Sega, vs Nintendo and the Battle That Defined a Generation
Blake J. Harris, Blake Harris: Console Wars (2014, Atlantic Books, Limited)
300 pages
English language
Published June 10, 2014 by Atlantic Books, Limited.
From the Forward...
Nintendo was king of home videogame entertainment systems, then Sega came in and was a contender for the crown. Sega almost toppled Nintendo with their subversive and more adult-oriented games, and these games have led us to a world where GTA and Call of Duty are the top games, and the next step is to have the games incorporate stuff about us and our personal lives, and then sentient technology will inevitably disassociate from mankind and some robot like Skynet will rise up and destroy us all. Hence: the “Console Wars” between Nintendo and Sega is what began a series of events that will lead to the end of humanity as we know it.
My husband is a game developer, and this is his favorite book. It was pretty interesting.
Manages to take the story of Sega's rise in the US and turn it into an exciting story of an underdog. Ends with the Sega Saturn, so not a happy ending.
Manages to take the story of Sega's rise in the US and turn it into an exciting story of an underdog. Ends with the Sega Saturn, so not a happy ending.
I'm not sure what can really be said. If you grew up during the days of Sega vs Nintendo, this is a must read. It offers a very interesting look at some of the struggles and politics that took place behind the scenes. Put on those rose colored glasses and travel back to simpler time. Did you play it loud or were you welcomed to the next level?
A must read from me 5/5!
I'm not sure what can really be said. If you grew up during the days of Sega vs Nintendo, this is a must read. It offers a very interesting look at some of the struggles and politics that took place behind the scenes. Put on those rose colored glasses and travel back to simpler time. Did you play it loud or were you welcomed to the next level?
A must read from me 5/5!
This book would have been more aptly named, "The Rise and Fall of Sega," as it puts Sega at the center of the universe. It definitely simplifies the story to Sega of America as hero, with Nintendo and Sega of Japan the villains. In fact, it not-so-subtly places Sega's undoing squarely on the shoulders of the Japanese, painting them as self-righteous, xenophobic dolts that muddled their way to mediocrity in Japan and then pulled Sega of America down with them. Regardless, it's an easy-to-read, fascinating story about how Sega came out of nowhere to capture the 16-bit video game market, then just as quickly went back to that nowhere as the market moved to 32 bits. The story stops abruptly at the Saturn flop, as that's when the story's protagonist, Tom Kalinske, vacates his CEO role at Sega. It would have been nice to understand how Sega subsequently stuck around …
This book would have been more aptly named, "The Rise and Fall of Sega," as it puts Sega at the center of the universe. It definitely simplifies the story to Sega of America as hero, with Nintendo and Sega of Japan the villains. In fact, it not-so-subtly places Sega's undoing squarely on the shoulders of the Japanese, painting them as self-righteous, xenophobic dolts that muddled their way to mediocrity in Japan and then pulled Sega of America down with them. Regardless, it's an easy-to-read, fascinating story about how Sega came out of nowhere to capture the 16-bit video game market, then just as quickly went back to that nowhere as the market moved to 32 bits. The story stops abruptly at the Saturn flop, as that's when the story's protagonist, Tom Kalinske, vacates his CEO role at Sega. It would have been nice to understand how Sega subsequently stuck around long enough to release the Dreamcast and why that flopped, and also have a "what are they doing now" section. Still, if you want to relive the story behind the Sega Scream, this is a good place to turn.
