The riveting story of Nintendo's conquest of the interactive entertainment industry offering true tales filled with cocky arrogance, confidence and international intrigue that rival any novel. Whether it is recounting the struggles over the game"Tetris," offering blow-by-blow narrative of Nintendo's bitter legal warfare or its see-saw competition with other companies for market leadership, Game Over is a masterful piece of business journalism and technical reportage-a book both cautionary and hugely entertaining.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
Irresistable...almost as hypnotic as a successful video game. " An intriguing potrait of what it takes to succeed in today's competitive computer industry." (Washington Post Book World)
"Game Over...is ultimately less absorbing than 'Tetris' but not by much. The opening chapter alone stuns us... A fascinating insider's loook into the Nintendo juggernaut."(Wall Street Journal) -- The New York Times
About the Author
David Sheff's articles have appeared in Playboy, Rolling Stone, The Observer, and Foreign Literature(in Russia), among other publications, and on National Public Radio's All Things Considered. His book The Playboy Interviews with John Lennon and Yoko Ono was a Literary Guild Selection. Sheff lives in Northern California with his wife, Karen Barbour, and son, Nicolas.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 14 people found the following review helpful
By Dan Amrich
Format:Paperback
How Sheff (and Eddy) got this kind of info may never be fully revealed, but this book is positively required reading for anybody even remotely interested in how the game business really works. At times, it reads like a spy novel--the intrigue revealed in the battle over the rights to Tetris could stand as its own adventure--and reveals many personal details about how Nintendo went from a humble family-owned playing card company (!) to one of the most powerful digital entertainment brands in the world. The book doubles as a brief history of video gaming in general, making it absolutely indispensable.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A fine history of Nintendo, one of the largest videogame companies operating today, which parlayed its success with the Donkey Kong arcade francise into its replacement of Atari as the company name ubiquitous with videogaming. The original portion was written by David Sheff, obviously someone with a lot of access to the notoriously tightly-knit inner sanctum of Mother N. It is followed up by new chapters by Andy Eddy.
Everything you would expect is here, from Nintendo's humble beginnings as a Hanafuda playing-card company in 1889 to the release of the N64 game console in 1996. During the journey we are introduced to all of the players involved, along with their facinating bios. From Japanese president Hiroshi Yamauchi, to game design wunderkind Sigeru Miyamoto, to Nintendo of America head Minoru Arakawa...we follow the early stumbles of the fledgling company, and its rise to the top of the vicious, cut-throat videogame market with the help of some Western allies. Game Over delivers both a facinating glimpse into the operations of a Japanese conglomerate, as well as a thrill-ride though the volatile games industry. Author of the original book Sheff adopts an easy-going, if somewhat dry, prose style...but it still reads better than your typical business tome.
You know that any company as tight-lipped and controlling as Nintendo is going to try and put the thumb on any would-be biographer looking for privledged access, and while I won't go so far as to call Game Over biased towards Nintendo, it certainly does lean towards the point-of-view of its subject matter. However, saying this, the book does not gloss over the rather ruthless practices that Nintendo has engaged in, both with its facist attitude towards its licencees, as well as with its battery of high-priced, go-for-the-throat lawyers. Of course, no company can rise as quickly to the top as Nintendo and not fall into the sites of hungry barristers, and Game Over sometimes gets bogged down in the morass of litigation fired at the company. Another thing I found lacking was a real in-depth look at the battles Mother N has engaged in with its two chief rivals: Sega and Sony. While the two companies are certainly mentioned, I was looking for a detailed battle-of-the-systems between them, something that unfortunately never materializes. I had hopes that this might be covered in the added-on chapters, but Eddy's entries are little more than reminises from the people involved.
So, in the end we have a perfectly facinating peek behind the pixel curtain, into the company that created the most kid-recognizable icon since Mickey Mouse. Mario, we hardly knew ye.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I am a very big Nintendo fan, and it was very interesting for me to learn about the history of this company. This book is very well written, but is also a little biased against Nintendo. Overall I think all Nintendo fans and video game fans in general will find this book very interesting.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
I wish I had this book when I was younger
I used to be absolutely crazy about games. I would spend most of my time playing it, discussing it, thinking about it, and etc. Read more
Published 19 months ago by ChildInside
3.0 out of 5 stars
Decent, but one-sided
This book is an interesting read about the beginnings of Japanese games in the US, but it is obviously is written with little input from the various people Nintendo made enemies... Read more
Published on February 6, 2011 by Casey
5.0 out of 5 stars
great!
hard to get a hold of, but simply brilliant.
get yours today!
get yours today!
Published on February 22, 2010 by Video Game History
5.0 out of 5 stars
From Atari to Today
While it is not entirely up to date, going only to just past the N64, this book is extremely informative as to the origins of the entire video game industry. Read more
Published on November 9, 2003
4.0 out of 5 stars
GAME OVER PRESS START
I thought that this book was great. it told all about the pros and cons of nintendo and how they started out back in the late 1800's. Read more
Published on December 26, 2002 by Josh
4.0 out of 5 stars
GAME OVER PRESS START
I thought that this book was great. it told all about the pros and cons of nintendo and how they started out back in the late 1800's. Read more
Published on December 26, 2002 by Josh
4.0 out of 5 stars
GAME OVER PRESS START
I thought that this book was great. it told all about the pros and cons of nintendo and how they started out back in the late 1800's. Read more
Published on December 26, 2002 by Josh
4.0 out of 5 stars
GAME OVER PRESS START
I thought that this book was great. it told all about the pros and cons of nintendo and how they started out back in the late 1800's. Read more
Published on December 26, 2002 by Josh
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best about electronic games
There's no other book like it. I'm in the industry and I read it like a bible.
Published on January 25, 2002
5.0 out of 5 stars
Greatest Book I have ever read.
I picked this book up at my local video game store and it has changed my life. I would tell anyone who loves video games as much as I do to go pick it up. Read more
Published on April 17, 2001 by Patrick Heinonen
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