List of books about video games

The following is a list of books on computer and video games, which range from development, theory, history, to art books. See also: List of books based on computer and video games.

Contents

Design and theory

8 Bits of Wisdom: Video Game Lessons for Real Life's Endbosses
(ISBN 978-1466328860) by Andy Schindler
Andrew Rollings and Ernest Adams on Game Design
(ISBN 1-59273-001-9) by Andrew Rollings, Ernest W. Adams.
The Art of Computer Game Design
(ISBN 0-88134-117-7) by Chris Crawford is attributed by Wolf & Perron in The Video Game Theory Reader as being the first book devoted to the theory of video games. It was originally published in Berkeley, California by McGraw-Hill/Osborne Media in 1984. The original edition is now out-of-print but available for free download from a site maintained by Washington State University, Vancouver.
Character Development and Storytelling for Games
(ISBN 1-59200-353-2) by Lee Sheldon. This book is part of the Game Development Series.
The Art of Gaming and Cloning
(ISBN 1-69999-353-2) by Brandy Manda. This book is part of the Skills to Go Series.
Chris Crawford on Interactive Storytelling
(ISBN 0-321-27890-9) by Chris Crawford.
Creating Emotion in Games: The Craft and Art of Emotioneering
(ISBN 1-59273-007-8) by David Freeman.
Designing Virtual Worlds
(ISBN 0-1310-1816-7) by Richard Bartle. Definitive work on MMO/virtual world development.
Developing Online Games: An Insider's Guide
(ISBN 1-59273-000-0) by Jessica Mulligan, Bridgette Patrovsky.
Digital Gameplay: Essays on the Nexus of Game and Gamer
(ISBN 0-7864-2292-0) edited by Nate Garrelts.
Expressive Processing: Digital Fictions, Computer Games, and Software Studies
(ISBN 978-0262013437) by Noah Wardrip-Fruin, Assistant Professor at University of California, Santa Cruz.
Extra Lives: Why Video Games Matter
(ISBN 978-0-307-37870-5) by Tom Bissell
Fun Inc.: why games are the 21st century's most serious business
(ISBN 0-7535-1985-2) written by Tom Chatfield. A cultural and intellectual exploration of the multiple roles played by games in the 21st century, and the myths and attitudes surrounding them.
Game Architecture and Design: A New Edition
(ISBN 0-7357-1363-4) by Andrew Rollings, Dave Morris.
The Game Design Reader
(ISBN 978-0-262-19536-2) by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman.
Game Design: From Blue Sky to Green Light
(ISBN 978-1-56881-318-9) by Deborah Todd, 2007 Frontline Award Finalist, "One of the top 5 industry books of 2007" by Game Developer Magazine.
Game Design: The Art and Business of Creating Games
(ISBN 0-7615-3165-3) Bob Bates.
Game Design: Theory and Practice
(ISBN 1-55622-912-7) by Richard Rouse III.
Game Design Foundations, Second Edition
(ISBN 1-59822-034-9) by Roger E. Pedersen.
Game Design Workshop: Designing, Prototyping, and Playtesting Games
(ISBN 1-57820-222-1) by Tracy Fullerton, with Steven Hoffman and Chris Swain.
Game Interface Design
(ISBN 1-59200-593-4) by Brent Fox.
Game Work: Language, Power, and Computer Game Culture
(ISBN 0-8173-1418-0) by Ken S. McAllister.
Gamer Theory
(ISBN 0-67402-519-9) by McKenzie Wark. Book website.
Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds
(ISBN 0-262-10110-6) by Jesper Juul. Book website.
Innovation and Marketing in the Video Game Industry: Avoiding the Performance Trap
(ISBN 978-0-566-09167-4) by David Wesley and Gloria Barczak. Book website.
Inside Electronic Game Design
(ISBN 1-55958-669-9) by Arnie Katz and Laurie Yates
Introduction to Game Development
(ISBN 1-58450-377-7) by Steve Rabin. This book is part of the Game Development Series.
Level Up! The Guide to Great Video Game Design
(ISBN-10 047068867X) by Scott Rogers.
The Medium of the Video Game
edited by Mark J. P. Wolf
More Than A Game: The Computer Game as Fictional Form
(ISBN 0-7190-6365-5) by Barry Atkins
Patterns in Game Design
(ISBN 1-58450-354-8) by Staffan Bjork and Jussi Holopainen. This book is part of the Game Development Series.
Play Between Worlds: Exploring Online Game Culture
(ISBN 0-262-20163-1) by T.L. Taylor.
Playing to Win
by David Sirlin
Rules of Play : Game Design Fundamentals
(ISBN 0-262-24045-9) by Katie Salen, Eric Zimmerman.
Synthetic Worlds: The Business and Culture of Online Games
(ISBN 0-226-09626-2) by Edward Castranova.
The Business and Culture of Digital Games: Gamework and Gameplay
(ISBN 1-4129-0047-6) by Aphra Kerr.
A Theory of Fun for Game Design
(ISBN 193211197-2) by Raph Koster
Trigger Happy
(ISBN 1-55970-598-1/ISBN 1-84115-121-1) by Steven Poole examines videogames in terms of their aesthetic appeal — what makes certain games more fun to play than others. It covers aspects such as the effective use of space and perspective in videogames, rewards and progression through games, the design of an appealing video game character and the debate over violence in games.
21st Century Game Design
(ISBN 1-58450-429-3) by Chris Bateman and Richard Boon. This book is part of the Game Development Series.
Understanding Digital Games
(ISBN 1-4129-0034-4/ISBN 1-4129-0033-6) by Jason Rutter and Jo Bryce. (Table of contents and contributing authors), (Introduction to collection)
The Video Game Theory Reader
edited by Mark J. P. Wolf and Bernard Perron
The Video Game Theory Reader 2
edited by Bernard Perron and Mark J. P. Wolf

The following are taken from Recommended Reading lists in the Centennial College Seminar Series: The Video Game Industry Lecture Series handouts (2005).

Creating the Art of the Game
by Matthew Omernick. “A great reference to great modelling and texturing techniques.”
Animating Real-Time Game Characters (Game Development Series)
by Paul Steed. “Tips and tricks on game animation from the professionals in the industry, especially for the 3D Max [sic] artist.”
Game Modeling Using Low Polygon Techniques
by Chad Walker and Eric Walker. “…For the beginner. Learn to design, sketch and model for low-polygon content.”
Ultimate Game Design: Building Game Worlds
by Tom Meigs. “An insider[’]s perspective on advanced techniques for creatiing [sic] compelling characters and vivid environments. Good reference for artists using Maya.”
Character Development and Storytelling for Games (Game Development Series)
by Lee Sheldon. “An excellent writers[’] aid in creating content and writing for characters in a game setting.”
Gaming 101: A Contemporary History of PC and Video Games
by George Jones.
Supercade: A Visual History of the Videogame Age 1971-1984
by Van Burnham.

Gaming Compendiums

Hardcoregaming101.net Presents: The Guide to Classic Graphic Adventures
(ISBN 146095579X) compiled and edited by Kurt Kalata. Published in 2011, it cataloges over 300 graphic adventures, mostly from between 1984-2000, including full reviews, box pictures and screenshots. It also includes several developer interviews.
The Video Games Guide
(ISBN 0752226258) is a book by Matt Fox first published in October 2006 by Boxtree Pan Macmillan. The Video Games Guide is similar in format to a traditional film guide with A to Z reviews of over 1000 video games. Accompanying each review are: the year of release, the system first released on, the developer and publisher, information on sequels and conversions, and a rating between one and five stars. Each ‘classic’ game that receives five stars has a colour screenshot in a glossy section in the Guide’s centre, and these screenshots are arranged by date - providing a visual timeline of game graphics.
The Book of Games Volume 1
(ISBN 82-997378-0-X) by gameXplore. This book is the first in the The Book of Games series and was published in November 2006 by gameXplore. It describes 150 games from the period 2005-2006. Each game has a short description about the gameplay and challenges accompanied with nine screenshots. The book also has some feature articles about game topics such as MMORPGs.
The Book of Games Volume 2
(ISBN 82-997378-2-6) by gameXplore. This book is the second in the The Book of Games series and will be published in November 2007. It describes 100 games from the period November 2006 to November 2007. Each game has a short description about the gameplay and challenges accompanied with nine screenshots. It contains several feature articles and interviews with well known game developers.
Classic Home Video Games, 1972-1984
(ISBN 0786432268) by Brett Weiss. This thoroughly researched reference work provides a comprehensive guide to popular and obscure video games of the 1970s and early 1980s, covering every official United States release for programmable home game consoles of the pre-Nintendo NES era. Included are the following systems: Adventure Vision, APF MP1000, Arcadia 2001, Astrocade, Atari 2600, Atari 5200, Atari 7800, ColecoVision, Fairchild Channel F, Intellivision, Microvision, Odyssey, Odyssey2, RCA Studio II, Telstar Arcade, and Vectrex.
Classic Home Video Games, 1985-1988
(ISBN 0786436603) by Brett Weiss. Weiss follows his 2007 volume (Classic Home Video Games, 1972-1984) with this follow-up, which covers games made for the Atari 7800, Nintendo NES, and Sega Master System, with the bulk of the text devoted to the popular Nintendo system. The entry for each game lists the publisher, developer, possible number of players, and year of publication. Sound, graphics, and levels of play are briefly described, and the author--an experienced collector and gamer--provides his well-educated opinion on the quality of play. Arcade games and other systems for which the game was also ported are listed. A glossary and index provide further information. For as far as it goes, this reference is professionally executed and an obvious labor of love.
Classic Home Video Games, 1989-1990: A Complete Guide to Sega Genesis, Neo Geo and TurboGrafx-16 Games
(ISBN 0786441720) by Brett Weiss. The third in a series about home video games, this detailed reference work features descriptions and reviews of every official U.S.-released game for the Neo Geo, Sega Genesis, and TurboGrafx-16. This trio of systems ushered in the 16-bit era of gaming. Organized alphabetically by console brand, each chapter includes a description of the game system followed by substantive entries for every game released for that console. Video game entries include historical info, gameplay details, and, typically, the author’s critique. In addition, appendices list and offer brief descriptions of all the games for the Atari Lynx, original Nintendo Game Boy, Neo Geo CD, Sega CD, Sega 32X, and TurboGrafx-CD.

History

The First Quarter: A 25-Year History of Video Games
(ISBN 0-9704755-0-0) by Steven L. Kent
From Sun Tzu to Xbox: War and Video Games
(ISBN 1-56025-681-8) by Ed Halter
Game Over: How Nintendo Zapped an American Industry, Captured Your Dollars, and Enslaved Your Children
(ISBN 0-679-40469-4) by David Sheff.
Game Over: the Maturing of Mario
(ISBN 0-9669617-0-6) by David Sheff: Game Informer magazine named this book the 8th best videogame related book ever published.
High Score!: The Illustrated History of Electronic Games
is a book published in April 2002 by McGraw-Hill Osborne Media. It was written by Rusel Demaria and Johnny Lee Wilson. The book also has a second edition, published in December 2003 , which features a brief history on Japanese and English video game companies. It details the history of video games, beginning with a page about the earliest computer processors to the current days, this book goes into detail about what was happening to companies like Atari back before, during, and after the Video Game Crash of 1983-1984. Game Informer magazine named this book the 10th best videogame related book ever published.
Joystick Nation
(ISBN 0-316-36007-4) by J.C. Herz
Masters of Doom
(ISBN 0-375-50524-5) by David Kushner : Game Informer magazine named this book the best videogame related book ever published.
My Tiny Life
(ISBN 0-8050-3626-1) by Julian Dibbell. A narrative history of LambdaMOO.
Opening the Xbox: Inside Microsoft's Plan to Unleash an Entertainment Revolution : by Dean Takahashi
Phoenix, The Fall and Rise of Videogames (ISBN 0-9643848-5-X) by Leonard Herman (2001)
Phoenix was the first serious book on videogame history when it was originally published in 1994. A second edition was published in 1997, and a third in 2001. A fourth edition is in the works. In April 2008, Game Informer magazine named this book the 2nd best videogame related book ever published.
Play Between Worlds: Exploring Online Game Culture
(ISBN 0-262-20163-1) TL Taylor (2006)
Racing the Beam
(ISBN 0-262-01257-X) by Nick Montfort and Ian Bogost (2009)
Replay: The History of Video Games
(ISBN 0-956-507204) by Tristan Donovan (2010)
SMARTBOMB: The Quest for Art, Entertainment, and Big Bucks in the Videogame Revolution
(ISBN 1-56512-346-8)by Heather Chaplin and Aaron Ruby.
Supercade: A Visual History of the Videogame Age 1971-1984
by Van Burnham.
The Video Game Explosion: A History from PONG to PlayStation and Beyond
(ISBN 0-3133386-8-X) edited by Mark J.P. Wolf. This is the first comprehensive academic history of video games.
The Video Game Theory Reader
(ISBN 0-415-96579-9) edited by Mark J.P. Wolf and Bernard Perron.
Videogames: In the Beginning
(ISBN 0-9643848-1-7) by Ralph Baer
The Ultimate History of Video Games
(ISBN 0-7615-3643-4) by Steven L. Kent : Game Informer magazine named this book the 4th best videogame related book ever published.
Power-Up: How Japanese Video Games Gave the World an Extra Life
(ISBN 0-7440-0424-1) by Chris Kohler.
Vintage Games: An Insider Look at the History of Grand Theft Auto, Super Mario, and the Most Influential Games of All Time
(ISBN 0-2408-1146-1) by Bill Loguidice and Matt Barton.
Gaming Wonderland
(ISBN 978-1-4523-1894-3) by Francesco Fraulo. Book website. : An insider look at the video games industry from 1999 to 2004.

Artwork collections and "making of" books

1000 Game Heroes
(ISBN 3-8228-1633-7) by David Choquet
The Art of Game Worlds
(ISBN 1-904705-34-0) by Dave Morris and Leo Hartas
Half-Life 2: Raising the Bar
(ISBN 0-7615-4364-3) by David Hodgson
From Myst To Riven
by Richard Kadrey
Sega Video Game Illustrations
Japanese and English language book featuring artwork from early-1990s Sega Mega Drive, Master System and Game Gear titles.
The Making of Doom 3
The Making of Prince of Persia
(ASIN B005WUE6Q2) by Jordan Mechner

See also