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Grand Thieves & Tomb Raiders: How British Video Games Conquered the World by [Rebecca Levene, Magnus Anderson]

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Rebecca Levene

Grand Thieves & Tomb Raiders: How British Video Games Conquered the World Kindle Edition

by Rebecca Levene (Author), Magnus Anderson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

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Gaming: it’s the greatest British invasion of them all. Lara Croft is an international icon and the British-born Grand Theft Auto and its spin-offs have sold more than 100 million copies worldwide. The UK’s games industry is now bigger than either its cinema or its music.

Yet the medium’s birth in Thatcher’s Britain was almost accidental. While politicians championed computers like the BBC Micro and the ZX Spectrum as engines of learning, it was left to a grassroots culture of amateur programmers to unlock their true potential. And from bedrooms and classrooms across the country, a brilliant profusion of innovative and idiosyncratic games soon emerged – propelling their young creators to fame, riches and, eventually, a place on the world stage.

This is the story of those teenage coders – tracing their journey from the first home computers to the age of the smartphone. A mix of oddball characters, programming miracles and moral panics, Grand Thieves & Tomb Raiders reveals how the unique history of British computing led to some of the greatest games of all time.

Print length

353 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Aurum
Publication date

November 8, 2012
File size

1014 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

'This fascinating book colourfully presents the UK's gaming origins in the nerd bedrooms of the 1980s before the stories behind our greatest electronic exports roll on in.' Xbox 360 'A new and engrossing history of the UK games industry' -- Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC Technology Correspondent --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

About the Author

Magnus Anderson has been following the British games industry ever since his family bought a Sinclair ZX81 when he was eight. He has often spoken about the subject on the radio and on conference panels. Grand Thieves & Tomb Raiders is his first book. Rebecca Levene has been a writer and editor for twenty years, working in the games, publishing, TV and magazine industries. She has previously scripted a first-person shooter for consoles and is currently working on the hit app game Zombies, Run!. She is the author of numerous fiction and non-fiction books. --This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00A420ZSG
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Aurum (November 8, 2012)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 8, 2012
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1014 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 353 pages
Lending ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled

Best Sellers Rank: #3,402,129 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #1,561 in Computer Games Programming
- #4,443 in Game Programming

Customer Reviews:
8 ratings

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Top review from the United States

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Felix747

few surprises as I did not realize...

Reviewed in the United States on January 19, 2020

Verified Purchase

Very British perspective of 80's bedroom programming, a few surprises as I did not realize the DNA of a few of the top games of the 90's

Helpful

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Tim Hughes

Does what it sets out to do and does it well

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 19, 2014

Verified Purchase

This has been my most recent read on my kindle and I've thoroughly enjoyed it. While there is a tendancy to jump about a bit here and there and dwell on certain topics it does cover most of the key moments in videogame history.
I was surprised at home little coverage was given over the the emergence of the Amstrad CPC range and the decline of Sinclair. They seem little more than asides, while the collapse of Imagine is covered in much more detail. Or perhaps that's just more, I'm more of a hardware enthusiast while this book is aimed at the software side.

I would recommend this book for anyone with an interest in retro gaming, or just wants to see the evolution of games from their 48k origins to the likes of GTA5. The British take on things is a refreshing change from the usual US-centric offerings that are out there and mean that Rebecca Levene has covered some fresh ground and told some stories I've never heard before. Well worth your time.

Deejay

Great multi-decade account

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 30, 2012

Verified Purchase

The book details the whole span of Britain's games industry, from the late 70's all the way through to 2012. The rise and decline of all the great names are in there (Acorn, Sinclair, Codemasters, Ocean, DMA Design, Imagine and plenty more). It's hard to think of anything the authors didn't cover.

The title is somewhat misleading, as whilst there are whole chapters dedicated to GTA and Tomb Raider, they are far from the focus of the book.

An essential read for any games enthusiasts who grew up in the 80s!

6 people found this helpful

Jason Hales

A great reminder of the glory 8bit gaming days

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 14, 2012

Verified Purchase

I really enjoyed this nostalgic trip down memory lane; transported back to mid 80's 8bit gaming, bedroom coding, hours spent typing in listings etc.

I'd thoroughly recommend this book to anyone interested in the history and evolution of the British video games industry

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20 GOTO 10

5 people found this helpful

C. M. Jones

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 25, 2017

Verified Purchase

Amazingly nostalgic read for anyone who grew up in the 80's and 90's - we MUST perform a quirkafleeg!

Michael Dailly

Great read for anyone even remotely interested in computer games.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 6, 2012

Verified Purchase

Fantastic book, full of interesting storys covering the entire lifespace of the UK games indistry - amazingly well done.
Highly recommended!

2 people found this helpful

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