-evolving crossword puzzle book market, where a top-selling series now has books shaped like a toilet seat; and a trip to the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, where the "Cru" (collective slang noun meaning "the crossword puzzle writing community") hangs out in person once a year. Gridlock also features an interview with crossword rock star Will Shortz.
100 Lost Rock Albums From The 1970s
Matthew Ingram - 2012
From The Wire: "Matthew Ingram, aka Woebot, has published a book titled 100 Lost Rock Albums From The 1970s. The book takes in strands of metal, glam rock, French artists, punk and pub rock, and is released digitally as a self-published eBook via Amazon. Ingram says: 'Last year I started writing an article on the 100 Lost Rock Albums From The 1970s but it ballooned out of all proportions and I decided to turn it into an eBook.''Over time we have lost touch with the original character of the 70s. Using 'lost' records I've attempted to re-examinine the decade and redress what I see as imbalance. Beyond small reviews of a meticulously-selected 100 albums there's quite a lot of contemporary history, much theorising and lots of gags.'"
God Needs To Go: Why Christian Beliefs Fail
J.D. Brucker - 2012
It brings comfort, purpose, and sense of pride. These feelings mean so much to the Christian. But are these feelings justified? Do Christians have good reason to trust the truth of their beliefs? Author J. D. Brucker brings forth a short collection of arguments against Christian beliefs, exposing the falsehoods of the faith so many all around the world cherish.
Supercade: A Visual History of the Videogame Age, 1971-1984
Van Burnham - 2001
From Pong to Pac-Man, Asteroids to Zaxxon - more than 50 million people around the world have come of age within the electronic flux of videogames, their subconscious forever etched with images projected from arcade and home videogame systems.
Mass Effect 3 Collector's Edition: Prima Official Game Guide
Fernando Bueno - 2012
Learn how the team created the Mass Effect universe from Cinematics to Characters, Art, Audio, and more• BONUS Digital Guide Access - With interactive multiplayer maps and video strategy• See Mass Effect 3 like never before - Discover environments and parts of the game you won't see anywhere else. Panoramic views will leave you amazed With this guide you will: • Fight YOUR Way - Multiple approaches to every key battle• Dominate in Multiplayer - Comprehensive maps prepare you for battle and help you survive• Choose the Best Gear - Every weapon and piece of armor revealed, including mods and upgrades• Take Earth Back - Class breakdowns and build recommendations give you the advantage you need against the reapers• Avoid Spoilers - Special callouts strategically placed and text turned upside down at critical story moments ensure your experience won't be spoiled
Gamish: A Graphic History of Gaming
Edward Ross - 2020
For fans of gaming, this is the perfect read. For those new to gaming, it is the perfect introduction' The ScotsmanA thrilling illustrated journey through the history of video games and what they really mean to usPac-Man. Mario. Minecraft. Doom.Ever since he first booted up his brother's dusty old Atari, comic artist Edward Ross has been hooked on video games. Years later, he began to wonder: what makes games so special? Why do we play? And how do games shape the world we live in?This lovingly illustrated book takes us through the history of video games, from the pioneering prototypes of the 1950s to the modern era of blockbuster hits and ingenious indie gems. Exploring the people and politics behind one of the world's most exciting art-forms, Gamish is a love letter to something that has always been more than just a game.
The Great Book of American Trivia: Fun Random Facts & American History (Trivia USA 2)
Bill O'Neill - 2017
A quick read packed with information from cover to cover. Here you will find out:
Which US president survived an assassination attempt - and didn’t even pause his speech?
What holiday’s origin story was actually just a tall tale to unite a country at war?
Where in the world can you find an American mountain range - that isn’t in America?
How did an earthquake lead to the Trail of Tears?
What First Lady gossip shook up an entire presidential cabinet?
Overstuffed like the Thanksgiving turkey with answers to these questions and more facts - sometimes fun, sometimes serious, but always as true as we can confirm amongst America’s fables - The Great Book of American Trivia takes on the real drama behind the quaint stories we found as students in US history books. A novelty amongst trivia books, here you’ll learn the real stories, the mysteries, and the fascinating tidbits about American history from its first inhabitants to present day.Whether you know nothing about America’s past or you consider yourself an expert, you’ll learn something new and find yourself entertained as you discover or relive the nation’s troubles, mistakes, triumphs, and challenges. Dig in now and start learning the interesting stories that shaped America into what it is today.