Roland opens in the post–World War II era, tracing the innovations that led to what many consider the first true video game—Tennis for Two—before charting the rise of Atari’s Pong in the 1970s and the ensuing golden age of arcades, an era defined by Space Invaders and the advent of battles for high scores. As home consoles boomed in the 1980s, arcades declined; early systems from Magnavox and Atari ceded ground to Nintendo and Sega. In the late 1990s, Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s Xbox ignited console wars, with each new generation marked by leaps in graphics, storage, controller design, and online connectivity. Roland also surveys the evolution of handheld gaming, from the Game Boy to today’s smartphones and hybrid systems. Throughout, he considers gaming’s deep cultural influences on language, fashion, popular culture, and social interactions. Roland’s view of the contemporary gaming industry is largely optimistic; he frames it as a professionalizing, diversifying field with increasing opportunities for women, although one that’s still hampered by gender inequity. Notably absent, however, is any discussion of widespread racism in gaming communities and coordinated misogynistic harassment campaigns such as Gamergate, significant omissions in a work seeking to present gaming’s social dynamics. While text boxes touch on controversies involving violence, bullying, and addiction, they skirt these major issues.
