Game Over: How Nintendo Conquered The World

David Sheff

Nov 2011 · Sold by Vintage

About this ebook

More American children recognize Super Mario, the hero of one of Nintendo’s video games, than Mickey Mouse. The Japanese company has come to earn more money than the big three computer giants or all Hollywood movie studios combined. Now Sheff tells of the Nintendo invasion–a tale of innovation and cutthroat tactics.

Ratings and reviews

I got this book for a project, but it was far from helpful. Mostly about the commercial side of nintendo, not so much the actual games. Leaves out important details. More specifically, forgets to mention that Super Mario Bros. 2 in America is actually based of Doki Doki Panic and that Super Mario: The Lost Levels is the REAL Super Mario Bros. 2. I guess from a money aspect this is fairly accurate, but it should credit Doki Doki Panic and mention that Miyamoto actually didn't work much on Japan's Super Mario 2 and he worked more on Doki Doki Panic, which is why (with permission and help from Dream Factory and Famicon) it was able to be turned into what America and Europe knows as Super Mario 2

Great history of Nintendo and the entire video game industry. Character descriptions are especially good with detailed look into all the main players in the industry add of 1994. Definitely dated, but good for the period it covers.

Read back in '97. Opens up the cut throat tactics Nintendo used throughout the NES years. Which shows today, why many software developer won't publish games for Nintendo consoles.

About the author

David Sheff’s articles have appeared in Playboy, Rolling Stone, The Observer, and Foreign Literature (in Russia), among other publications, and he has written for National Public Radio’s All Things Considered. His book The Playboy Interviews with John Lennon and Yoko Ono was a Literary Guild Selection. Sheff lives with his family in Northern California.