Video game of the year : a year-by-year guide to the best, boldest, and most bizarre games from every year since 1977

Title:

Video game of the year : a year-by-year guide to the best, boldest, and most bizarre games from every year since 1977 / Jordan Minor.

Author/Creator:

Minor, Jordan, author.

Publication:

New York : Abrams Image, 2023.

Physical description:

295 pages : illustrations (colour) ; 23 cm.

Contents:

1977, Pong – 1978, Space Invaders -- 1979, Speed Freak -- 1980, Pac-Man -- 1981, Donkey Kong -- 1982, Pitfall! -- 1983, Dragon's Lair -- 1984, Tetris -- 1985, Super Mario Bros. -- 1986, Dragon Quest -- 1987, The Legend of Zelda -- 1988, Mega Man 2 -- 1989, SimCity -- 1990, The Secret of Monkey Island -- 1991, Sonic the Hedgehog -- 1992, Wolfenstein -- 1993, NBA Jam -- 1994, Super Street Fighter II Turbo -- 1995, Donkey Kong Country 2 -- 1996, Super Mario 64 -- 1997, Final Fantasy VII -- 1998, Metal Gear Solid -- 1999, System Shock 2 -- 2000, Half-life Counter-strike -- 2001, Halo: Combat Evolved -- 2002, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City -- 2003, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker -- 2004, World of Warcraft -- 2005, Resident Evil 4 -- 2006, Wii Sports -- 2007, Rock Band -- 2008, Spore -- 2009, Uncharted 2: Among the Thieves -- 2010, Super MEat Boy -- 2011, Minecraft -- 2012, The Walking Dead -- 2013, Depression Quest -- 2014, Destiny -- 2015, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt -- 2016, Pokemon Go -- 2017, Fortnite -- 2018, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate -- 2019, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice -- 2020, Animal Crossing: New Horizon -- 2021 Co-op: Bonus Round -- 2022, The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe.

Summary:

For each of the 40 years of video game history, there is a defining game, a game that captured the zeitgeist and left a legacy for all games that followed. Through a series of entertaining, informative, and opinionated critical essays, author and tech journalist Jordan Minor investigates, in chronological order, the innovative, genre-bending, and earth-shattering games from 1977 through 2022. Minor explores development stories, critical reception, and legacy, and also looks at how gaming intersects with and eventually influences society at large while reveling in how uniquely and delightfully bizarre even the most famous games tend to be.

ISBN:

9781419762055 (paperback)

1419762052 (paperback)

Subjects:

Video games -- History -- Juvenile literature.

Record ID:

SD_ILS:1420091

Available:

Library	Shelf Location	Shelf Number	Item Category 2	Item category 3	Status
Searching... Burnie Library	Youth non-fiction	794.809 MIN	Youth general	Undefined	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Burnie Library	Youth non-fiction	794.809 MIN	Youth general	Undefined	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Kingston Library	Youth non-fiction	794.809 MIN	Youth general	Undefined	Searching... Unknown
Searching... Launceston Library	Youth non-fiction	794.809 MIN	Youth general	Undefined	Searching... Unknown

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Pong. The Legend of Zelda. Final Fantasy VII. Rock Band. Fortnite. Animal Crossing: New Horizons. For each of the 40 years of video game history, there is a defining game, a game that captured the zeitgeist and left a legacy for all games that followed. Through a series of entertaining, informative, and opinionated critical essays, author and video game critic Jordan Minor investigates, in chronological order, the innovative, genre-bending, and earth-shattering games from 1977 through 2020. Minor explores development stories, critical reception, and legacy, and also looks at how gaming intersects with and eventually influences society at large while reveling in how uniquely and delightfully bizarre even the most famous games tend to be.

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

This entertaining debut from PCMag editor Minor examines pivotal video games from 1977 to 2022, spotlighting one title per year that demonstrates "how uniquely and delightfully bizarre even the most famous games tend to be." He begins with Pong, which he credits with paving the way "for nearly every single video game that followed," and expounds on such early innovators as 1979's Speed Freak, a racing title that was among the first to harness "the open freedom of 3D visuals," and 1985's Super Mario Bros., whose imaginative worldbuilding and gameplay "revolutionized" the medium. Other milestones include Sega's creation of Sonic the Hedgehog to compete with Nintendo, Halo ushering in the rise of console multiplayer gaming, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City raising open-world level design to new heights, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons offering a tranquil respite during Covid-19 lockdowns in 2020. Though largely admiring, Minor makes some criticisms, suggesting that 2008's evolution simulator Spore failed to meet sky-high expectations and that 2017 juggernaut Fortnite cribbed its conceit and gameplay from PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds. The author's passion and strong grasp of video game history make this an excellent ode to the medium. Illus. (July)

Booklist Review

From Atari consoles to cell phones, from single-color, moving dots to 3D, movie-like experiences, video games have grown to an enormous industry over the past almost 50 years. Entertainment and technology journalist Minor traces their history in terms of each year's most significant big-name game, one that presents a new direction in the field. The main content is a chronological, year-by-year discussion of the chosen game, from 1977's Pong to 2022's Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe. Each year's coverage has the same structure: a front page with one-line play synthesis, a full-page, cartoon-style art rendition of the game by Wren McDonald, a one-page summary in large print, a few pages that analyze the game and its industry context, and a one-page "extra life" feature about other strong contenders of the year or industry information. Minor's writing has a consistently engaging, insider quality. In addition, the book's visual aspects reflect the colorful world of gaming, from the font style to the inclusion of rainbow-colored text on black within each year's coverage. It should garner interest from both gamers and popular-culture followers.

Foreword	6
Introduction	8
1977 Pong the First Game of the Year	10
1978 Space Invaders the Aliens of the Year	16
1979 Speed Freak the Hot Rod of the Year	22
1980 Pac-Man the Mascot of the Year	28
1981 Donkey Kong the Irreplaceable Game of the Year	34
1982 Pitfall! the Third-Party Game of the Year	30
1983 Dragon's Lair the Cartoon of the Year	45
1984 Tetris the Communist Game of the Year	51
1985 Super Mario Bros. the Citizen Kane of the Year	57
1986 Dragon Quest the Japanese Role-Playing Game of the Year	63
1987 The Legend of Zelda the Adventure of the Year	69
1988 Mega Man 2 the Sequel of the Year	75
1989 SimCity the Utopia of the Year	81
1990 The Secret of Monkey Island the George Lucas Game of the Year	87
1991 Sonic the Hedgehog the Rival of the Year	93
1992 Wolfenstein 3D the Shooter of the Year	99
1993 NBA Jam the Slam Dunk of the Year	105
1994 Super Street Fighter II Turbo the Next Round of the Year	111
1995 Donkey Kong Country 2 the Illusion of the Year	117
1996 Super Mario 64 the Third Dimension of the Year	123
1997 Final Fantasy VII the Change of the Year	129
1998 Metal Gear Solid the Hideo Kojima Game of the Year	135
1999 System Shock 2 the Premonition of the Year	141
2000 Half-Life: Counter-Strike the Mod of the Year	147
2001 Halo: Combat Evolved the Xbox Savior of the Year	153
2002 Grand Theft Auto: Vice City the Crime of the Century	159
2003 The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker the Nintendo Left Swerve of the Year	185
2004 World of Warcraft the Matrix of the Year	171
2005 Resident Evil 4 the New Nightmare of the Year	177
2006 Wii Sports the Locomotion of the Year	184
2007 Rock Band the Jam of the Year	190
2008 Spore the Pipe Dream of the Year	196
2009 Uncharted 2: Among Thieves the Sony Blockbuster of the Year	202
2010 Super Meat Boy the Flesh Game of the Year	208
2011 Minecraft the Building Blocks of the Year	214
2012 The Walking Dead the Zombie of the Year	220
2013 Depression Quest the Firestorm Game of the Year	226
2014 Destiny the (Eventual) Game of the Year	232
2015 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt the Tome of the Year	240
2016 Pokémon Go the Phenomenon of the Year	246
2017 Fortnite the Blob of the Year	252
2018 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate the Museum of the Year	260
2019 Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice the Punishment of the Year	268
2020 Animal Crossing: New Horizons the Escape of the Year	276
2021 Co-op: Bonus Round	282
2022 The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe the Choice of the Year	286
Epilogue: New Game?	292
Acknowledgments	294

Available:

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

Summary

Reviews (2)

Publisher's Weekly Review

Booklist Review

Table of Contents