The PlayStation Anthology by Geeks-Line - Book Review

This is the last of the anthologies from Geeks-Line that were part of the Kickstart-backed PC Engine Anthology purchase last year and one that departs from the format set by the previous releases. The English publication of the PlayStation Anthology lacks the games directory. Does this make it a lesser book? Certainly not, but what do you get instead?

First up, you get a well made and high quality publication. I know it's becoming a bit repetitive but there are no issues with the print, art style or layout of any of the Geeks-Line books I've read, and the PlayStation volume continues that trend. 

The first hundred or so pages tells the tale of Sony and the PlayStation. I do like how the authors include the background to the company with each of their titles, and the story of the early days of Sony was unknown to me until now. Relayed chronologically, this gives a reasonably well balanced telling of how Sony approached the videogames market and changed it for ever. And no, that's not hyperbole. There are plenty of photographs, charts and side boxes with additional info as well.

The next 150-ish pages are the interviews, and this is where the PlayStation Anthology scores over other entries in the series. From Yuji Horii to Lorna Planning via Martin Edmonson, Ian Livingston, Charles Cecil, Yoshinori Kinase and Tommy Tellarico, there are 26 interviews in total and these are packed with tidbits, asides and fun little facts. Their length varies from three pages to nine, the average being four. Once again, there are photographs, screenshots and artwork galore, and I believe almost everyone who reads these will find out something new for their trouble.

Sixty pages deal with the many collectable and special edition titles from all three main markets, before we move onto the Hardware section. You get an overview of the console, how it changed over the years it was in production, the controller, packaging styles, bundles, accessories and the like. The section on the use of PlayStation hardware in arcades was another, to me, little known area and a cracking read. The tail end of the book covers unreleased titles, some in a bit of detail. The list of Kickstarter backers and some Oddworld art finish off the package. 

Despite the lack of coverage on actual games, there is much to read here and this certainly is a great celebration of the glory days of 32-bit home console gaming. If I had to pick a fault, well, there are a few idiosyncrasies with the text in the front half of the book - oddly hyphenated words and the odd typo, but I am stretching here.  

This is yet another great release from Geeks-Line and it will joint the existing three volumes on a shelf for future reference. Sadly, at present, it seems to be out of print on the Geeks-Line website but, if you can get your hands on a copy, I recommend you do so. Check out the Geeks-Line website here for more information and, you never know, they might complete another print run at some point. 

Oh, and if you're a Gameboy fan, Geeks-Line currently have a Kickstarter on the go for a GameBoy Anthology. Check it out here if you are interested.