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Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution Hardcover – November 4, 2005

by Heather Chaplin (Author), Aaron Ruby (Author)

3.9 20 ratings

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What started as a game of Pong, with little blips dancing across a computer screen, has evolved into a multi-billion-dollar industry that is changing the future, making inroads into virtually all aspects of our culture.Who are the minds behind this revolution? How did it happen? Where is it headed?

In Smartbomb, journalists Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby take the reader behind the scenes at gaming conventions, into powerhouse think tanks where new games are created, into the thick of the competition at cyberathlete tournaments, and into the homes of gamers for whom playing a role in a virtual world has assumed more relevance and reality than life in the real world.

Length

288
Pages
Language

EN
English
Publisher

Algonquin Books
Publication date

2005
November 4
Dimensions

5.7 x 1.2 x 8.8
inches
ISBN-10

1565123468
ISBN-13

978-1565123465
See all details

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Freelance journalists (and married couple) Chaplin and Ruby team up for a wide-ranging look at the video-game industry. They dwell extensively on the corporations behind the games, from Nintendo's humble origins as a playing card manufacturer, to the extravagances of today's most popular game designers, who have earned millions by applying their world-class computer programming skills to increasingly complex imaginary worlds for players to explore, both peaceful (The Sims) and violent (Grand Theft Auto). The game players are the other major part of the story, and Ruby's experiences in the gaming community prove especially helpful as his role-playing character becomes intertwined with that of one of his interview subjects in online multiplayer games like Star Wars Galaxies (Ruby writes this portion in the third person and mentions his wife's frustrations with the time he spends online without naming her, underscoring the duo's efforts to make themselves invisible in the story). Much of the reporting takes place at gaming tournaments and industry expos, reinforcing the circuslike atmosphere. A chapter on the U.S. military's interest in using video games as both recruiting and training tools adds some gravity, but overall it's easiest to appreciate this work as a whirlwind subcultural tour.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-This thorough history in eight essay-style chapters begins at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in 2001 with CliffyB, a 26-year-old who already had nine years of experience in the industry. The story goes back in time to MIT in the late '50s and the development of the first video game. Moving onward to the present, readers meet developers at Nintendo, the creators of Doom, the developers of the Sims series, and players of Massively Multiplayer Online games. By the book's finish, the arrival of video games as the dominant form of contemporary entertainment could not be made clearer than by the embrace of gaming by two behemoths of industry-the U.S. Military and Microsoft. The essays consist of both first-person interviews and well-noted research and give a holistic picture of how the industry developed the way it did. Lots of numbers and facts back up the popularity of video games-for example, it only took a year for PlayStation2 to appear in 10 million homes, a feat that took the telephone 35 years to accomplish. This immensely readable book will have great appeal with gaming teens, but should also be required reading for librarians interested in learning more about gaming and its role in our culture and our teen-focused libraries.-Jamie Watson, Harford County Public Library, Belcamp, MD
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Video games, the authors tell us in this informative and entertaining history, were an entirely unexpected--and, at first, seemingly pointless--offshoot of the early days of computer science. A nuclear physicist, William Higinbotham, created the first video game, a rudimentary version of table tennis, in 1958. Now, in the industry, he's known as the grandfather of the video game. Then, he was just a guy playing around with an analog computer and a five-inch oscilloscope screen. The authors trace the video game's evolution from its exceedingly humble beginnings to its present position as a dominant force in the entertainment industry. They tell the tale with flair and an air of mystery, introducing a new character (say, Nolan Bushnell), telling us about him (he was an entrepreneur who saw profit in other people's games), and, only after we're hooked, revealing why he's in the story (he called his tiny company Atari). The best history of the video-game phenomenon since Steven L. Kent's The Ultimate History of Video Games (2001). David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

“The entertaining and vivid Smartbomb brings video games to life in all their bewildering, provocative, and disturbing forms.” — The Boston Globe

From the Back Cover

Smartbomb takes you into the epicenter of the gaming explosion, where bleeding-edge computer sciene and wild creativity have fused to produce a new medium that is changing not only how we play but also how we communicate and learn, all of it propelled by a mega-billion-dollar industry that is revolutionizing the way we live.

About the Author

Heather Chaplin is a journalist who has written for many major publications, including the New York Times, Fortune, and Salon. She lives in New York City. This is her first book.

Aaron Ruby has written extensively about the videogame industry and has reviewed videogames for Entertainment Weekly. He lives in New York City. This is his first book.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Algonquin Books; F First Edition (November 4, 2005)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 288 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1565123468
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1565123465
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.1 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.69 x 1.17 x 8.76 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #428,242 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #166 in History of Engineering & Technology
- #370 in History of Technology
- #990 in Video & Computer Games

Customer Reviews:
3.9 20 ratings

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3.9 out of 5

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Rui Ferreira

Superb Insights and Revelations from Game Land

Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2008

Verified Purchase

This book is very well written, with a fun and engaging style a bit similar to other great books like "Hackers" and "Masters of Doom". This one seems a bit as a rehash on those classic books, but it has its own merits. The best chapter is the one telling the Will Wright story, with the worst chapter being what should have been the best, talking about "Dallas, the first person shooter capital", they talked too much about game contests and less about the creators of the games.

If you want a truly, superb, amazing and mind-blowing account of game making from grass-roots to success and downfall I must recommend "Masters of Doom". Its just the best one out there. Its my personal choice.

That said, I enjoyed this book, the Will Wright story probably pays itself, and its a fair complement to my collection.

Helpful

Robert Inget

A prescient look at computer generated gaming history

Reviewed in the United States on February 25, 2013

Verified Purchase

If you are curious about why you no longer see your husband or former boyfriend, read Heather Chaplin's history of
gaming and gain insight.
Not only has role playing become a huge part of the industry of 'entertainment' Ms Chaplin explains how our Armed Services are using games as both training and recruitment tools. The chapter on the Pentagon's attempted takeover
Is stunning. I used the word 'prescient' in my headline because a few years have pasted since the book was published.
The author envisions here so many trends that have, post publication, come to pass. If you are thinking of investing in the industry, want to gain insight into habituation, just curious, steal this book.

Helpful

Craig Goldenberger

Compelling Writing, important subject.

Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2013

Verified Purchase

Smartbomb is a well written account that reads as much like a mystery as a history. (I made a rhyme) It is dated, but that is the point. It is written at a point in time when the gaming industry had changed from a garage industry to a corporate juggernaut. Ms. Chaplin has done a very good job describing the frenetic energy of the game makers in their youth. She's captured the innate optism of creating then showed us the first stages of greif as the pioneers see the virtual world they created to create virtual worlds taken back into the real world. She deserves much credit for penetrating this male world and giving it's inhabitants their due. Many would have descended into cliche.
Compelling writing. Important subject. Definitely worth the read. A sequel would be nice.

Helpful

C. Gerena

Great overview of video game history

Reviewed in the United States on January 16, 2013

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Smartbomb contains many details that I had not read before about the video game industry, especially the earliest games like Spacewar.

Reviewed in the United States on February 24, 2006

Verified Purchase

I read about the videogame industry constantly as part of my job, but I got more of an overview of the pioneers and personalities involved in the development & running of this industry.

The only complaint I had about the book was I thought it should have given more of a background about the 900 lb. gorilla in the industry--Electronic Arts. Even so, a very enjoyable book for anyone interested in how the videogame industry came about & the personalities behind it.

5 people found this helpful

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skooly

Just a few points short of a high score...

Reviewed in the United States on May 17, 2006

THE GOOD: All things considered, Smartbomb is an excellent book. It's well paced and paints an exciting portrait of an exploding industry. Following in the footsteps of "Game Over", "Trigger Happy" and "Joystick Nation" the authors present a dynamic overview of the gaming scene. All the usual suspects are here (Miyamoto, Bushnell, Carmack...). Instead of just rehashing the same stories and personalities found in other books they manage to squeeze out a couple of new gems. Who knew that Will Wright has been working on "Spore" (aka "SimEverything") for 8 years now? Or that he wanted to call "The Sims", "SimDollhouse"? The bits on Miyamoto's family life and a clever retelling of his 'cave games' proved insightful. They also did a great job capturing the inventive atmosphere that spawned video games in the first place. Probably the most interesting (and frightening) section though, featured the American military's take on video games as a recruiting tool. The blunt nature of these conversations and giddy allusions to "Ender's Game" and kid soldiers left my jaw on the floor. The fact that the American government promotes this agenda while demonizing games as corruptors of youth speaks volumes.

THE BAD: As much as I enjoyed reading the accounts of those featured here, the overall aim of the book left something to be desired. While it's true that a Tony Hawk game can sell more copies than a Britney Spears album and no one will know who made it - generating some sort of "star culture" found in other industries won't help. If anything, it will damage the industry. There are already enough megalomaniacs chomping at the bit to earn the label of "the next Carmack" or "the next Miyamoto". The fact of the matter though is that people like Miyamoto and Carmack earned their chops back when teams were smaller, the stakes lower and projects much smaller in scope. Surely there will still be visionary characters that raise everyone else's game but it will most likely be a collection of individuals working together, shaping artificial reality as a cohesive whole. Not very sexy I'm afraid but that's really where we're at.

THE UGLY: This is more of a nit-picky game nerd thing but I found some of the inaccuracies in this book a little disappointing. Crediting Yu Suzuki as the creator of Sonic the Hedgehog is like giving Michelangelo credit for painting the Mona Lisa. Luigi appeared in games before "Super" Mario Brothers, and it's QuakeCo"n" not QuakeCo"m". These are admittedly obnoxious things to point out but it made me wonder if some of the other sections of the book which I wasn't so familiar with were in fact accurate.

Criticism aside I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Hopefully more people will point to this book as a document of the exciting, positive aspects of video game development.

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

Kimber Edwards

Smartbombs

Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2005

New Yorker goes to the Left Coast, doesn't understand what she sees and hears, writes quotes out of context and without any insight or understanding into the logic or philosophy behind those quotes, insults the talented people she's interviewing because they aren't fashionable enough for her (and apparently that's crucial for writing a book), then gives them a hug and says she likes being their friend. Couldn't she have gleaned real insight from having spent substantial time with these fascinating people?

16 people found this helpful

Helpful

Michael Zyda

A slice in time of the videogame revolution ...

Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2005

Verified Purchase

This book is an engaging look at some of the movers and shakers in today's videogame production world. The author breathes life into the characters, and she makes you appreciate their humanity, although often her physical descriptions of people tend to be not quite right and sometimes just plain wrong. Is in no way comprehensive but is a quick and fun read on a slice in time of the videogame revolution.

11 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

SquirrelNuts

Inspiring

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 15, 2006

Verified Purchase

Whether you're a gamer or a games designer, you'll find this to be a fascinating read. Both Heather and Aaron weave the kind of prose that make you want to turn just one more page. If you liked books such as 'Masters of Doom', then this is for you. Lots of insight into the companies and individuals that make the games industry what it is.

3 people found this helpful

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Smartbomb: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution Hardcover – November 4, 2005

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