When Nate Crowley tweeted that he’d come up with an imaginary videogame for every like that the tweet received, he probably didn’t realize quite what an undertaking he was in for. I was one of the people who hit like on that tweet and watched as he slowly amassed a gigantic list of game titles that never were. So I was quite excited to see the resulting book that came out of this. 100 Best Video Games (That Never Existed) takes the idea and runs with it. Making summaries of the games (in a review-like structure) alongside date of release, company, and pictures from the games.
Some of the games take punny titles (like Moulin Luge) and
go pretty much where you expect them to, while others such as Thomas the War
Engine actually feel (if in a hilarious way) like they could be games (where
getting dark reworkings is often a go-to tactic). Smaller sections within have
themes and lead to some of the better jokes: such as Jurassic Park Accountant
being one of the Film and TV Tie-In Games.
The book has a lot of charm and a good sense of playfulness
running throughout. I also enjoyed how the pics from the game very clearly
matched certain styles and eras of games. However, as with any book like this,
it’s not one you’ll read straight through, but moreso find yourself wanting to
randomly browse through it and read the occasional entry for the title that
jumps out to you. While most of the game names are fun, oftentimes the summary
hammers the joke home a little too hard.
The exception to that is my favorite of the games, Bread:
The Game, in which the endless onslaught of puns were not only impressive (who
knew there were so many bread puns possible) but also overstayed the joke so
much that it circled around to being really funny again.
Ultimately, this is enjoyable and a strangely good idea to
me, but it’s something that makes a good gift for the gamer or pun-lover in
your friend group while anyone who doesn’t fall strongly into those two groups
probably won’t find much to enjoy.
The Math
Baseline Assessment: 6/10
Bonuses: +1 for some very good puns, +1 for the artwork
Penalties: -1 for jokes feeling tired in some places, -1 for repetitiveness
Nerd Coefficient: 6/10 "still enjoyable, but the flaws are hard to ignore"
Baseline Assessment: 6/10
Bonuses: +1 for some very good puns, +1 for the artwork
Penalties: -1 for jokes feeling tired in some places, -1 for repetitiveness
Nerd Coefficient: 6/10 "still enjoyable, but the flaws are hard to ignore"
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POSTED BY: Chloe, speculative fiction fan in all forms, monster theorist, and Nerds of a Feather blogger since 2016.
POSTED BY: Chloe, speculative fiction fan in all forms, monster theorist, and Nerds of a Feather blogger since 2016.