0-448-14345-3; Grosset & Dunlap; 1977; $6.95; 158p; TPB. Notes: B&W photos of lots of pre-Atari 2600 home systems, including Fairchild Video Entertainment System (Channel F), RCA Studio II, Coleco Telstar, Atari Pong, Atari Super Pong, and Magnavox Odyssey. Consumer guide in back lists approximately four dozen systems, including six models of the Odyssey.
Video Games
Cohen, Daniel
0-671-45872-8; Pocket Books; 1982; $1.95; 120p; PB. Notes: Adolescent level book that discusses how video games work and their history. Contains lots of nice B&W photos of arcade games, home game consoles, some Intellivision screen shots (from before the games were officially named), and more.
0-896-86241-0; Baker Street Productions (Crestwood House); 1983; $[?]; 47p; [Format?]. Notes: Illustrated (some in color). Juvenile. A discussion of video games, focusing on their creation and manufacture. NO ISBN; Dell Publishing Co., Inc.; 1982; $0.69; 64p; PAM?. Notes: Contains instructions for playing arcade games as well as some hints on how to beat them (this is bottom of the barrel stuff here). Takes 3 pages out for home video game systems (basically just to say buy one if you like playing these kinds of games). No ISBN number, but it's #9280 in the series.
Video Games and Human Development: A Research Agenda for the 80's: Papers and Proceedings of a Symposium Held at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, Massachusetts, May 22-24, 1983
Baughman, Patrice
0-943-48401-4; Monroe C. Gutman Library, Harvard Graduate School of Education; 1983; $[?]; 72p; PB.
Video Games for Virgins: Comprehensive Guide to Gaming
[ISBN?]; Dell Purse Book/ Dell Publishing Co Inc.; 1982; $0.69; 64p; PAM?. Notes: Contains instructions for playing arcade games as well as some hints on how to beat them (this is bottom of the barrel stuff here). Takes 3 pages out for home video game systems (basically just to say buy one if you like playing these kinds of games). No ISBN number, but it's #9280 in the series.
Video Games: In the Beginning
Baer, Ralph H.
[ISDN?]; Rolenta Press; 2004; $30; 260p; PB. Notes: Contains Ralph’s original notes, memos, schematics, patents, and photos, as well as Ralph’s first-hand account of how he derived the idea of TV games and how he brought that idea to fruition. Other topics include Ralph’s work with Coleco, Odyssey2, Atari, arcade games, Simon handheld, video work for the military, and his dealing with Nolan Bushnell.
Video Invaders
Bloom, Steve
0-668-05518-9 (HC), 0-668-05520-0 (PB); Arco; 1982; $11.95 (HC), $5.95 (PB); 220p; Notes: Author was editor of Video Games (see periodicals). Illustrated. Juvenile literature. Discusses the immensely popular video game which resulted from the marriage of the computer and the television. A few facts are incorrect (such as Donna Bailey’s contributions with Centipede), but overall a decent retrospective.
Video Master's Guide to Centipede, The
Dubren, Ron
0-553-22966-4; Bantam Books; 1982; $1.95; 140p; PB. Notes: Many illlustrations and great Centipede tricks and patterns! Illustrations are all black and white, and many screenshots are on grid.
0-553-23072-7; Bantam Books; 1982; $1.95; 84p; PB. Arcade: Donkey Kong. Notes: Contains complete directions for beating Donkey Kong. Contains several drawn maps (Donkey Kong's depiction is HILARIOUS!) to help you on your quest.
[ISBN?]; Pinnacle; 1983; $[?]; [?]p; PB. Notes: There were separate guide books for Pac-Man(0523419848), Defender (0523419821), Donkey Kong (052341983X), Centipede (0523419856), Tempest, and Asteroids (0523419805).
Video War
Manes, Stephen
0-380-83303-4; Avon Books; 1983; $2.25; 249p; PB. Notes: A teenage novel focusing on one town's efforts to ban video games and the group of teens that lead the fight against the proposed bill. Vanguard and Gorf can be seen on the cover, behind all the people. Numerous games are used in the book, although there are some fictional titles. Fairly enjoyable read, even the sex chapter, "Screen 25" (Touch Here... Insert Here...).
Video Wizard's Handbook, The
Sobil, Keith and Kevin
0-943-32000-3; The Video Wizard Co.; 1982; $5.95; [?]p; PB. Notes: Covers 3 home games (Space Invaders, Asteroids, and Missile Command) and 6 arcade games (including Space Invaders and Tempest). Self-published in San Francisco, CA. Has some typographical and printing errors.
Video: The Inside Story
Renowden, Gareth
0-531-04584-6; Gloucester Press; 1982; $[?]; 37p; [Format?]. Notes: Some color illustrations. Includes index. Explains, using drawings and diagrams, some of the applications of video technology, including factory monitoring systems, video games, satellite broadcasting, television production, and flight simulation.
Video: Pocket Guide
Fox, Barry, Richard Maybury, & Tim Smith
0-706-41826-3; Octopus Books; 1983; $4.00; 128p; HC. Notes: It is a British publication, and mainly covers PAL hardware and the British market. There are three sections. The first covers video standards (NSTC, PAL, and SECAM) and technology in general. The second reviews various VCR's, Camcorders, etc. The third section, entitled "Software" covers such things as video disk players and related things; not just game systems. There is a long discussion of the release of movies on video and several pages of statistics. The Colecovision (with Super-Action Controllers) and Atari 5200 only have photos shown. The Intellivision II is shown with both the voice module and Atari expansion module. The UK-only Binatone Mark 6, Mark 10 (pong systems), and Superstar are discussed, as is the Leizure Zone, due to be released in Britain in 1983. Itwill initially have 8 carts. Cartridge manufacturers include Thorn EMI with 23 Atari compatible carts. As is usual for video game publications, there is much discussion of varpourware. This section of the book shows six screen-shots but does not note what game or system they are from!
Visual Digital Culture : Surface Play and Spectacle in New Media Genres
Darley, Andrew
0-415-16555-5; Routledge; 2000; $30.95; 240p; PB.
Warlords
Skeates, Steve (writer) and Dave Wenzel (illustrator)
[ISBN?]; DC Comics, Inc.; 1984; $5.95; 64p; unique (graphic novel; approximately magazine size with square binding). Notes: Based on the Atari arcade and home games of the same name. Tells the story of a con artist troll named Just Plain Duane and his involvement with four warlord brothers that rule the world.
We Can’t Afford it! / Don’t Overdo the Video Games
Berry, Joy Wilt
[ISBN?]; Living Skills/Weekly Reader; 1983; $[?]; 96p; [Format?]. Notes: One of the Survival Series for Kids books, engagingly printed with a story at each end of the book, giving advice on parental rules. Same as What To Do When…. Revised edition of So What’s Wrong with Playing Video Games.. Discusses the negative parts of playing too many games and also how to schedule your time and money around other activities. Illustrated by Bartholomew.
What to Do When Your Mom or Dad Says "Don't Overdo with Video Games"
Berry, Joy Wilt
0-941-51025-5; Living Skills Press; 1983; $3.95; 48p; HC. Notes: Same as We Can’t Afford it! Revised version of So What’s Wrong with Playing Video Games. Illustrated by Bartholomew
0-809-27093-5 (HC), 0-8092-7092-7 (TPB); Contemporary Books; 1979; $6.95 (TPB), $[?] (HC); 190p; TPB, HC. Notes: Pictures and blurbs on the latest and greatest in home electronics. Included APF, 2600, MICROVISION, Intellivision (with original computer attachment), various Pong systems, and handhelds.
Win at Pac-Man
Zavisca, Ernest, Ph.D and Gary Beltowski
0-517-388820; Greenwich House; 1982; $[?]; 64p; HC. Arcade: Ms.Pac-Man, Pac-Man Notes: Originally published as Break a Million! at Pac-Man.
Winners' Book of Video Games, The
Kubey, Craig
0-446-37115-7; Warner Books; 1982; $5.95; 270p; TPB. Notes: Includes a smattering of B&W photos and illustrations. This includes photos of the controls of Asteroids, Defender, Pac-Man, and Missile Command, plus a photo of the never-released Keyboard Component for the Intellivision I. Be warned that some of the home games listed are brief reviews as opposed to playing tips. Also includes sections on "Great Video Game Arcades in the United States and Canada," "Video Game Etiquette," "Video Songs" (songs to play by, not generally specifically about video games), "The Future," "Videomedicine," "Video Reform," history & status of the coin-op and home industries, and a "Glossary of Video Slang," some of which I've never heard.
0-072-22792-3; Osborne/McGraw-Hill; 2002; 256; $14.99; PB. Notes: Covers the XBOX’s specs and networking capabilities, as well as cables, controllers, enhancements, memory cards, games, cheat hardware, and more.
Zap! The Rise and Fall of Atari
Cohen, Scott
0-070-11543-5; McGraw-Hill; 1984; $14.95; 177p; HC. Notes: This book tells the tale of the early video games industry, focusing on the trials and tribulations of Atari. Read this book and find out everything you would want to know about the history of Atari up through 1984. A good read and believable from someone at the competition (INTV). Includes bibliography and index.