REPLAY: La historia de los videojuegos

by Tristan Donovan

Un fascinante relato sobre el nacimiento y la vertiginosa evolución del medio de entretenimiento más importante desde la aparición de la televisión. Basado en un extenso trabajo de investigación y más de 140 entrevistas exclusivas a algunos de los personajes más relevantes de la historia del videojuego, Replay narra la sensacional historia de cómo el talento de un grupo de diseñadores dio forma a una de las formas de ocio, arte y cultura más populares del mundo.

Su autor, Tristan Donovan, ha escrito sobre videojuegos en medios como The Guardian, Edge, Game Developer, Stuff, The Gadget Show o Games™, entre otros. Actualmente vive en East Sussex, Reino Unido.

Genres: Nonfiction, Video Games, History, Games, Gaming, Audiobook, Game Design

540 pages, Paperback

First published April 20, 2010

Reviews

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Executive Summary: This book doesn't offer the depth of history that some of the others I've read do, but what it lacks in depth it makes up for in its breadth. If you want a higher level history of video games, this may be a better choice than some of the other books out there.

Audiobook: Gary Furlong does exactly what I want from a nonfiction narrator. He reads clearly with good pacing and inflection without getting in the way of the book. It does seem apparent he's not familiar with some of the concepts however as he mispronounces a few things (like GUI) that just made me cringe a little every time it occurred.

That said, I think while it doesn't benefit from audio like some fiction books do, it's a decent option.

Full Review
I've lost count of how many books I've read on the history of video games. Some are on certain companies/technologies/games. Others have been purported to be a "complete" history. Most of those I've read have been good but are often lacking. This isn't a fault of those books so much as the fact that there is so much history to tell, inevitably you have to focus on some things at the expense of others.

Most of the overall history books I've read tend to focus very heavily on America and Japan as well as primarily on console gaming. This book sets out to tell a wider history and I felt it did a pretty good job of it. In addition to covering the usual topics we get numerous chapters on computer gaming as well as later chapters dealing with portable/phone gaming and online gaming.

There is also chapters dealing with gaming in Europe and other parts of Asian that seem to always go ignored in all the other books I've read. These chapters aren't as detailed as some of the others, but it was nice to see their addition and for me personally they offered the most new material.

I've typically been more of a computer gamer than a console gamer, so it was nice to more history about computer gaming beyond Space Wars on the PDP1 and Doom. The book spends time with a variety of computer platforms and how gaming evolved from simulations and mainframe gaming to the rise of gaming on the personal computer. I could probably read books focusing on just this part of gaming alone.

I knew almost nothing about gaming in Europe. I knew a little about it in South Korea and China, but not much more than I did about Europe. This book doesn't spend a ton of time on those subjects but it's still nice to see it included.

I grabbed this book on a daily deal, and I'm happy I did. While there was a lot of material I already knew about, there was a lot of things I didn't. I'm a sucker for good nonfiction books on gaming, computers and/or technology so this worked well for me.

If you're looking for a book that digs into some subjects others seem to neglect, or just want a higher level history that doesn't spend too much time on any one subject this is a pretty good option.

[Pavel Dobrovsky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Knih o historii videoher vyšla už kvanta, jak těch obecných o průmyslu, tak specifických o historii značek, studií nebo jednotlivých her. Často opakují informace dostupné na internetu, šlapou vodu, tupě vyjmenovávají (aniž by byly encyklopediemi). Donovan na to jde jinak. Kombinací publikovaných a vlastních rozhovorů s herními autory s ekonomickými a dokonce politickými fakty nachází zajímavé souvislosti, které herní svět pevně zasazují do okolní reality. Čtivě tak dokumentuje evoluční fáze herní historie (mikroprocesory, Apple, interaktivní filmy, simulace, cd-rom, 3D atp). Sice se u profláklých témat (Doom, MMORPG, GTA, Nintendo v USA, cesta Tetris z Moskvy na západ aj) nevyhne opakování již známého, ale tyhle kapitoly nezabírají ani půlku knihy. A jestli to neznáte, tak vás to překvapí. Co dělá Replay nadstandardní je příklon k evropské herní historii - francouzské, španělské, české, německé, polské a samozřejmě britské, protože Donovan je Angličan a místy to jejich “Albion first” tlačí až moc okatě. Neobvyklé na tom je, že většina čitelných (=neakademických) knih o historii videoher se zabývá americko/japonským prostorem a evropské záležitosti vynechávají. Takhle se člověk dozví víc o hrách od svých sousedů, což je za mě jednoznačně plus. Tohle je čtení, který bych doporučil každému zájemci o hry.

[Gillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

An easy to get into look at video games from the beginning and their historical context, with amazing amounts of interview quotes from the creators themselves. Part of the class that turned me into a gamer rather than someone scared to get into the complex mechanics and technology

[Dmitry Khvatov · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn’t know anything about French games. (And now I do)

[Kristopher Kerwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. Will read that one again because I just love hearing about this stuff. This book is packed with extremely interesting information about how many block buster games came to be. For a lot of them, when the writer starts talking about a new story, you have no clue about which game this is going to be. Then bit by bit you see where he’s going and bam! You understand that these mega hits were often huge risks with uncertain futures. I also really enjoyed how far back he went. Born in 1985, I only started gaming on the NES and had my first computer in the 90s. He goes deep into the origin of gaming and includes a wide range of types of gaming (arcades, PC, consoles, potable etc).

[Maurício Linhares · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just the fact that this book goes and talks about the gaming communities out of the US and Japan should be reason enough for you to read it if you're interested in the history of video games, but it also talks about the obscure games that influenced the world we live in right now, the now unknown people that made this universe that we live in for a considerable part of our time.

This book covers a HUGE amount of content, from the beginnings to nowadays, full of interesting anecdotes and facts you might not know about your favorite games and the people who built them. Must read for anyone interested in games.

[Brendan Monroe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm sure this would be a lovely book if it were more interesting. It might be my lack of interest in the subject matter that is to blame for that, though.

I didn't finish this one - not even close - because it soon became clear that you had to have at least a working knowledge of video games to really appreciate it. This isn't a book for beginners, and that's fine, so long as you know that going in.

[Tanith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yeah, maybe I HAD to read this for class, but that aside it was really interesting and full of drama and secrets. The videogame world of the 80s/90s gives off soap opera vibes.

[Dkettmann · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great walk down memory lane. With the added bonus of hearing about the business world and decisions that were made during the time I was about 10 years old, but lurked behind the industry I loved and still love. If you were an arcade kid or the 80's or begged mom or dad for an Atari 2600 or Nintendo, this book will help you relive those days.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic audiobook detailing the history of videogames (just like the title says!)

The early history was very interesting and more engaging than you would think. As the book continued, it started discussing systems and games I was more familiar with and it became a great, nostalgic "I remember that!" exercise.

Overall this was a very well put together history and it felt like just the right level of detail - just enough to not get bogged down. Loved it.

[Vasil Kolev · Rating 5 out of 5]

For its size, the book is pretty much perfect - seems to have all events and games relevant to the art form, and it doesn't seem to have any wrong explanations. It doesn't go deep into most things, but there's a lot of further reading that would help that. It's probably the best book to start on the subject.

[Autumn Kearney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading Replay: A history of video games affected me in ways that I did foresee. My heart was pounding, my hands were sweaty, and I was excited reliving old times playing many of those games. I had no idea that video games are buried so deeply into my psyche.

[Alberto · Rating 4 out of 5]

De las historias del videojuego existentes es la mejor, pero eso no quiere decir que sea la definitiva (3,5/5).

[Frankie · Rating 3 out of 5]

haters will say hey why did it take you almost 6 years to finish reading a book assigned to you for a class?
and to that i say,

[Marek Sirkovský · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are(or were) into video games, you will enjoy this book. Many surprising facts and personal stories.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an entertaining account of both software and hardware leaps across various generations and in different regions. The sections on the 1980s Spanish and French industries were new to me, which is saying something, and I really appreciated this

[Diz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This provides a big picture view of the history of video games from the first computers up until the advent of mobile and Steam games. As a broad overview of video games, it's a great introduction. Particularly the chapters on the creation of coin operated video games and the rise of arcade culture were interesting.

Since it covers all video game history, it tries to cover everything and each subject is covered briefly. What that means is that things that you want to read about in depth seem a bit short, and the@arts about things you are not interested in feel a bit long. For example, as an old Commodore user, I wanted to read a lot about the C64 and Amiga, but they only feature in a few chapters. On the other hand, I never really got into MUDs, so I wasn't interested in reading about that. This point is not really a weakness though.

[JJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probablemente se trate del mejor libro que se ha escrito hoy en día sobre la Historia de los Videojuegos como medio. Es cierto que no lo abarca todo y que llega hasta 2009/10 aproximadamente, pero dudo que se pudiese condensar de mejor manera todo lo que ha dado de sí este medio desde sus inicios. Un aspecto que me ha parecido excelente es que no se contenta con ir soltando una lista y cuatro anécdotas sino que Tristan Donovan realmente se preocupa por dar contexto histórico a todo el proceso de manera que podamos entender que este medio, en cada una de sus fases, es hijo de su tiempo. Otro aspecto muy interesante es que se centra, no tanto en el hardware, sino también en el software y en las personas y compañías que hay detrás.

Creo fervientemente que este libro es la mejor puerta de entrada a un mundo del que ya no querrás salir.

[Erik · Rating 3 out of 5]

I lived through the bulk of the history recounted in the book. I missed the early days of Pong and some of the earliest games played in universities and arcades, but by the early 80s, I was right there with the Atari 2600, Infocom text adventures, Sierra Online, Ultima, the Nintendo Entertainment System, Doom, and so forth.

I was familiar with and had even played half or more of the games talked about, so this was a nice stroll down memory lane for me. I don't know if a person who had not lived through it would be as interested unless they are really just a game history junkie.

[Themistocles · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic read! Donovan does tend to lose focus and refer to other genres and games and issues in each chapter, but it's really a great book on the subject...

[Poul · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a book that only focuses on trents and art it is a good book to start your game history from. Thoug it mentions several animals the elephants are not between, that's why it could only get 4 stars.

[Ali Adjorlu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Video games emerged in the late 20th century as a completely novel form of entertainment. Replay recounts the history of how programming experiments and text-based adventures were transformed first into a new hobby with widespread juvenile appeal, then a serious platform for storytelling, and then ..became ubiquitous.

This Replay is comprehensive, covering consoles, arcade machines, and home computers; it is also international, examining games/platform developments in Japan, Korea, Russia, France, and England. Donovan moves chronologically through the development of early computers and game programs associated with them, their spinoff invention of gaming consoles, and the establishment of video games as art and entertainment. By the early nineties, video games encompassed such a wide variety of genres that the author examines the development of different genres -- role-playing games, first-person shooters, simulations, etc -- as they emerged and grew popular. He pays special attention to particular machines and games that transformed the industry -- Ultima and GTA3, the Atari and the Wii, and also includes information on business rivalries (Nintendo v Sega) and the drama of software firms falling out with one another. It culminates with the arrival of games on smartphones, though that era -- the current one -- is only introduced, not delved into itself. Many more games and platforms are addressed in the book, of course, and it is appended with an extensive list of influential titles.

While Replay is a straightforward history of how the software and hardware developed, it also steps back and looks at the larger picture, pointing out how the games grew with their users: successive platforms advertised themselves to teenagers and adults, trying to shed the image of videogames as merely for kids. Gaming in general has gone back and forth on plot vs action: while one might dismiss DOOM and Wolfstenstein 3D as primitive shoot-em-ups that were later surpassed by shooters with more developed plots, like Half-Life, in reality DOOM's designers were rejecting a tendency in earlier games to take themselves too seriously by returning to sheer, unbridled action. DOOM guy didn't have a personality: he existed to mow down demons from hell. Users also grew with their games: part of the interest for game designers was that they could rewire players brains by putting them into positions and confronting them with choices that they would never encounter in their real lives. Will Wright, for instance, co-founded a company whose original intent was educational games -- but he did so through "software toys", games that were fun, but also taught players how intricate systems like an antbed or a city functioned. Wright's company promoted a feature of PC games that made them especially popular: customization. DOOM allowed players to create their own maps, but even before The Sims had shipped, Maxis had already made tools available for people to create their own clothing, wallpaper, and floors in the game. Later the game was opened to custom objects (for the homeowner who wants a decorative cannon, say), and both the original game and all of its successors have promoted user-created content through their Sims Exchanges. Customization isn't merely about expanding the game: as a teen, I marveled at the stories of people who became interested 3D modeling because of their tinkering with The Sims mods or crafting Civilization III units. Donovan mentions that games have also become the stuff of independent creative ventures: people use video taken from gameplay to create stories, and function as "actors" in the game to get the shots they need.

While its subject is games, Replay is fairly serious about the subject -- it's not a "fun" read like Masters of Doom, but those who have a real interest in games as an industry and hobby will appreciate its heft. I noticed minor errors sprinkled in (a reference to "Richard" Heinlein as a prominent SF author, say), but nothing too substantial.

Related:
Masters of Doom , David Kushner

[Peru Arregi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este libro atesora un valor incuestionable. Una documentación extensa y detallada de una industria cuyos entresijos y fundamentos son aún desconocidos para la gran mayoría. La labor de Donovan supone un reconocimiento a los videojuegos no solo como entretenimiento, sino también como medio artístico y cultural.

Este repaso histórico otorga la perspectiva necesaria para poner cada cosa en su sitio. El origen, la evolución y la hibridación de los diversos géneros de videojuegos, el nacimiento y razón de ser de los diversos soportes para jugarlos, el papel que jugaron las personalidades y compañías más pioneras, la relación entre los desarrolladores y los jugadores y los medios que los conectan económica y socialmente...

La única razón por la que le pongo cuatro estrellas es porque siento que la década de los 2000 no cuenta con la profundidad de tratamiento de las décadas anteriores. También me ha parecido que algunos temas no estaban tan bien hilados y desarrollados... Me he quedado con la impresión de que el tema de las tiendas y plataformas digitales como Steam o el nacimiento de la cultura indie podía haber dado más de sí... pero me imagino que será más por tener que concluir la búsqueda de documentación en algún punto que por otra cosa.

Más allá de eso, el repaso histórico a los orígenes de los videojuegos es alucinante. Una lectura obligatoria para cualquier estudioso de este medio.

[Luis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Es imposible resumir tantos años de historia y detalles en un solo libro de 370 páginas (la extensión del texto principal, pues el resto de las 130 páginas son glosarios, índices y apéndices). Como bien dicen en otras reseñas, es un libro que abarca muchísimo, y por supuesto que hay libros que indagan más detalladamente en los pormenores de la historia del videojuego. Pero como una introducción general, y una acotación comprensible de los ¿primeros? 40-50 años de la historia del videojuego, es una lectura excelente que va de cajón para cualquiera que le interese el campo. Desde los primeros intentos de entretenimiento interactivo durante los años 60's, pasando por los primeros gabinetes arcade de los 70's, la explosión de las consolas en los 80's, los experimentos de Id Software en los 90's y llegando hasta el surgimiento del videojuego independiente en respuesta a la consolidación de una industria multimillonaria oligárquica, Replay es una ventana maravillosa al medio creativo más reciente en la historia de la humanidad. A pesar que hay omisiones importantes o inclusiones cuestionables, bien dice en el libro que es en pos de intentar explicar las partes más importantes (o más ignoradas como el surrealismo inglés y el toque francés) de la historia del medio. Simplemente excelente.

[Balthasaar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is incredibly niche, but I REALLY dug it.
I knew isolated segments of the start of Atari and the crash of '83, but this book gives the context of how those puzzle pieces fit into the larger global fabric of video-games.
and the global aspects are the best part of this book. You expect this book to cover how events taking place in the US & Japan impacted each other and shaped the business, but I was amazed to discover how regional quirks of the early tech culture in England, South-Korean, France, Spain, and Germany shaped the types of games and genres that spread to the rest of the world.
I'm amazed at how much 'users are not like you' hampered early adoption, and how 90% of the early amateur games from the pre-microprocessor era were deleted from history by mainframe admins to save memory. How might those games have shaped the hobby if not deleted?
Chapters include the origins of the genres that lasted (RTS, JRPG, god-games, MMOs, sandbox, indie-games), and the fads that were a flash in the pan (vector screens, FMV, VR).
Recommended for the intersection of VG aficionados and history buffs.

[Andrés Rodelo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Replay: La historia de los videojuegos contiene todo lo que un libro de ensayo debería ser: contexto, lenguaje accesible, anécdotas sorprendentes y una ilustración profunda del tema que aborda. Tristan Donovan repasa la corta, pero fascinante trayectoria de los videojuegos desde aquella generación de jóvenes que en los 60 se apropió de la informática para consolidar un medio de ocio y entretenimiento (en contra de los informáticos viejos que calificaron dicho empeño como abominable) hasta el fenómeno de los juegos independientes para computador que invadieron Internet a finales de la década del 2000. Una propuesta fresca e inteligente que despierta interés en cada página.

La génesis de los videojuegos más emblemáticos, la aparición de las máquinas recreativas y de las consolas, el surgimiento y caída de Atari, el acontecimiento mundial llamado Nintendo, la rivalidad Nintendo-Sega, la sacudida que supuso Sony y su PlayStation para el mercado de los videojuegos, el desarrollo del medio no solo en Estados Unidos y Japón, sino también en Europa y otros países de Asia son algunos de los temas que incluye este texto, una buena iniciación para quienes desean (como yo antes de leerlo) tener bases e información para comprender el mayor fenómeno cultural del siglo XXI.

[Fr. Daniel Carr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I began my research about the history of video games with this book and it basically ended here. Every book certainly has its limitations - it cannot comment on and mention everything, especially in a field as rich, widespread, and decentralized as video games. But truly, this book does an outstanding job presenting a full and broad perspective of how video games came into existence and into cultural prominence.

What I enjoyed were the many quotations from famous individuals describing their takes on things. They explained the cultural influences and the charming stories about how things came to be a certain way, often seemingly by chance. It describes the dynamic between businessman and hobbyist and between career and leisure.

It’s disappointing that so little was said about the 5 years prior to the authoring of the book, but it is so difficult to write history while it’s still being made. Now that the book is growing older, it is becoming even more dated. A second volume in continuation would be delightful and interesting.

No matter how much or how little you already know about video games, you’ll learn something from this book.

[Marcos Bolaños · Rating 4 out of 5]

Un buen libro sobre la historia de videojuegos.

Es interesante desde el punto de vista que habla de muchas cosas muy diferentes, desde los primeros videojuegos en computadora y las diferentes consolas, hasta abordando los primeros juegos o los mas representativos para cada genero de videojuego.

Tambien es interesante su acercamiento a los diferentes generos y desarolladores en diferentes partes del mundo y como es que se vivio el auge de los videojuegos en diferentes lados. Muchas veces nos enfocamos solo en los videojuegos de USA y de Japon, pero aqui incluye otras zonas lo que lo hace interesante ya que desconocia mucho de esa parte.

Un punto en contra que tiene es que, por lo mismo que abarca tantas cosas diferentes, lo hace de una forma, desde mi punto de vista... algo diluida aunque se entiende, de por si el libro es algo extenso.

Sin duda un libro que se deberia de leer para aquellos interesados en la historia de los videojuegos y no solo la "clasica" historia que ya mucho conocemos sobre los desarroladores Japoneses y Americanos.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s a lot of great stuff here about the history of innovative games around the world that sets it apart from other video game books and makes it a worthwhile read. I listened to the audiobook so I’m not sure of the timeline is any clearer in the print version. I was just frustrated that only some of it is in chronological order while other parts are in geographical, genre, or franchise order. Confusingly, tech like Nintendo’s Power Glove wasn’t brought up until discussing Nintendo’s Wii development. Despite this being used to bring up the subject of Virtual Reality, VR is barely discussed in this book. This seems to really confuse the timeline and leave earlier parts incomplete. VR is just one example (and perhaps could be a book and it’s own right) but I would have appreciated a clearer picture of the simultaneous developments going on around the world like the 90s attempts at VR just to be abandoned and brought up again in the more recent decade.