Retro gaming books have continued to provide an additional distraction for me during the last few months and so two more were inbound recently, both from an author who has been mentioned in my past posts. I think this has lead me back down the rabbit hole again as I’ve added a more books to my Amazon wish list! What can I say… I like to read about the old days!

Adventure: The Atari 2600 at the dawn of console gaming, by Jamie Lendino

I do enjoy the format that the author has used in his previous books with regard to covering the history of Atari systems as it combined a history of the product interspersed with notable games during those periods of its history. And with the Atari 2600 there is a lot to go over, not only in what the console itself delivered but how it impacted the market too. I played a lot of games that were listed here either at home or at friends and it was a bit of test seeing how much I could remember! Seeing River Raid get a mention always makes me happy and there are quite a few notable games which I hadn’t played at all which makes me think I need to start hunting for them again on eBay…

Attract Mode: The Rise and Fall of Coin-Op Arcade Games, by Jamie Lendino

This time it’s arcades that get their time and it’s also the biggest one of Lendino’s books I have in my collection. Atari still gets their fair share of mentions as they were an early pioneer but many of the other companies who made a name for themselves in the industry get their time too. It’s another nice bit of nostalgia for me and also takes a few steps beyond my favourite retro platform. I’m just diving into this book now so looking forward to reading it.

Thinking back to that time there weren’t a huge number of arcades where I grew up but I do still remember the sounds and getting a buzz from seeing so many games in the one place. I did start from the time of Space Invaders, Pac-Man and Asteroids but most of my memories are from Golden Axe, TMNT and Daytona USA/Sega Rally when my friends and I could spend time outside school to play them. For me the opportunities to play weren’t as plentiful as I’d have wished for but I still have a lot of fond memories of those days.

The “arcade” venues that are left now are mainly filled with ticket machines that young kids play to desperately get some small trinket on a shelf while the remaining arcade games are left to keep the parents distracted. Or at least that’s my take on it anyway! 😉