GAME OVER (A Bantam Starfire Book) [Mass Market Paperback]

Joseph Locke (Author), Ray Garton (writing as Joseph Locke) (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1993 | Series: A Bantam Starfire Book

In this video game thriller, when a new video arcade named Hades opens in town, the students of Dinsmore begin committing bizarre and violent acts. By the author of Kill the Teacher's Pet.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Who should preside over sleepy little Dinsmore's newest commercial enterprise but the Devil himself? Introducing himself as Everett Blacke, the proprietor of the Hades video arcade takes special pains to lure the town's teenagers, particularly the pariahs. He steers them to games with names like Roadkill and Safari Slaughter that somehow feature their real-life persecutors, and before long they are committing real-life murders. Can Joe and Lorinda, themselves much taunted, stop Mr. Blacke before he wins everyone's soul? Joe must come to terms with his deepest desires for revenge before he can battle the archfiend. Locke does a good job of setting up the final, epic confrontation between Joe and Mr. Blacke, but Sunday school-solemnity and banal imagery turn the showdown into an anticlimax. The stuff B-movies are made of. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up-- Yet another unstimulating depiction of good versus evil in the YA world of technology. In this quickly predictable tale of horror, a wicked new video arcade called Hades opens. Its games are similar to the standard violent kill-anyone-in-your-path type that people usually play. But here, the characters on the screen look exactly like the players' school enemies. The players, each increasingly bloodthirsty having had a taste of revenge with the video games, actually begin to murder their enemies. P. J., who played "Roadkill" at Hades, later drives his mother's car back and forth over two people. Arlo, who played "Death Match," chops up a classmate with an axe. And so it goes. The plot is transparent and grisly, and the characters are mere stereotypes. Still, the book may be popular with readers who want lots of action and are glad when a story doesn't stray from its familiar conventions. --Linda Tashbook, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, PA
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 10 pages
• Publisher: Starfire (June 1, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553296523
• ISBN-13: 978-0553296525
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,238,656 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars As Good As I Remember It, May 23, 2010

By 

KAB - See all my reviews

This review is from: GAME OVER (A Bantam Starfire Book) (Mass Market Paperback)

I once found this in the library several years ago and have looked for it since. I am already through most of the book again and it's as good as I remember it. A fair warning: some of the scenes of death are vividly graphic (not necessarily for the faint of heart) and there are deeply religious overtones (I happen to be Christian, so it didn't bother me). This book is mostly for the jr. high/early high school crowd and carries with it an important message about the cost of seeking revenge on those whom have wronged you. If viewed as a work of fiction with an important message, you won't be disappointed. If you view this as a 178 page public service announcement for religion and against revenge, you will probably become annoyed too soon and not give this book the chance that it deserves.

4.0 out of 5 stars Not subtle, but a quick read, July 29, 2005

By 

Craig Clarke "Living After Midnight: Hard and... (New England) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: GAME OVER (A Bantam Starfire Book) (Mass Market Paperback)

Dinsmore is a slow little town with not much for teens to do, other than going to weekly youth group meetings and the local video arcade. Joe is the current champ of all but a few of the games available and his girlfriend Lorinda is beginning to feel that he likes his games more than he likes her. However, this relatively small relationship issue is nothing compared to what happens with Everett Blacke opens the Hades Video Arcade ("!!Take a Chance!!"). Playing his games is a little too real for some of the players, who see the faces of their nemeses on the figures in the game. It's fun at first, but big trouble awaits those who venture into the Virtual Reality room.

Joseph Locke is the (now retired) Young Adult pseudonym of adult horror author Ray Garton. Locke's byline can be found on originals and media tie-ins, but now Garton even writes those under his own name. Game Over -- an entry in the Bantam Starfire series which also includes Locke works 1-900-Killer, Vengeance, Kiss of Death, and Petrified -- is a fun (if overly simplistic) examination of the temptations of evil and what can be done to resist it. Joe slowly realizes what is happening in his town as several murders are committed with the killers shouting, "I win!" at the tops of their lungs. The mysterious Mr. Blacke (with his goat-head cane) tries to lure Joe and Lorinda into the Virtual Reality room, but their local Pastor Crane, leader of the youth group, teaches them how to deal with the feelings that spawn evil deeds. This sort of sinks what could have been a truly gripping climax into proselytization. Locke (Garton) writes at a quick pace, however, and any flaws (such as a distinct lack of subtlety) are swept away by the speed of the read.

0 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars watch out for those video games!, November 16, 1999

By 

Marc Axelrod (Potter, Wi USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: GAME OVER (A Bantam Starfire Book) (Mass Market Paperback)

A story of how video games can be quite immersive. Better keep a closer eye on what video games your kids are playing. The Columbine high school shootings are a tragic reminder.