Play! The History of Video Games

"Play! The History of Video Games" is a captivating tale of the strange birth and extraordinary evolution of one of the most important entertainment domains since the advent of television - video games.
The book's material is based on extensive research... and over 140 exclusive interviews with influential figures from the video game industry. The book tells the astonishing story of how the creative vision of game developers led to the emergence and establishment of one of the most popular and dynamic artistic forms in the world.
In just 60 years, video and computer games have traveled a rapid path from niche pastimes for scientists to a full-fledged and rapidly evolving artistic medium.
In his book "Play! The History of Video Games," British journalist Tristan Donovan meticulously explores the journey of video and computer games from their birth in the post-war world. "The real history of video games is a story of human creativity aided by technological growth," explains Donovan himself. "The goal of 'Play!' is to celebrate the resilience and rich creative imagination of the most talented game creators and to explain why the development of video games has gone the way it has."
Donovan is interested not in the technological race, around which everything in the gaming environment seems to revolve, but in how humans use technology to implement their ideas, expanding the boundaries of the gaming environment.
On 648 pages, the history of the establishment and development of video and computer games is described in detail not only in the United States and Japan but also in Europe and Asia. The origins of the emergence and evolution of all the main gaming genres are discussed. Examples of the active influence of the gaming environment on modern popular culture are presented in an easy and engaging form.
Specifically for the Russian edition, Tristan Donovan wrote an additional chapter about the current realities of the gaming industry and its Russian segment.
In Russian, this is the first book that examines in such detail the history of the formation and evolution of video and computer games.