Preview of New Classic Videogame Books

[rolenta]

Descriptions and sample chapters of Bill Kunkel's new book Confessions of The Game Doctor, and the second edition of my book ABC To The VCS, are now available at the Rolenta Press website. Both books will be available this weekend at VGXPO and from the Rolenta Press website early next week.

[Gamereviewgod]

Please bump when I can get them off the site. I'll be first in the line... assuming there actually was a line.

[Arcade Antics]

AWESOME.

Can't wait to read 'em both! These books are absolute must haves, folks, go get 'em!

[Anexanhume]

Is it possible to get ahold of a copy of phoenix without donating a body part, or is there some other book I"m better off getting for a full, comprehensive and interesting overview of the history of videogames?

[rolenta]

Is it possible to get ahold of a copy of phoenix without donating a body part, or is there some other book I"m better off getting for a full, comprehensive and interesting overview of the history of videogames?

I'm planning a 4th edition of Phoenix for 2006. However I may be reprinting a very limited number of 3rd editions before then because Mike Thomasson is teaching a class on videogame history in January and needs it for the course.

[segagamer]

I will definitely order Phoenix 4th edition when it is printed.

[Arcade Antics]

or is there some other book I"m better off getting for a full, comprehensive and interesting overview of the history of videogames?

Nope. You definitely want Phoenix.

Definitely.

[8bitcrooner]

Mike Thomasson is teaching a class on videogame history in January and needs it for the course.

Might I ask how one goes about teaching such a course? I mean what kind of degree and position would one have to be in to have such a thing approved. That sounds like the job from heaven.

[SoulBlazer]

Besides Phoenix, another great video game history book is Stephen Kent's "Ultimate History of Video Games". Both books compliment one another VERY well.

Have you checked Amazon for Phoenix 3rd Ed?

[Windy Miller]

Please bump when I can get them off the site. I'll be first in the line... assuming there actually was a line.

And I'll be second, um, in line.

[BillKunkel]

Mike Thomasson is teaching a class on videogame history in January and needs it for the course.

Might I ask how one goes about teaching such a course? I mean what kind of degree and position would one have to be in to have such a thing approved. That sounds like the job from heaven.

It's not bad. I taught fall classes at the Extended Education branch of the University of Nevata at LKas Vegas (UNLV) and the year I got to do the full currriculum, we produced several significant successes. My best student just started working this week for Mike Legg's Petroglyph Studios (the Vegas developers who basically stayed in Nevada after EA sucked Westwood into Silicon Valley).

I have so few college credits I can count them on my fingers, but real life experience in journalism, game design, marketing, etc. got me the gig. If you're teaching game design, you don't need to be an ace programmer, but you do need to know what art programs are bering used, how booleans work, how to design using spread sheets, prep storyboards, deliver a pitch, create a logline, etc.

The main problem is that there are no decent textbooks out there. I used Bob Bates' "Game Design" book because the best books are histories and I was teaching contemporary design and his is okay. Arnie Katz' book "Inside Electronic Game Design" is somewhat better but out of print (and the best part are the interviews of prominent games designers, which were coincidentally conducted by Arnie's co-author, my wife Laurie Yates).

Now the same "schools" that were ready to teach you how to drive the big rigs are claiming to be able to teach game design, but that's mostly a scam as far as I can see, with inexperienced teachers and locked-in silly-busses.

I had started work on an actual textbook but then got involved in this "Confessions of the Game Doctor" project and then wrote a novel (which will be published next year under another name and has nothing to do with videogames). But I'll be passing a lot of my notes along to Michael for his course.

So to answer your question, in the school chains that advertise on TV, most of them require nothing more than a BA. But the classes can be long and brutal (I taught in three hour classess and it was tough, but some of these classes are five and six hours long!!). On the other hand, I have no B A and UNLV hired me for my experience and connections (the guests I could get to fly in and deliver lectures and Q&A sessions). So it really varies right now as a lot of schools belatedly scramble to get into the business.

[rolenta]

I applied to a local county college to teach a course in videogame history. They called me with an interest to do a course on game design. I reluctantly declined since I know nothing about that aspect of the industry.

[Phosphor Dot Fossils]

I would've jumped in there just to knock some game design sense back into the next generation, Leonard. Think of the young minds you could've corrupted.