caseyvalhalla's review against another edition
funny
informative
fast-paced
3.5
sort of a 3.5 rounded up I guess?
Mr. Ryan makes some factual errors in some specifics that are outlined pretty exhaustively in other reviews; my main complaint is the presumptive male-centric view of gamers (apparently girls didn't play video games until Nintendogs came out! cue facepalming) and laughable presumption that adult millennials ever stopped playing Nintendo games voraciously. I guess that conclusion can be excused by being more than a decade out of date by this point, though.
Otherwise interesting tale of Nintendo as a company and a brand from a Mario-centric viewpoint.
Mr. Ryan makes some factual errors in some specifics that are outlined pretty exhaustively in other reviews; my main complaint is the presumptive male-centric view of gamers (apparently girls didn't play video games until Nintendogs came out! cue facepalming) and laughable presumption that adult millennials ever stopped playing Nintendo games voraciously. I guess that conclusion can be excused by being more than a decade out of date by this point, though.
Otherwise interesting tale of Nintendo as a company and a brand from a Mario-centric viewpoint.
heyfluxay's review
3.0
I was familiar with a lot of the history covered here but still found this to be an enjoyable read. While the style is not as entertaining as 'Console Wars' for example, I still found myself burning through each chapter. A fun exploration of Nintendo's past, and due to its publication, and interesting prediction of what may be to come. If you are looking for a quick read and want to pledge yourself to the Shrine of Miyamoto, why not start here?
canadianoranges's review
5.0
Witty and fun. Offers a good history of gaming overall, within the point-of-view of Nintendo and Super Mario.
writermags's review
2.0
It’s past midnight as I write this review, but I just wasted 2 weeks of my life reading this poor excuse for a book, and this needs to be said. Harsh? Maybe, but that’s nothing compared to the verbal abuse I suffered at the hands of the author.
Where do I begin?
From the beginning, the author comes off as pretentious, arrogant, and all around not the kind of guy I would want to be spending my free time with. In the introduction, he tells us how he sort of stumbled upon the position of writing about video games, and how he “studied video games in a way very few others have.” Has he ever even met a gamer?
I brushed this off initially, because let’s face it, a lot of video game writers tend to have this sort of tone. However, unlike reading a snarky article in GameInformer, Jeff Ryan made me feel excluded and inferior. I didn’t laugh along with him, I was insulted. (This probably wasn’t helped by his myriad of obscure references and metaphors – it felt like I was reading Ready Player One and being treated as a moron for not knowing the characters from [insert cult classic here]).
Not only was Ryan’s approach to his audience irritating, but he continually lost credibility throughout the book, making me wonder how much of his word I could actually rely on. I’ll concede that I don’t know much about Mario’s history (other than videos from Game Theory and Did You Know Gaming?), but I do know a lot about the Pokémon and Legend of Zelda franchises. Perhaps I was being nitpicky and defensive, but the more I noticed he got wrong about these series, the less I trusted his work as a whole.
When talking about the original Pokémon games that were released in Japan, he mentions that they were titled Red and Blue. Those were the originals in the United States, but in Japan, the first Pokemon games released were Red and Green. Blue was later released as an additional version, but when the games were brought to the states, Nintendo just released Red and Blue. Also, the games have more significant differences than the two characters (Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak) that Ryan mentions. In fact, only one of those characters is related to the games at all, and isn’t even a point of difference between the versions (190-191).
Ryan also demonstrates a clear misunderstanding of The Legend of Zelda franchise as a whole – as much as this book is about Mario, it is also about Nintendo, and you can’t talk about Nintendo without talking about its other flagship franchise. This is inexcusable.
“Link, on the other hand, is a teenager after the girl of his dreams.” (149)
Link, the Legendary Hero, did not save Hyrule just to be known as a teenager with a crush. The plot of these games are so much greater than that.
“But Zelda was never about plot.” (156)
Without repeating what I’ve already said above, this is garbage. He also goes on to say that the Zelda series is a “constant retelling” rather than a linear plotline of sequels. I suppose the truth isn’t necessarily common knowledge, but someone who writes about games for a living should probably have some level of understanding of how one of the most well-known and beloved video game franchises works.
Though this book did provide some interesting information, it was not an enjoyable read. If you want a look at gaming history in an entertaining way, you’d be better off reading something else (or watching some Did You Know Gaming? Videos).
Where do I begin?
From the beginning, the author comes off as pretentious, arrogant, and all around not the kind of guy I would want to be spending my free time with. In the introduction, he tells us how he sort of stumbled upon the position of writing about video games, and how he “studied video games in a way very few others have.” Has he ever even met a gamer?
I brushed this off initially, because let’s face it, a lot of video game writers tend to have this sort of tone. However, unlike reading a snarky article in GameInformer, Jeff Ryan made me feel excluded and inferior. I didn’t laugh along with him, I was insulted. (This probably wasn’t helped by his myriad of obscure references and metaphors – it felt like I was reading Ready Player One and being treated as a moron for not knowing the characters from [insert cult classic here]).
Not only was Ryan’s approach to his audience irritating, but he continually lost credibility throughout the book, making me wonder how much of his word I could actually rely on. I’ll concede that I don’t know much about Mario’s history (other than videos from Game Theory and Did You Know Gaming?), but I do know a lot about the Pokémon and Legend of Zelda franchises. Perhaps I was being nitpicky and defensive, but the more I noticed he got wrong about these series, the less I trusted his work as a whole.
When talking about the original Pokémon games that were released in Japan, he mentions that they were titled Red and Blue. Those were the originals in the United States, but in Japan, the first Pokemon games released were Red and Green. Blue was later released as an additional version, but when the games were brought to the states, Nintendo just released Red and Blue. Also, the games have more significant differences than the two characters (Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak) that Ryan mentions. In fact, only one of those characters is related to the games at all, and isn’t even a point of difference between the versions (190-191).
Ryan also demonstrates a clear misunderstanding of The Legend of Zelda franchise as a whole – as much as this book is about Mario, it is also about Nintendo, and you can’t talk about Nintendo without talking about its other flagship franchise. This is inexcusable.
“Link, on the other hand, is a teenager after the girl of his dreams.” (149)
Link, the Legendary Hero, did not save Hyrule just to be known as a teenager with a crush. The plot of these games are so much greater than that.
“But Zelda was never about plot.” (156)
Without repeating what I’ve already said above, this is garbage. He also goes on to say that the Zelda series is a “constant retelling” rather than a linear plotline of sequels. I suppose the truth isn’t necessarily common knowledge, but someone who writes about games for a living should probably have some level of understanding of how one of the most well-known and beloved video game franchises works.
Though this book did provide some interesting information, it was not an enjoyable read. If you want a look at gaming history in an entertaining way, you’d be better off reading something else (or watching some Did You Know Gaming? Videos).
sharppointysticks's review
3.0
I bought this book on a whim (as I often do from Audible). After purchasing it I had immediate buyers remorse. I am at most a causal gamer. I had the original Nintendo as a child, a PS2 that I used only a handful of times, and a Wii that I turn on many 5 times a year. I used to like WoW before my laptop got too slow to run it...
Surprisingly I still really enjoyed this book. The history of the company and the game characters was very interesting and the book was smartly written. Even as a non-gamer it held my interest. I was pleasantly surprised.
"Foxcon is like Santa's village run by Mr. Burns."
Surprisingly I still really enjoyed this book. The history of the company and the game characters was very interesting and the book was smartly written. Even as a non-gamer it held my interest. I was pleasantly surprised.
"Foxcon is like Santa's village run by Mr. Burns."
taylorharmonies's review
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
4.5
Jeff Ryan clearly put a lot of work into his research. The book was incredibly informative with fascinating, obscure references. For anyone who wonders how Mario became the name synonymous with Nintendo as well as their famed mascot, this book details how their history was built on Mario.
Ryan also spends some brief time adding in additional context including other games that were occurring at the time.
Something to keep in mind: this was published in 2012, and so is a retrospective on the history of Nintendo from their origins until 2012, meaning nothing about the Switch and little about the Wii U. It doesn't take away from the quality of the book but just be aware of that.
Ryan also spends some brief time adding in additional context including other games that were occurring at the time.
Something to keep in mind: this was published in 2012, and so is a retrospective on the history of Nintendo from their origins until 2012, meaning nothing about the Switch and little about the Wii U. It doesn't take away from the quality of the book but just be aware of that.
snobbles's review
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
This was a great dive into the history of Nintendo. I love md every minute of the nostalgia.