Overview

It is, perhaps, the perfect video game. Simple yet addictive, Tetris delivers an irresistible, unending puzzle that has players hooked. Play it long enough and you ll see those brightly colored geometric shapes everywhere. You ll see them in your dreams. Alexey Pajitnov had big ideas about games. In 1984, he created Tetris in his spare time while developing software for the Soviet government. Once Tetris emerged from behind the Iron Curtain, it was an instant hit. Nintendo, Atari, Sega game developers big and small all wanted Tetris. A bidding war was sparked, followed by clandestine trips to Moscow, backroom deals, innumerable miscommunications, and outright theft. In this graphic novel, New York Times bestselling author Box Brown untangles this complex history and delves deep into the role games play in art, culture, and commerce. For the first time and in unparalleled detail, Tetris: The Games People Play tells the true story of the world s most popular video game.

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9780606399975

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Reviews

One of gaming's most intriguing tales...A book to watch. <i>Nerdist</i></p> [A] look at the creation of Alexey Pajitnov s enduring classic and the drama that ensues when people with big bags of money try to cash in the game s popularity. <i>Kotaku</i></p> A rich read that provides valuable context for the rise of video games in the late 20th century. <i>A.V. Club</i> This is a work about the bittersweet dissonances of artistic creativity and commercial greed and the ephemeral yet crucial joy we get from making things fall into place. io9</p> Against the backdrop of the Cold War, the saga of Tetris played out like a spy thriller tragic deaths, corporate conspiracies, the prestige of nations hanging in the balance. <i>Boston Globe</i></p> A clean and engaging visual style supports a story that sustains narrative drive, humanizing the characters and making readers care about every development. <i>Kirkus</i>, starred review</p> <i>Tetris</i> is a remarkably spare work, cleanly and effortlessly introducing countless real-life characters and companies that intersect and tangle together in a game of tug-of-war. GQ</p>

One of gaming's most intriguing tales...A book to watch. Nerdist [A] look at the creation of Alexey Pajitnov s enduring classic and the drama that ensues when people with big bags of money try to cash in the game s popularity. Kotaku A rich read that provides valuable context for the rise of video games in the late 20th century. A.V. Club This is a work about the bittersweet dissonances of artistic creativity and commercial greed and the ephemeral yet crucial joy we get from making things fall into place. io9 Against the backdrop of the Cold War, the saga of Tetris played out like a spy thriller tragic deaths, corporate conspiracies, the prestige of nations hanging in the balance. Boston Globe A clean and engaging visual style supports a story that sustains narrative drive, humanizing the characters and making readers care about every development. Kirkus, starred review Tetris is a remarkably spare work, cleanly and effortlessly introducing countless real-life characters and companies that intersect and tangle together in a game of tug-of-war. GQ

Author Information

Box Brown is an Ignatz Award-winning cartoonist, illustrator, and comic publisher from Philadelphia. His book Andre the Giant: Life and Legend was released in 2014 and spent three weeks on the New York Times bestsellers list. His second graphic novel with publisher First Second is Tetris: The Games People Play. Brown launched the independent comics publishing house Retrofit Comics in 2011.

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