Apple Macs don't do gaming. Such has been the refrain for many a year and that has only really changed as iOS has cross-pollinated with the Mac platform as well as Apple's focus with Apple Arcade. But that initial statement isn't actually true. In fact, it never has been, and I can prove it by telling you about Richard Moss' bulging tome on the subject.
Initially published by the crowd-funding site Unbound, this new, expanded edition of The Secret History of Mac Gaming comes courtesy of Bitmap Books. I've reviewed a couple of their titles before and those didn't disappoint. Neither does this one.
This is a compact book with a stunning design - the contrast of colours, the loving recreated original Mac on the front and back, and the striking purple fore-edges, all give this book a style of its own. It's also quite dense, with only four blank pages out of the 482 present. There are plenty of screenshots but what you'll mostly get is text, split into twenty seven chapters. These are preceded by a timeline from 1984 to 2000 (the period the book covers) detailing key moments in Mac gaming history, a foreword by Graeme Devine (co-founder of Trilobyte, creators of 7th Guest amongst other titles) and an introduction by the author. At the back of the book, there is an afterword by Craig Fryer (an Apple Evangelist, who also provides two chapters), an acknowledgement from the author and a gameography, detailing all of the titles included in each chapter. In between each chapter are small pieces of art in the mono-Mac style which are a nice touch.
The chapters themselves initially cover the early history of the Mac before moving onto the different genres that made it to the format. The topics move on to include shareware, Fryer's role in being a Mac Evangelist, and individual chapters on key companies that made a mark on the Mac gaming scene. What is evident in each chapter is the level of research Moss has undertaken to tell this story. The sheer number of interviews to cover the subject is amazing, the effort to contact individuals and follow up on them, some after over thirty-five years since their involvement in their games, is stunning. All the while, the games remain front and centre, and around 350 titles are name checked. Some merely get a mention, others get a full deep dive as they relate directly to the telling of the Mac's gaming history. In any case, that Gameography at the back of the book is invaluable.
The tale of Mac gaming is a rollercoaster ride, through the hard times and the good (thank you, Mr Slim), of Apple blowing hot and cold over gaming, and of Apple itself nearly imploding in the mid-1990's, which had a corresponding effect on the Mac gaming ecosystem. The passion of developers and company owners is plain to see, and there is more than a little luck involved for many. Some managed to make a living out of their hobby, others just got beer and pizza money - but hey, their games paid for beer and pizza! Above all, the book gives life to a period of computer gaming that will never be repeated. The industry has changed, as has technology - the cost of development, distribution methods, marketing, customer feedback - all have changed, some not for the better, and yes, this book harks back to a different time but at no point does it become maudlin. No, the author weaves the narrative easily to encompass the highs and lows of Mac gaming to the end of the 20th century and he does it in an engaging and very readable manner.
I would say there are highlights but that would be disingenuous. The book itself is consistently great though, as a fan of obscure and seen-as-failed consoles. the chapter on the Bandai Pippin was particularly tremendous and as for the stories of the shareware community... well, as you'll see at the end of this review, it is to be expanded upon. It was also nice to see the focus wasn't entirely in the US, even if it was the primary Mac market.
Is it perfect? Not quite. There is one niggle (just one niggle only, Vasily - I watched Hunt for Red October recently) and that is page 251. In the print copy I have, it doesn't exist, instead being replaced by a repeat of page 281. I love flight sims but that is a bit too much F/A-18 Hornet 3.0 for my liking. Fortunately, when you buy a print copy of a book from Bitmap, they send you a download of a pdf copy too and that had the missing page so nothing was lost.
I missed this book when it was funding on Unbound and am pleased Bitmap books have given it a re-print. This is an essential and entertaining read for anyone interested in computer gaming in the 1980's and 90's, even if the Mac wasn't your computer of choice. I cannot recommend this book enough, it has to be in your gaming reference library.
And yet there is more.
Richard Moss has a second book which has reached its funding goal on Unbound.com. Shareware Heroes covers the rise of independent developers who used a unique business model to not only keep their game creation dreams alive but created indie games that commercial publishers wouldn't touch. It's at the final design stage and, based on how great I think The Secret History of Mac Gaming is, I have pledged my support for a copy when it hopefully gets published in August 2022 (global situation depending).
You can buy The Secret History of Mac Gaming from Bitmap Books here although it is now out of stock until April 2022 (shows how popular it is) and check out Shareware Heroes here. You can also follow the author on Twitter.
No comments:
Post a Comment