Hello, fellow readers! Since the end of week one is fast approaching, I think it's time we all got together and discussed a little about the book.
How do you feel about the book so far? Are you enjoying it? Do you hate it? How do you feel about Bissell's writing style?
Feel free to discuss it in the comments or on Twitter. You can follow me at http://twitter.com/fomhar.
If you're interested in more of a challenge, I have a topic for you. In chapter one, Fallout, Bissell talks about playing Fallout 3 while the rest of the world was watching President Obama being elected. Have you ever missed an important event because you were playing video games? Or just spent way too much time in general?
Here's the catch, you only have two options for how you share your experience:
1. Draw a picture or comic strip. Dialogue is completely optional.
2. Write a poem. Style and length are up to you.
Don't worry if you've never written a poem or you can only draw stick people. Share your story with us! Either post them here one Bitmob, under the "Bitmob Book Club" tag, or email it to me at games.as.lit@gmail.com. I'll compile all of your comments and submissions into a post next week. You have until Tuesday of next week.
Also, if you have any feedback or suggestions, share those in the comments too. But go easy on me, I'm new to this! Most importantly, have some fun.
I really like it so far -- it seems like the kind of book I'd like to write. Bissell's style works for me because it's sophisticated without being stuffy and academic (which I hate).
He brings up some great points on the strengths and weaknesses of video games as a storytelling medium, particularly in the way they differ from traditional narrative. He rightly points out that we're still figuring out the conventions of this medium, which offers "a form of storytelling that is, in many ways, completely unprecedented (page 13)."
I think he does a much better job of illustrating this in chapter 2, though, when he relates his experience of being gripped by the cinematic style combined with jarringly-poor dialogue and intentionally clunky controls of the original Resident Evil. I absolutely love this line from the book: "I have played through the game at least a half dozen times and could not under pain of death explain its most rudimentary aspects (p29)."
Richard, I agree that his style and tone is a refreshing change of pace to much writing on games out there. And yes, this type of book is quite similar to the kind of product I'd both like to read more of and, in a pipe dream future, write one day.
I went to hear Mr. Bissell read a few days ago in Boston, and he said the crowd was three times as big as his other two readings for previous books at the same venue. It goes to show that there is an audience out there for this type of work. Hopefully its success will foster a new wave of games writing that isn't necessarily website reviews or dry technical jargon, but a more 'human' type of relating to games as a cultural artifact alongside books, films, music, etc.
So far, I'm very much enjoying the book, even though I haven't played many of the games he goes into detail on. That says a lot about his writing (which I've enjoyed in the past, especially his travel journalism).