Video Games Books

Well organized, funny introduction, and good examples from real commercial computer games. Uses usage statistics to prioritize tests.

Traditional program testing has come a long way in 50 years but the complexity, time constraints and variety of situations facing game testers is at the edge of the software testing world.

The authors combine authentic experience with Computer Games and Game Testing in a logical, pragmatic and interesting way. They long ago reasoned that it is very costly (if not sometimes impossible) to test all possible paths through a game's options and through the application of some insightful statistical approaches present ways to reduce the total number of tests required under certain assumptions. To me this one insight was worth the cost of the book.

Beyond this outstanding statistical testing insight for the workers in the field, the expository material that covers Games is exceptionally good for the individual trying to put the whole field in perspective. In Part I they address "Being a Game Tester" (with a side venture later in the book to identify different game testing personalities) followed by a good discussion of "Why Testing is Important". Part II talks about the "Making of a Game" while Part III introduces the concepts and vocabulary of Testing. In Part IV the authors bring in the concept of Combinatorial Testing ( another statistical approach) and present it in a step by step way so that the tester can perform the testing suite without knowing all of the theory behind that approach. "Test Flow Diagrams", "Cleanroom Testing" and "Test Trees" adds very modern disciplined techniques to the testing tool process that will prove of value. Part V discusses some advanced testing ideas all of which are very practical in the fast evolving world of Games.

The authors seem to have been brought together and inspired to write just at the time when the field realizes that loosely structured ad-hoc testing may be costing more than the field can afford.

o.k, im in sootopolis city (ruby version) and steven and the gym leader are nowhere to be seen! has this happened to anyone?if it has, please help. if it hasnt happened to you, please give me some ideas, im totally stuck! appart from the book not telling me this, its excellent!

This book is great if you have any questions on the hole game this guide has the anser somewhere in it the only thing it does not anser is what the heck is behind the dumb old mans door in Mossdeep.this guide has a walkthrough.it also tells you eggroups where the pokemon are in how many of them.suggestions when you face a gym leader or an elite 4 etc.,it also explanes many new stuff in the game and it has tipe charts.it tells you how to get pokemon also.this boook is the best r e and s (ruby emerald saphire) guide there is lol.

I loved the concept of total control in the script and the video game. This book is well written and fun reading. I loved the characters and the ending was fantastic.

This book made me laugh (a lot), but it also made me think about people (like Tim) who live a lot differently than I do. The video game that everybody is playing in this book is named Total Control, and it's a great game! I hope that a real video game named Total Control comes out. I also liked Gracie's New York stories. Favorite character: Mr. Krooper.
BioShock

I am working on a gamer theory class at the university i work for and this book is simple awesome, funny, insightful and very educative. I think this book is one of the most imppresive philosphical analysis of games. I luv it!

It was very good book that kept me reading through every chapter with every intent being to finish it. It's a quick read and I loved not only it's game references but also the other pop culture references that it brings up with simplicity. It had simplicity in it's complexity. The only bad thing I can think of is that it's hard to truly understand unless if you have read it at least twice.

Winner of the 1978 Pulitzer Prize, the Best Production Award from the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle, the Tony and Drama Desk Awards for Best Actress for Jessica Tandy, and the L.A. Drama Critics Circle acting awards for both Tandy and her husband Hume Cronyn, this play was a winner from the day it opened. Written by D. L. Coburn, it focuses on two elderly residents of an old-age home as they come to terms with each other and themselves.

Initially, Fonsia Dorsey (Jessica Tandy) appears to be genteel and reserved, a woman who is offended by any hint of profanity, a perfect lady whose consignment to this welfare home is the source of her sorrow. Weller Martin (Hume Cronyn) is a tougher sort, a failed businessman who now keeps himself busy playing cards. Both characters maintain their dignity by avoiding the other residents of the home, "a warehouse for the intellectually and emotionally dead."

Quickly learning to play gin, Fonsia meets with Weller to play over the course of two weeks. Gradually, they reveal their pasts, hiding their failures and their tragedies within protective stories which preserve their images of themselves. As Fonsia repeatedly wins at cards, Weller, in frustration, begins to pick away at her cover, forcing her to look at herself realistically. She, in turn, begins to taunt him, making him confront his failures, and a violent argument ensues.

Tandy plays Fonsia as vulnerable but also manipulative. Cronyn is gruffer and more defensive. As Tandy tries not to gloat about winning and Cronyn tries (only slightly) to hide his frustration, their card games become episodes of psychological warfare, and the gin game becomes the game of life, with both players trying to determine whether winning is a matter of luck, Divine Intervention, or personal skill.

Tandy and Cronyn are perfect foils, using visual humor, gestures, sidelong glances, signs of discomfort, and all the other nonverbal signals that many elderly people have developed to perfection. As Cronyn slaps down a card that he is sure is a winner and Tandy tentatively reveals a better card, the humor reaches its height, and when Cronyn taunts her and Tandy finally responds by using the F-word, the dramatic irony reaches its peak.

Powerful, realistic, and filled with an ironic humor which sets the play's poignant messages into sharp relief, this video, an actual live performance, conveys the excitement of a great Broadway play starring the greatest of actors in one of the best and most satisfying productions ever mounted. Mary Whipple

I saw The Gin Game with Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn years ago on TV. I loved it. It was perfection. I taped it and then lost the tape, so this is a happy day for me. I have been searching for years. The other production with Mary Tyler Moore and Dick van Dyke just missed the boat. It lacked the finesse and pathos so witty and moving in the Tandy and Cronyn version. When I read that it was to be done with MTM and DvD I thought,"This is going to be awful". I was not disappointed. They even made changes that just begs the question, "If it ain't broke, why fix it?" They shouldn't have. Those of you who purchase this one will not regret it.

After the miserable failure of a guide for GTA San Andreas, Brady Games have redeemed themselves with a true strategy guide for Liberty City Stories. Maps are accurate, missions have tips, and I would never have gotten the hidden package off the gas station without this book.

Bought this for my husband not so much for the information on missions but the items to be found. Apart from that he only uses it if something doesn't quite make sense and hes already tried many times to do what is necessary. Solves all those stressful moments and saves him tying up the PC looking for help online!

I am a fan of official game guide and I have to say that this game guide is one of the good ones. I am still playing Grandia III and so far this game guide helps me much. I love it and it worths every cent of my money.

...The question is how badly will you need it? Grandia III is a fairly linear and straightforward game. It doesn't have a whole lot of secrets and there aren't very many (if any) sidequests at all. So do you really need a guide? Well, not really. But if you do get one because you're stuck or just need the extra leg up, you should be glad there's a quality guide out there like this one. It'll let you know what's ahead of you and help prepare you for the most dangerous foes.

The guide begins with some "advanced tips". So if you're the type that picks up a strategy guide for the game basics (helping you adjust to the battle system if you're new to it, or anything like that) then you won't find them here (but your instruction manuel is there for that reason, of course). However, for what it's worth, most of these tips are pretty good. They help you learn where some of the best level up spots are and how to acquire some good gold early on in the game. There are also tips for the gambling, for creating mana eggs, and also giving you info on rare enemies like the Lucky Mink. They also list out which enemies have the most hit points, are the strongest etc. In a way, it seems like they're just trying to make good use of paper in the beginning.

Afterwards, the real strategy begins. Everything you need to know about characters is here. All their skills and how to get them, beginning stats and how well they are in battle. A chart is also provided to show you just how characters level up. Each character is given a set of stars next to each stat. For example, if a character maintains a good HP level as they level up, the guide gives them three stars. This can easily be used to tell you who is best for what.

The walkthrough doesn't waste time. It isn't sluggish at all. Each section gives you a list of objectives and then points them out to you on the map. There's more to these maps than pointing out items, goodies, save points and whatnot. They also provide you with all the enemy groups. Also, in a chart provided they tell you what to expect by battling an enemy group and how much experience and gold you'll get. This helps you decide if a battle is worth it. The screenshots are blurry, though. Which won't be a big problem, you can mostly make out what's going on. The boss strategies aren't particularly helpful. They spend a lot of time repeating the same thing for just about each and every boss (cancel attacks), but they don't always tell you what to expect. I let this slide because the game tells you what a boss is about to attack with and the guide does inform you when you should cancel. It really does a good job on providing you with defense, but not always an effective offense.

The appendices section was nice, however. Giving you the low down on all the items, weapons, armor, accessories, mana eggs and skill books. When telling you about magic they do a fantastic job telling you what spells are powerful and which ones will help. They also tell you what mana eggs will make certain mana eggs. However, they do this as a list. Under Volcano Egg, for example, they'll list out every combination that'll give you a volcano egg. Was a chart too much to ask for?

The bestiary is very detailed. No problems there. Everything you need to know about all the enemies is perfectly detailed in an easy to read manor. They even have a separate bestiary for the bosses, which makes figuring out the stats for a boss rather easy. It can easily be expressed that a Grandia guide probably doesn't need a bestiary, but there are times when you're glad you've got it.

Overall this is a pretty satisfactory guide. 240 pages is a bit exhaustive for a Grandia guide, however. Don't be fooled by it's size. It may be detailed but there's a lot of unused space. So don't think 240 pages means you're buying a Grandia encyclopedia, it's just another basic strategy guide. However, it's a good guide. If you're stuck in Grandia III, it's a fantastic guide. Again, though, I have to tell you, Grandia III isn't a game where you'll find yourself in dire need of a strategy guide. Even if you're someone who likes to bask in all those secrets, you won't need it for the simple fact that it's a Grandia game... and a Grandia game hardly needs a guide to help you unearth all the secrets.

The Good
+Detailed Walkthrough
+Helpful tips
+Great character analysis and breakdown
+Easy to use walkthrough
+Detailed bestiary
+Skill books, mana eggs and more!

The Bad
-A chart for making the different mana eggs would've been nice
-The boss strategies are good on defense but not always offense
-I just can't shake the fact that you most likely won't need this guide. Grandia III doesn't have any lucrative secrets. So if you do decide to get this guide, avoid paying sixteen dollars for it.

It's a great guide, but it isn't a guide that you'll get a lot of use out of. Still, it's five star quality, so pick it up.

In Half-Real, Jesper Juul presents us a not only a new definition for games (computer-based or not), but also an original perspective on videogames and how they operate. Going beyond the 'Ludology x Narratology' discussion, Juul balances the 'Rules' and 'Fiction' elements of video games, emphasizing how they relate to each other.

The book is very insightful, containing information that will be valuable to game designers, academics, gamers and new media enthusiasts. Although you could find some of the its content on Juul's previous articles available on the internet, they are much more complete polished in Haf-Real.

Very good book on the theory of videogames. Accessible, innovative, thoughtful, and centered on concrete (and popular) examples. He also includes lots of screenshots, which is good.

Juul takes what might be called a "grassroots" approach to game studies, not bringing heavy disciplinary baggage to colonize the area, but instead trying to build a formal theory of games from the ground up. He takes his lead primarily from game and culture theorists like Huizinga, Caillois, Crawford and Sutton-Smith rather than from literary theory or media studies. But he really charts his own course and stakes out his own ground in many ways.

He has a strong interest in game rules, which has led some to criticize him for being overly formalistic, but I find this a refreshing and interesting contrast to the more standard "new media" approach to video games.

what is this helpp!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hexen 2 is probably the best game as of this day. It combines beautiful 128-bit graphics with strategy & action that only Raven software and its staff can create. Doom had worse graphics and was quite boring since there was no decisions you had to make (you were simply supposed to shoot everybody). Raven software was very creative in making this game (for example no other 3-D game ever had their boss grow in size so realistically and the archers in this game are by no means stupid--they will quickly dodge your attacks). The strategy guide for this game explains almost everything. The illustrations allow you to imagine the creatures and places better. Since Hexen 2 came out I have never seen as better game. And there probably won't be (at least until Raven software creates a new game in the Hexen series.

I have always been skeptical about buying strategy guides, but the author of this Hexen game guide really knows how to put it together to make the book totally understandable and easy to use. From the beginning where there is a brief synopsis of the game and what led up to it, to the in-depth analysis of the 3 playable characters, the monsters, and tactics to deal with them, what weapons to use for each different situation, and how to use the artifacts to your advantage. However, where this guide really shines is the walkthrough section. Extremely detailed, easy-to-read maps for all 31 levels, and the text accompanying the maps is like having your own personal tour guide along with you. Mind you, I don't like to use a strategy guide to spoil all the adventure, but when you play this game, you realize it is almost essential to have some 'help' along the way to victory against Korax and his minions. In closing, I would like to add that I hope to see more strategy guides from this author, as he is very player-friendly in his layout of his guides.

Great maps. Extra Cheat codes in the back if you really want them. Helpful descriptions of each hub and what you are trying to do in each one. Because I had the book (I don't usually buy these kinds of books but I was really "stuck") I got deeper into how to use different artifacts that I normally just ignored. This made the game so much fun that I played it twice as two different characters.