
A History of Video Games
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Narrated by:
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Jeremy Parish
About this listen
Since their arrival in the mid-20th century, video games have become a sprawling, multi-billion dollar business. On an annual basis, the industry is even more profitable than Hollywood. Today’s video games feature stunning, lifelike visuals and complex storylines - but they didn’t start out that way.
The origin of video games can be traced back to World War II. In the 10 lectures of A History of Video Games, listeners will follow the development of the digital game from its roots in the war room to its proliferation in the 21st-century living room. Taught by journalist, podcast host, and video game historian Jeremy Parish, this lively course will track the tremendous leaps made in computing technology that allowed games to become increasingly sophisticated and the popular trends that pushed the boundaries of technology forward.
The story of video games is not just about technology. It’s also about popular culture, economics, and globalization. Throughout these lectures, students will learn about the extremely profitable gaming industry, as well as the creative minds and ambitious projects that helped build it - and even encounter a few spectacular failures. Be prepared to:
- Witness the precipitous rise and fall of Atari
- Experience the birth of blockbuster gaming systems like NES and Sega Genesis
- Learn about the evolution of the console, PC, and portable gaming
- Explore the creation of iconic game series, such as Mario Bros., Pac-Man, and Pokémon
From the simple pleasures of Pong to the complex online world of Fortnite, video games have come a long way over the course of seven decades, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon. Listeners will surely reminisce about their own experience with gaming as they learn more about this exciting industry, phenomenon, and pastime.
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About the Professor
Jeremy Parish is a journalist who has been writing about the history of video games for over 20 years. His work has been published in dozens of magazines, websites, and books. He currently works for the game publisher Limited Run Games as the in-house curator of the stories behind the games they publish. Mr. Parish is also the founder and co-host of the video game podcast Retronauts, and he hosts a weekly YouTube series called Retroworks, which recounts the chronological history of various games and gaming systems across the decades.
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Decoding Cats: Inside the Feline Mind
- By: Kristyn Vitale, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Kristyn Vitale
- Length: 4 hrs and 27 mins
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Whether you’re a cat mom or dad or just want to know more about the way domesticated animals evolved, think, and behave, join Dr. Kristyn Vitale, a researcher in the Human-Animal Interaction Lab at Oregon State University, to get inside the mind of the curious, the cute, and sometimes seemingly crazy cat.
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Many studies and some practical information
- By indykatley on 12-26-20
By: Kristyn Vitale, and others
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Sid Meier's Memoir!
- A Life in Computer Games
- By: Sid Meier, Jennifer Lee Noonan - contributor
- Narrated by: Charles Constant
- Length: 8 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Over his four-decade career, Sid Meier has produced some of the world's most popular video games, including Sid Meier's Civilization, which has sold more than 51 million units worldwide and accumulated more than one billion hours of play. Sid Meier's Memoir! is the story of an obsessive young computer enthusiast who helped launch a multibillion-dollar industry.
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Only the Interesting Stuff
- By R. Squyres on 10-05-21
By: Sid Meier, and others
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The Ultimate History of Video Games, Volume 1
- From Pong to Pokemon and Beyond . . . The Story Behind the Craze That Touched Our Lives and Changed the World
- By: Steven L. Kent
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 23 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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With all the whiz, bang, pop, and shimmer of a glowing arcade, volume 1 of The Ultimate History of Video Games reveals everything you ever wanted to know and more about the unforgettable games that changed the world, the visionaries who made them, and the fanatics who played them. Starting in arcades then moving to televisions and handheld devices, the video game invasion has entranced kids and the young at heart for nearly fifty years. And gaming historian Steven L. Kent has been there to record the craze from the very beginning.
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Misleading title for an otherwise excellent book
- By CJ on 09-26-23
By: Steven L. Kent
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The Berlin Wall: A World Divided
- By: Hope M. Harrison, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Hope M. Harrison
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
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The Berlin Wall is perhaps modern history’s most infamous edifice. The Berlin Wall: A World Divided is more than just the story of brick, concrete, and barbed wire. It’s the story of a city, a country, and a world - all of them divided. To hear how the Berlin Wall exemplified this division is to gain insights into a central tension of world history: between the human drive for freedom and the political will that would control and repress that drive.
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Woke Historian colors Berlin Wall Story
- By Miguel Angel on 01-13-22
By: Hope M. Harrison, and others
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The History of Sugar
- By: Kelley Fanto Deetz, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Kelley Fanto Deetz
- Length: 4 hrs and 11 mins
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Whatever the form, whatever the treat - sugar drives us wild like nothing else. It’s lingered on our tongues for millennia and found its way into almost every household in the world. Alas, the history of sugar is far from sweet. Long before it was linked to America’s obesity epidemic, sugar was fueling the dark forces of exploitation, colonization, conquest, and slavery. More than just candy and cake, sugar has drastically altered the diets, cultures, and economies of the modern world. How can we love sugar while having a healthy relationship with its bittersweet history?
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Story of sugar plantation life, not sugar itself
- By Yvette D Skinner on 10-19-21
By: Kelley Fanto Deetz, and others
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The Science of Love
- By: Wind Goodfriend, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Wind Goodfriend
- Length: 5 hrs and 4 mins
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What is love? It's more scientific than you think. Through 10 lectures, Dr. Wind Goodfriend surveys the biology of interpersonal attraction, sexual preference and desire, and conflict resolution. You'll look at a variety of romantic notions, common myths, and love stereotypes through the lens of science in order to break them down and better set expectations when it comes to keeping a long-term relationship happy and healthy. You'll apply biology, psychology, and anthropology to that "spark" we feel when we are attracted to someone, to better understand what that feeling is.
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what a fun science lecture!
- By Ginger Johnson on 02-22-21
By: Wind Goodfriend, and others
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Great Figures of the Civil Rights Movement
- By: Hasan Kwame Jeffries, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Hasan Kwame Jeffries
- Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
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Malcolm X. Marcus Garvey. Charles Hamilton Houston. Diane Nash. For every well-known figure of the Civil Rights Movement, there are dozens of lesser-known, yet no less significant, activists who helped advance America’s social views and helped shape race relations in this country. Most listeners have only skimmed the surface of these deeply complex, influential, and world-changing figures. Dr. Hasan Kwame Jeffries of The Ohio State University delves into their stories, presenting an intimate study of the men and women who led half a century of social change.
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Exellent!
- By Brian Purnell on 04-11-20
By: Hasan Kwame Jeffries, and others
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Game On!
- Video Game History from Pong and Pac-Man to Mario, Minecraft, and More
- By: Dustin Hansen
- Narrated by: Ryan Burke
- Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Veteran video-game designer Dustin Hansen takes YA listeners on a fun and fascinating trip through the brief but intensely innovative history of video games. Find out about the fast and furious growth and evolution of video games (including how they are quickly taking over the world!) by looking at some of the most popular, innovative, and influential games ever, from Pong, the very first arcade game ever, to modern hits like Uncharted.
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This is one of the best books I’ve read
- By K Brown on 08-13-23
By: Dustin Hansen
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Neurodiversity and the Myth of Normal
- By: Kyler Shumway, Daniel Wendler, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Kyler Shumway, Daniel Wendler
- Length: 2 hrs and 39 mins
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In six lectures, Dr. Shumway and Dr. Wendler will help you understand the nature of neurodiversity, a growing school of thought that seeks to embrace the range of differences in individual brain function and behaviors rather than “correct” them, with a focus on empathy, acceptance, and accommodation.
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Soft
- By ZC on 03-23-24
By: Kyler Shumway, and others
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The History of the Superhero
- By: Lan Dong, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Lan Dong
- Length: 3 hrs and 58 mins
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In Lan Dong’s Audible Original, The History of the Superhero, examine the roots of the superhero dynamic that’s overtaking popular culture. Encompassing both Marvel Comics’ and DC Comics’ pantheon of extraordinary heroes, these eight lectures explore how superhero comics came to be, how famous characters (and their exploits) evolved in response to social and cultural changes, how superhero cinematic universes have become an integral (and highly lucrative) part of film history, and why superheroes of all types are likely here to stay.
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Bland
- By Amazon Customer on 12-22-22
By: Lan Dong, and others
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The History of Toys, 1900 to the Present
- By: Chris Byrne, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Chris Byrne
- Length: 2 hrs and 55 mins
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Toys and games have long been a part of childhood, but the 20th century saw the rise of an entire industry devoted to the business of play, one that would constantly evolve over the years. In the six lectures of The History of Toys, 1900 to the Present, consultant and toy industry expert Chris Byrne—also known as The Toy Guy®—will take you on a journey through the world of toys from the Edwardian era to our current moment. Beginning with the birth of the mass-market toy industry, you’ll trace the many transformations of toys and our shifting theories of play and childhood development.
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Well played
- By Filson Family on 01-03-25
By: Chris Byrne, and others
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Ben Franklin’s Lessons in Life
- By: Mark Canada, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Mark Canada
- Length: 4 hrs and 27 mins
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How did a young tradesman in early 18th-century Philadelphia with no money, no connections, and no formal education end up as a leading scientist, an inventor, a master diplomat - and even a Founding Father of the United States of America? He used the same resource we have inside ourselves: a capacity for self-improvement.
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No actually titled
- By MPM on 08-20-21
By: Mark Canada, and others
What listeners say about A History of Video Games
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- Daryl
- 05-14-23
Brings up great memories
Fun trip into video game history. Learned new things about the business side of the industry.
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- Boyd L
- 03-12-23
Excellent course
There is more to video games than meets the eye, buckle up and enjoy.
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- Trevor Dailey
- 12-24-20
Retronauts Gaiden
A History of Video Games is just that, a history. The timelines don't go into too much history, but is a good overview. Jeremy's narration is what you'd like expect from a podcasting expert. If you're a Retronauts fan, this is the audiobook to listen to.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Jeremy
- 12-09-21
informative and nostalgic
educational and yet nostalgic in that it was not only a walk down memory lane for my childhood growing up in video games but also filled in mini gaps that I didn't know in the history of the art as well as taught me many interesting trivial facts of the world behind the scenes.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Michael G. Matrix
- 01-31-22
A fairly shallow and disjointed series of lectures
This reads not like a work of history, but as a collection of anecdotal information written by someone reading through Wikipedia articles.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Tiffany
- 09-07-21
insightful and well written
insightful, well written and chock-full of Mr. Parish at his best, A history of video games covers every big milestone in the history of the medium with Parish's signature serious tone and the wit of someone who quotes The Simpsons at least once in their day today lives. well worth the price of play
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- DSparks
- 06-09-21
Good history of video games
Well researched and well done. What would be nice is an update from 2010 forward!
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- Z'
- 11-21-22
Should be longer!
Jeremy Parish is someone who knows his stuff regarding videogame history, with his Youtube channel going through individual games in order of release for different consoles and explaining how they fit in both the history of the time of release, and the overall impact on general gaming history.
Unfortunately his talents are kind of wasted here, the course is simply too short to go into the details needed to be a proper history of videogames. It starts out strong with going into the details of the birth of the industry and Atari, but then moves way too fast. Entire console generations are finished in minutes, and the last few lectures are more about general industry trends and how it has adapted to the times. It's clear that Jeremy has a lot more that he wants to talk about but is constrained by the limit of course length. I hope that he is able to make more content for Audible in the future which does take advantage of his vast knowledge of individual releases and consoles.
There are several books on Audible that go into deeper videogame history, those are more comprehensive, but if you're looking for a more casual overview then this course will give you a good starting point. The information is good, and if you're a paid Audible member you can listen to it as part of the Plus catalog.
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- Rusty METAL J
- 10-03-21
Great For Gamers.
I like many different game types an video games are no exception. The 1st console we had was the NES. This was an informative look at video games like I have never experienced. Awesome book.
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2 people found this helpful
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- kixfan
- 12-27-21
Great lecture
Very well done history of video games. Just scratches the surface but it does very well on the areas it does hit.
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2 people found this helpful