Joystick Nation: How Videogames Ate Quarters, Won Our Hearts, and Rewired Our Minds

J.C. Hertz brings us the first popular history and critique of electronic entertainment from its genesis as primitive blips in the labs of Cold War computer programmers to the studios where networked 3-D theme parks are created. Tracing this neon branch of the computer industry from a small cadre of inspired nerds to an entertainment behemoth that rivals Hollywood box office billings, she brings to life the history of Space Invaders, Pac Man, Super Mario, Myst, Doom, and other celebrated games. She explores the culture of virtual construction workers who "do code" wherever the next big game is being created - and the world of designers, writers, and musicians who make their living in this boomtown industry. At the same time, Herz investigates the games themselves and the role they have come to play in an increasingly virtual world.