OT: A Book To Read...

[shbon]

I know we probably don't read that many books between us (!), but I'd thought I'd tell you about a cracking book I've just finished reading about our beloved pastime...

Despite its crass title - the Ultimate History of Video Games by Steven L. Kent © 2001 - is a very full account of the video games industry; from the earliest days of Higinbotham's interactive tennis game (1958) and Steve Russell's Spacewar at MIT (1961), through the first arcade video machine (Computer Space, 1971) and home console (Ralph Baer's Magnavox Oddysey, 1972) to the heydays of Pong, Space Invaders and Atari VCS (2600) and onwards through the rise and fall of the amusement arcade 'Golden Age' and the continued growth of Home Consoles.

It's particularly strong at profiling the major players (Baer, Bushnell, Kassar, Arakawa etc.) and companies (Atari, Namco, Nintendo, Sega, Coleco etc.), from the various eras and is full of quotes and amusing anecdotes.

Check it out if you're interested in this history and haven't read it already!

Shaun