What do you think?
Rate this book
Memoirs of a Virtual Caveman
Join veteran gamer, video game fansite webmaster, and born storyteller, Rob Strangman as he takes you on a tour of some of the most defining moments in video game history as seen through his eyes. From the fall of Atari to the emergence of the Sony PlayStation and beyond, Rob relates tales of the adventures that were had during the golden age of gaming. Rob also discusses his experiences with importing, the ""gamer"" stereotype, and shares his opinions on the current state of gaming. While Rob may have been the original ""Virtual Caveman,"" he certainly wasn't the only one. Included here are many other stories and contributions from gamers both young and old. Also within these pages you will find interviews with many of the gaming industry's veterans: David Crane, Howard Scott Warshaw, Martin Alessi, Yuzo Koshiro, Kouichi ""Isuke"" Yotsui and more.
472 pages, Paperback
First published September 12, 2007
1 person is currently reading
14 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 7, 2020
This "Championship Edition" is a greatly-expanded and improved version of the original 2008 release. Like that edition, this volume is part autobiography, part eyewitness history, and part anthology, a video-game-themed "Wonder Years", as another reviewer put it.
All of Rob Strangman's memoirs from the original volume appear in this one. Several contributors' pieces did not make the cut, but these are replaced by additional features, including but by no means limited to four from yours truly:
"SHING!"
"The LSCM Interview with Kouichi 'Isuke' Yotsui"
"The LSCM Interview with Allan Findlay" , and
"Better Than The Arcade"
I list these here only in the interest of full disclosure. I guarantee that you didn't buy this volume because of any of these.
...and that's okay, because there are far better reasons to read this volume. The first is, of course, the entertaining nostalgia trip that is Rob's memoirs; but for my money, there's two even better ones: the promo for No Princess In The Castle (which was ultimately never made), and Cat DeSpira's own contribution to this anthology: "Shooting Quarters with Bigfoot", which sums up in three-and-a-half pages what all of the rest of us contributors were trying to say, Rob Strangman included. I didn't read it for myself until after this edition was published. Afterwards I sat in awe for several minutes, wishing I'd written something more like it, and also wondering if I even could.
...because the truth is that video games are folk entertainment. They are inextricably intertwined with our memories and the events of our past. What both Rob and Cat have done, here, is highlight how, while we gamers might on the one hand remember where we were when we first made Mario jump from the stairs to the flagpole, that didn't happen in a vacuum. We also can't forget what was happening around us, and sometimes, the escapism that video games have frequently been accused of enabling actually serves as a bright spot amid heartache. It brings people together and allows them to reconnect.
The humanness of the gamer culture in its early days is something that both Rob and Cat communicate well, and is well worth the price of this volume. You'll recognize what they're talking about, if you were there. Track it down, if you can. You won't regret it.
All of Rob Strangman's memoirs from the original volume appear in this one. Several contributors' pieces did not make the cut, but these are replaced by additional features, including but by no means limited to four from yours truly:
"SHING!"
"The LSCM Interview with Kouichi 'Isuke' Yotsui"
"The LSCM Interview with Allan Findlay" , and
"Better Than The Arcade"
I list these here only in the interest of full disclosure. I guarantee that you didn't buy this volume because of any of these.
...and that's okay, because there are far better reasons to read this volume. The first is, of course, the entertaining nostalgia trip that is Rob's memoirs; but for my money, there's two even better ones: the promo for No Princess In The Castle (which was ultimately never made), and Cat DeSpira's own contribution to this anthology: "Shooting Quarters with Bigfoot", which sums up in three-and-a-half pages what all of the rest of us contributors were trying to say, Rob Strangman included. I didn't read it for myself until after this edition was published. Afterwards I sat in awe for several minutes, wishing I'd written something more like it, and also wondering if I even could.
...because the truth is that video games are folk entertainment. They are inextricably intertwined with our memories and the events of our past. What both Rob and Cat have done, here, is highlight how, while we gamers might on the one hand remember where we were when we first made Mario jump from the stairs to the flagpole, that didn't happen in a vacuum. We also can't forget what was happening around us, and sometimes, the escapism that video games have frequently been accused of enabling actually serves as a bright spot amid heartache. It brings people together and allows them to reconnect.
The humanness of the gamer culture in its early days is something that both Rob and Cat communicate well, and is well worth the price of this volume. You'll recognize what they're talking about, if you were there. Track it down, if you can. You won't regret it.
August 24, 2023
Paperback/5 stars
Imagine hanging out, meeting a random person, and start discussing my love of horror. That discussion turned to Splatterhouse (video game) and which in turn led me to this book. She knows the author very personally lol. I never played Splatterhouse until Xbox 360, but loved it bunches.
This entire book is a walk down memory lane. Nostalgic towards Atari and NES, the original game systems that turned me into a gamer. I'm basically only PC and Switch and PS nowadays, but I do miss those games of the past and remembering my childhood.
This book is thick, with small print, so you definitely get your money worth here. Hours and hours of reading. The last bit of the book was mostly interviews, and other people who I've never heard of who have some sort of online presence and/or love of games, but still ate up every word of it
Imagine hanging out, meeting a random person, and start discussing my love of horror. That discussion turned to Splatterhouse (video game) and which in turn led me to this book. She knows the author very personally lol. I never played Splatterhouse until Xbox 360, but loved it bunches.
This entire book is a walk down memory lane. Nostalgic towards Atari and NES, the original game systems that turned me into a gamer. I'm basically only PC and Switch and PS nowadays, but I do miss those games of the past and remembering my childhood.
This book is thick, with small print, so you definitely get your money worth here. Hours and hours of reading. The last bit of the book was mostly interviews, and other people who I've never heard of who have some sort of online presence and/or love of games, but still ate up every word of it
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews