How to Master the Video Games
{{Short description|1981 arcade guide book}}
How to Master the Video Games is a paperback book written by Tom Hirschfeld and published by Bantam Books in 1981. It is a guidebook exploring 30 of the most popular arcade games of its time. Grame Mason writing for Eurogamer described it as "one of the first tips books"{{cite web|title=The history of game hints pages, before the internet took over|first=Grame|last=Mason|url=https://www.eurogamer.net/the-history-of-game-hints-pages-before-the-internet-took-over|date=3 Dec 2023|website=Eurogamer}} while Scott Stilphen identified it as one of "the first 2 'how to' video game books" alongside Ken Uston's Mastering Pac-Man which came out the same year.{{cite web |url=https://www.ataricompendium.com/archives/interviews/michael_blanchet/interview_michael_blanchet.html|title=Michael Blanchet |last=Stilphen |first=Scott|date=2013|website=Atari Compendium|access-date=January 24, 2024}}{{cite book|last=Uston|first=Ken|date=1981|title=Mastering Pac-Man|location=New York|publisher=Signet|isbn=0451118995 }}
Hirschfeld divides the included games into broad categories in the table of contents: Space Invaders-type, Asteroids-type, maze, reflex, and miscellaneous.{{cite book |last1=Hirschfeld |first1=Tom |title=How to Master the Video Games |date=November 1981 |publisher=Bantam Books |isbn=978-0553201642 |url=https://archive.org/details/book_how_to_master_video_games}} Space Invaders-type corresponds to the modern genre of fixed shooter, while Asteroids-type is now called multidirectional shooter.
The book was followed by How to Master Home Video Games in 1982 by the same author.{{cite book |last1=Hirschfeld |first1=Tom |title=How to Master Home Video Games |date=March 1982 |publisher=Bantam Books |isbn=978-0553201956 |url=https://archive.org/details/book_how_to_master_home_video_games}} In 1982 Michael Blanchet released two competing books, How to Beat the Video Games{{cite book|last=Blanchet|first=Michael|date=1982|title=How to Beat the Video Games|location=New York|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=0671453750}} and How to Beat Atari, Intellivision, and Other Home Video Games.{{cite book|last=Blanchet|first=Michael|date=1982|title=How to Beat Atari, Intellivision, and Other Home Video Games|location=New York|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=0671459090}}
Reception
How to Master the Video Games sold about 650,000 copies, appearing on The New York Times mass-market paperback list.{{cite web|title=Learn The Code Book And Beat Video Games|work=Ludington Daily News|date=March 1, 1982|page=25|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=HZpaAAAAIBAJ&pg=4643,3691324}}
Stanley Greenlaw reviewed the book for Computer Gaming World, and stated that "The book is just the ticket for the game player who wants to be more than a novice. If you really want to enjoy the coin-operated arcades take a few of those spare quarters and pick up How to Master the Video Games, you'll come out ahead in the long run."{{cite journal |last=Greenlaw |first=Stanley |title=Micro - Reviews |journal=Computer Gaming World |date=January–February 1982 |volume=1 |issue=2 |pages=26–27}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://archive.org/details/Electronic_Games_Volume_01_Number_05_1982-07_Reese_Communications_US/page/n55/mode/2up Review] in Electronic Games
- [https://archive.org/details/games-29-1982-may/page/56/mode/2up Review] in Games