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adammaid's review against another edition
5.0
http://vintageanchorbooks.tumblr.com/post/127171887972/press-start
stevenyeagley's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
4.0
grid's review against another edition
4.0
Crazy that I took basically a year to finish this book. I read the last three or four stories in the last 24 hours, thinking I was close enough to the end that I just needed to finish it. That included the Andy Weir story which was very short, and silly but fun, as well as the conclusion to the book by Hugh Howe’s (author of Wool, which I’ve heard a lot about but haven’t yet read), which I found surprisingly poignant and compelling.
Overall, most of these stories featured games prominently, and a few of them featured game developers. Some were better than others, but overall I’m glad I read this.
Overall, most of these stories featured games prominently, and a few of them featured game developers. Some were better than others, but overall I’m glad I read this.
flat_castle's review against another edition
3.0
I started this book a while ago. Like...a really long while ago. Inevitably I read one anthology, then decide I want to read about 100 more and it turns into a tedious chore. I spent long enough working through this that I finished countless other books, picking it up here and there to discover that at some point between purchasing and reading, I had read some of the stories printed or reprinted elsewhere. I wouldn't say reading this collection was a waste of time, but most of the stories are forgettable even if well written.
fayili's review against another edition
Borrowed for Seanan McGuire story, but other stories in this anthology are by known creeps.
ina_midnight_reader's review against another edition
4.0
Most of the stories where ok, there are some hidden gems in this collection tough.
I'll keep an eye for some of these authors!
I'll keep an eye for some of these authors!
gizmoto16's review against another edition
4.0
Once again, an anthology that kicks things off with a really sad story, but in this case, it was also really good, so I didn't begrudge it too much. My favorite was 1up by Holly Black, which despite another sad premise, has a fun mystery element as well. Roguelike has certain repetitious elements that made me just want to skim over it, but it turned out to be one of the funniest stories included. I was pleasantly surprised to find the comic author Marguerite Bennett has a story in here as well. Actually, flipping back through the book, there were quite a few stories that were ultimately pretty depressing...but most of those were still pretty good and the majority of the stories had interesting and original premises, so it's definitely worth a read.
valjeanval's review against another edition
4.0
I have something of a book buying problem. I walked into a bookstore because I was bored, saw this sitting on the shelf and read names like Andy Weir, Hugh Howey, Rhianna Pratchett... and the darn thing just jumped into my car. Oops. Video games are something of a peripheral hobby for me, but my own limited experience did not diminish my enjoyment of this collection at all. The stories center around games ranging from Zork and Oregon Trail to Warcraft and Halo, so everyone with even a mild level of video game interest can find a reference to which they can relate.
This is hardly a collection of silly stories, though (well, maybe Rouguelike is a bit silly, but it's one of my favorites in the book anyway). Instead, the anthology makes a point of using video games to address the issues facing the video game generation. Racism, sexism, homophobia, apathy, climate change, war, grief, a healthy sampling of issues from which people might escape into video games, only to confront them head on. That, however, is just how they need to be confronted, and something that makes this anthology stand out on the shelf.
The other thing that makes it stand out is the colorful cast, altough my favorite stories in the collection were not from my favorite authors. It's hard to pick a favorite, but Holly Black's "1Up" and Catheryne Valente's "Killswitch" rank pretty highly. The only one I felt a little odd about was "Survival Horror" which seems like a spin-off from a much larger universe that I just couldn't digest in such a short amount of pages.
So if you like gaming and/or socially conscious science fiction, you'll find something to enjoy here. You can laugh and cry and think deeply about your character selection process right through the final page.
This is hardly a collection of silly stories, though (well, maybe Rouguelike is a bit silly, but it's one of my favorites in the book anyway). Instead, the anthology makes a point of using video games to address the issues facing the video game generation. Racism, sexism, homophobia, apathy, climate change, war, grief, a healthy sampling of issues from which people might escape into video games, only to confront them head on. That, however, is just how they need to be confronted, and something that makes this anthology stand out on the shelf.
The other thing that makes it stand out is the colorful cast, altough my favorite stories in the collection were not from my favorite authors. It's hard to pick a favorite, but Holly Black's "1Up" and Catheryne Valente's "Killswitch" rank pretty highly. The only one I felt a little odd about was "Survival Horror" which seems like a spin-off from a much larger universe that I just couldn't digest in such a short amount of pages.
So if you like gaming and/or socially conscious science fiction, you'll find something to enjoy here. You can laugh and cry and think deeply about your character selection process right through the final page.
stiricide's review against another edition
4.0
I am OHMYGOD annoyed that, for whatever reason, this book is filed under F - CLI in my local library. (Ernest Cline wrote a three page throwaway intro for this anthology. Both of the editor's personal introductions are more substantive and worthwhile, but I guess they felt like they needed a "name" to attach to this. Cline continues to be useless, JJA continues to be amazing. Rinse, repeat.)
Anyway, this is a fun read. Some of the stories were personal misses, but I didn't feel like anything was out of place or poorly written.
Highlights include:
Chris Kluwe's essay Please Continue
Seanan Macguire's Survival Horror
Charles Yu's NPC
Anyway, this is a fun read. Some of the stories were personal misses, but I didn't feel like anything was out of place or poorly written.
Highlights include:
Chris Kluwe's essay Please Continue
Seanan Macguire's Survival Horror
Charles Yu's NPC