Retro Gaming: A Byte-sized History of Video Games — From Atari to Zelda

Take a trip down memory lane with Retro Gaming, and relive the glory days (and not so glory days) of your old retro tech favorites.

Published in paperback to tie-in with 50 years of console gaming, Retro Gaming is packed with all the characters, games, consoles and franchises you used to love – and probably still do. This is a compact, conversational compendium of all-time highs – alongside just a handful of humorous (in hindsight) lows – from decades of arcade, computer, console and handheld hits.

From Atari’s early arcade classics and home games consoles of the 1970s, through to classics that keep on giving, such as Halo and Tomb Raider, this book summarizes the significant releases, research and revolutions that have made video games a £100 billion (and rising) industry.

Evergreen favorites from Nintendo, SEGA and Sony are present and correct – no collection would be complete without entries for Mario and Sonic, Tetris and Crash Bandicoot. But we also give credit to the less-celebrated but utterly vital titles, characters, controllers and systems that have helped the world of gaming expand and evolve.

A guide, a companion and a window onto a joyous past, Retro Gaming is a perfect book to dip in and out of, as mood and your current gaming habits dictate.

"Superb coffee table book."–Nintendo Life
"A fun read." –Retro Gamer

Mike Diver is a British author, editor and journalist, specializing in video games and music, whose career has covered the BBC, VICE and the LADbible Group. He has written and edited a range of books on video games, including Indie Games and Retro Gaming. He lives by the seaside and should definitely take advantage of that more than he does. You can follow Mike on Twitter at @mikediver.