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

By J.C. Herz

Book Overview

In a scant fifteen years, video and computer games have grown into a $6-billion-a-year global industry, sucking up ever-increasing amounts of leisure time and disposable income. In arcades, living rooms, student dorms, and (admit it) offices from Ohio to Osaka, video games have become a fixture in people's lives, marking a tectonic shift in the entertainment landscape. Now, as Hollywood and Silicon Valley rush to sell us online interactive multimedia everything, J. C. Herz brings us the first popular history and critique of the video-game phenomenon. From the Cold War computer programmers who invented the first games (when they should have been working) to the studios where the networked 3-D theme parks of the future are created, Herz brings to life the secret history of Space Invaders, Pac Man, Super Mario, Myst, Doom, and other celebrated games. She explains why different kinds of games have taken hold (and what they say about the people who play them) and what we can expect from a generation that has logged millions of hours vanquishing digital demons. Written with 64-bit energy and filled with Herz's sharp-edged insights and asides, Joystick Nation is a fascinating pop culture odyssey that's must-reading for media junkies, pop historians, and anyone who pines for their old Atari.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0316360074
• ISBN13: 9780316360074
• Release Date: June 1997
• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.0" x 9.5"
• Age Range: 13 years and up
• Grade Range: Grade 8 and higher

Customer Reviews

Witty and well written -- covers all the bases well

I think it's a great book. Herz discusses does an excellent job of placing games in their socio-cultural context without becoming too academic or missing the fun of games. She covers all the bases quite well -- ranging from gender and violence to the gaming industry's relationship to the military. The book is pretty much based on her interviews with gaming folks, but she puts a lot of herself in the writing as well which I'm guessing is why some folks are turned off by it; Herz isn't afraid to throw her 2 cents in. At times, the wording might get a little too cutesy, but hell, I don't care. I think it works and found myself laughing out loud. All the more power to her.I've been using it for 2 semesters in a class I teach on video games, and it's been a big hit with all of my students. I highly recommend it.

Lighten Up!

Come on, guys. This was, at heart, a very well written and interesting book. The title may be misleading, but who cares? Apparently, most of the reviewers of this book were looking for a complete history of the video game and were disappointed to find an ethnography instead. Frankly, i like the ethnography more. Mixing in pieces of memoir, tech knowledge and good, old fashioned good writing (something hard to come by in any book having anything to do with video games), _Joystick Nation_ was incredibly enjoyable and informative. Ms. Herz is a very talented and versatile writer; unfortunately, her target audience is a very unforgiving one. Just remember, if you're looking for an in-depth analysis of the subtle electronic nuances of 'Frogger,' you're in the wrong place. If you're looking for a book not so much about video games, but more about the generation that these games have effected and in what ways they have, then definately read this book; you will not be disappointed, i assure you. And while we're at it, why don't we lay off the author's gender, okay boys? That fifth star is for all you Y-chromosome elitists out there.

Video Games had a different affct on all of us...

That is what she was trying to get through to the readers in this book, how videogames ate her quaters, won her heart etc, and I love to read about other peoples experiences about the hobby I love. Excellently written, with new insights into all aspects of the video game industry. Obviously the whole history of games, is not presented but, definetly very filling nonetheless.

I laughed, I cried, I want to kill some aliens!

I grew up playing video games. Our family had the first video game console system, The Fairchild F. We had Pong, Atari 2600, Intellivision, Coleco and then Sega and now Sony Playstation. I have followed the history of games from Pong to Doom. This book is a wonderful account of the video game. J.C. Herz presents us with a time line, essays on social relevance (games were designed for boys and made by men, how do men design games for girls?) and use in the military. This book brought back so many memories, there were a number of times I felt myself tearing up at the mention of an old video game classic I hadn't thought of in years (i.e. Adventure for the Atari 2600). I *highly* recommend this book if you grew up in the 70's or 80's or are a newcomer to the video game scene. You will get an accurate account of the history of the video game that is well written, informing and humorous at times.