We play games to kill time. But what does it mean when games start killing us?
Simon Parkin is an award-winning writer and journalist from England. A sought-after video game pundit, Parkin has been a guest on BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5 Live and his criticism and journalism has featured in numerous high-profile publications, including the New Yorker, Guardian and New Statesman.
Parkin has a deft sense of the ways that video games appeal to and
satiate the longings of the spirit ... Death by Video Game offers
an excellent sociocultural study of the 21st century's
quintessential art form
*Washington Post*
Engaging, multifaceted, exhaustive, and touching ... exceptional
... Parkin excels at combining in-depth, unflinching journalism
with smart prose ... a must read
*Pop Matters*
The best book about video games ... brainy enough to appeal to even
the deepest gamer, and yet accessible enough for the reader who
hasn't picked up a controller in years
*GQ*
A sort of love-letter travelogue [and a] thought-provoking
introduction to the fastest-growing religion on the planet
*The Times*
A thoughtful and intelligent exploration ... Parkin holds a mirror
up to society, allowing even those with no personal gaming
experience to gain insight into this global obsession
*BBC Focus*
One of the best writers around on games and games culture ...
Parkin's quest for the big picture quickly takes him on to the many
ways in which video games are a part of life
*New Scientist*
One of the most effortless and masterly voices in video game
writing ... [Death by Video Game is] an enlightening and
well-informed survey of developments in the medium, attempting to
explain what it is that drives people to these virtual worlds ...
[Parkin] offers the kinds of measured and erudite perspectives that
are rare in discussions of this medium
*New Statesman*
The book is rich in personalities ... Parkin is an excellent
writer, sensitive and empathetic, at his best when simply talking
with people ... for Parkin, games are a safe place to retreat to
from a more complicated, dangerous and unpredictable world
*Times Literary Supplement*
Terrific ... [Parkin is] one of the best journalists and critics
who writes about games ... a meditation on video games and their
peculiar power over us
*Kotaku*
Remarkable ... Parkin's style [is] energised by empathy alongside
his ability to craft an engaging human story ... this fine book is
a must-read for those who play games as well as those who seek to
understand the attraction that this form of play holds for others -
such as parents bemused by their child's immersion in the popular
world of Minecraft
*Australian*
Groundbreaking ... his reportage leads to brilliant, fresh insights
... accomplishing that rare feat of teaching while entertaining,
this work ignites a series of debates crucial to the future of
video games
*Library Journal*
Parkin has a literary eye for scenic and investigative detail ...
thoughtful, serious criticism on gaming and play
*New York Times Book Review*
[A] precise and fluent study ... an expansive, detailed and
memorable tour of digital frontiers
*Literary Review*
What these stories share - besides Parkin's exceptional flair for
writing - is [a] deep-seated affection for gaming ... [Death by
Video Game] explains, with wisdom and generosity, precisely what it
is about gaming that draws us to the art
*Details Magazine*
Parkin is a powerful writer ... the prose gleams with enthusiasm
and wonder and as far as any book can transport us into these
digital worlds, Parkin does so marvellously
*National*
Entertaining ... [Parkin is] one of the leading voices in video
games journalism ... fascinating reading.
*Independent*
An in-depth look at the role of video games in society ... [Parkin]
invites readers to examine human nature and the multitude of ways
video games fit into our world
*South China Morning Post*
An entertaining, intelligent read
*Shortlist*
A fantastic insight into video game obsession
*International Business Times*
Entertaining ... enjoyable and informative
*Fortean Times*
Simon Parkin's surgical story-telling reveals the humanity, beauty
and truth beneath the surface of our digital adventuring
*Jonathan Smith, Director of the National Videogame Arcade*
The finest book on video games yet. Simon Parkin thinks like a
critic, conjures like a novelist, and writes like an artist at the
height of his powers - which, in fact, he is.
*Tom Bissell, author of Extra Lives and God Lives in St.
Petersburg*
Death by Video Game is life by video games. Simon Parkin is
gaming's Jon Ronson, and his book charts the extremes of the medium
to try to answer the question why the hell do we all care about
video games anyway?'
*Kieron Gillen, writer of Iron Man, Uncanny X-Men and The Wicked +
The Divine, co-founder of Rock, Paper, Shotgun*
The best book about video games I've read since I wrote one
*Steven Poole, author of Trigger Happy*
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