- Hardcover: 256 pages
- Publisher: Fourth Estate (18 May 2000)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1841151203
- ISBN-13: 978-1841151205
- Product Dimensions: 21.4 x 13.4 x 1.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
240,800 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #13 in Books > Computers & Internet > PC & Video Games > History & Culture
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Trigger Happy, Steven Poole's substantial examination of the world inside your console, combines an exhaustive history of the games industry with a more subtle look at what makes certain kinds of games more engaging than others. For example, what works in which genres--the RPG (role-playing game) versus the god game--and the relationship of video games to other forms of media.
A writer and composer, Poole makes the case that video games--like films and popular music--deserve serious critical treatment. "The inner life of video games--how they work--is bound up with the inner life of the player. And the player's response to a well-designed video game is in part the same sort of response he or she has to a film, or to a painting: it is an aesthetic one". Trigger Happy is packed with references not just to games and game history but to writers and theorists who may never have played a video game in their lives, from Adorno and Benjamin to Plato. At times this approach verges on the pedantic, dwelling at length on points that will seem obvious to serious gamers ("We don't want absolutely real situations in video games. We can get that at home"; "The fighting game, like fighting itself, will always be popular"). Nonetheless, Poole's book may be favoured bedside reading for both the keen gamer and the armchair philosopher looking to understand this cultural phenomenon. --Liz Bailey --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Amazon.co.uk Review
Steven Poole's substantial examination of the world inside your console combines an exhaustive history of the games industry with a more subtle look at what makes certain kinds of games more engaging than others. For example, what works in which genres--the RPG (role-playing game) versus the god game--and the relationship of video games to other forms of media.
A writer and composer, Poole makes the case that video games--like films and popular music--deserve serious critical treatment. "The inner life of video games--how they work--is bound up with the inner life of the player. And the player's response to a well-designed video game is in part the same sort of response he or she has to a film, or to a painting: it is an aesthetic one". Trigger Happy is packed with references not just to games and game history but to writers and theorists who may never have played a video game in their lives, from Adorno and Benjamin to Plato. At times this approach verges on the pedantic, dwelling at length on points that will seem obvious to serious gamers ("We don't want absolutely real situations in video games. We can get that at home"; "The fighting game, like fighting itself, will always be popular"). Nonetheless, Poole's book may be favoured bedside reading for both the keen gamer and the armchair philosopher looking to understand this cultural phenomenon.--Liz Bailey
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I bought this book after seeing the reader reviews here & i thought wow, at least it arouse some strong passions. Having read it, I can say that it just is the best book about gaming out there. I have been in the games industry myself for ten years & found it very refreshing to see video games from a wider cultural angle. Sure I don't agree with a lot of it. For instance, I love games like SimCity and Stephen Poole says he finds them boring. Fair enough, but then he makes some interesting points about them anyway (they're "process toys" and offer the chance to play with time, as well as having subterannean political points buried in them). And the demolition of "interactive storytelling" and the touted convergence of games with films are wonders of clear and tightly constructed argument. Pretentious? No; just a new, and very interesting, point of view.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This 'revised' edition of Steven Poole's work makes an interesting read for anyone fascinated in the relatively short history of gaming. The decrease in price, plus the inclusion of coverage of Sony's PlayStation 2 launch certainly make it more attractive than the previous edition. The book is fairly comprehensive, covering gaming hardware through the ages, how gaming dynamics have changed (for better and worse) and who were the major players in this evolution. This approach makes it fairly generic, but Poole handles the themes well, using discussions with major luminaries such as Jeremy Smith of Tomb Raider fame and reflecting on how he believes games can be made better. Because of this it may not capture an unforgettable period in as much detail as David Sheff's Game Over (which handled Nintendo's business up to the birth of the SNES console), but Poole's enthusiasm is contagious, and his knowledge and experience unquestionable. Where he lets himself down is in his persistence in exemplifying certain basic examples of the genres; Tomb Raider and Resident Evil are constantly referenced, it seems, simply because they are good games with one or more major and easy-to-spot flaws. However, apart from the aforementioned Game Over and The First Quarter by Steven L. Kent (available from Amazon.com on import, and perhaps the most appealing book ever to cover the topic), this work is something that should still be in any discerning gamer's collection.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
It's the first book I've felt compelled to finish in years - an insightful, thought provoking look into how the gaming industry ticks, and what makes it tick. Anyone even remotely interested in games should pick it up straight away.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
I've got a book that needs design!
This book is aimed at those interested in a basic history of videogames up until the Playstation 2 era. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mr. T. D. Ash
Deep, philosophical - an important point omitted
As an avid gamer from the early eighties I acquired this book on the pretence that it would give me a better understanding of my addiction. Read more
Published on 26 Feb 2004 by T. Furlong
Trigger Happy
This book is an excellent reader for those doing subjects such as media and cultural studies. It helps to explain various theories and concepts in relation to video games. Read more
Published on 1 Oct 2002 by "u9803197"
Interesting if a bit dry and academic
Bought this after reading an excellent article he wrote about Tomb Raider. However, the book doesn't live up to that. Interesting in parts, e.g. Read more
Published on 11 July 2002
Necessary start of videogame discourse...
As both a videogamer and a student of media and culture I would highly recommend this book. The games industry needs more books discussing the theoretical side of things. Read more
Published on 4 Dec 2001 by "rowleys1"
Academic text or self-indulgent ramble? Neither...
...Poole builds up a brilliant cultural framework through constant reference to thinkers from Plato through to Charles Peirce, Walter Benjamin and Wittgenstein.... Read more
Published on 5 April 2001
Academic text or self indulgent ramble? You decide......
Its clear from reading this book that Poole has attempted in a desperate fashion to 'theorise' the videogame; difficult to do when you have been located outside the medium for 15... Read more
Published on 1 April 2001 by M. Taylor
Not a history, but a superbly original cultural study
If all you want is a simple history of video games, this is not your book. Try Steven L Kent's The First Quarter or Leonard Herman's Phoenix. Read more
Published on 3 Mar 2001
Hard work and a little disappointing.
Nice idea, and for nostalgic value, it's not a bad read, but far too many subjective judgements are made 'type x of game is boring' etc. Read more
Published on 2 Feb 2001
A very good insight on a gamers delight.
Steven Poole makes things clear to the world on the essence of videogames and in doing so he backs up gamers' arguments, that videogames should be seriously investigated, with... Read more
Published on 18 Jan 2001 by adrienne
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