Once upon Atari Audiobook By Howard Scott Warshaw cover art

Once upon Atari

How I Made History by Killing an Industry

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Once upon Atari

By: Howard Scott Warshaw
Narrated by: Howard Scott Warshaw
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Video games set the world on fire, and Atari lit the match. This is an intimate view into the dramatic rise and fall of the early video game industry, as seen through the eyes of one of its most iconic pioneers. This book offers eye-opening details and insights, laying bare the issues and dynamics still taking place in modern software companies. A must-hear for anyone in high-tech production, delivered in a compelling narrative, with a fresh voice and unorthodox style.

How much fun can you have inventing video games in a creative paradise? What behind-the-scenes corporate intrigue went on while making billions of dollars and launching a new medium? What really caused the video game crash of 1983? Once upon Atari is the inside story of how it all happened and how it upended the life of one of its key players. An innovative work from one of the industry’s original innovators, delivered in a creative style that mirrors the industry it reveals. It is a compelling tale of innocence, joy, greed, devastation, and ultimately redemption.

©2020 Howard Scott Warshaw (P)2022 Howard Scott Warshaw Video Game Science & Technology Biographies & Memoirs Software Technology Thought-Provoking Witty Professionals & Academics Funny
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Fascinating History • Insightful Reflections • Excellent Storytelling • Compelling Anecdotes • Informative Content

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I loved this story from start to finish . A great look at Atari from it's glory days from the inside . What a roller-coaster ride it was for one of the greatest video game engineers of all times . The unbelievable time crunch that he faced and the end of the great gaming giant is all here to be learned about from someone that witnessed it all first hand .

Awesome story from start to finish !!!!

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If you think you might want to read this book, you probably DO want to read this book. Recommended.

A fascinating look at the dawn of an industry

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I didn’t really like the way this book flowed but Dr Warshaw is a great narrator and should do more voice work.

Narration

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This book is such a great look at the heyday of Atari, it's culture and the fall of the industry. it's written with such great humor and do well read, I found myself laughing often and sometimes hard. I love Howard's way if putting things and he's got a good delivery. Tons of amazing stories.

Must Read if You're Into Videogames

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How to rate this book. As a narrative, it is one of the more frustrating historical tales I’ve heard. Whereas some autobiographers opt for understating some of the various big moments, Howard (aka “HSW”) goes hard in the other direction, greedily squeezing every single little drop he can from the (frankly few) interesting anecdotes in the book. You get the up-front tease, so you know the anecdote is coming; then you get the narrative that almost gets to it; then you get the random diversion(s) to try and build the tension; then you get back to the anecdote only to veer off again; and so forth.

Having said that, I loved listening to HSW. He’s got a nerd’s wit, and he employs it constantly, but, hey, it works for me. He’s is just constantly nuancing the sh*t out of the prose, with all kinds of fun little wordplay. It should be obnoxious. If I were reading this, I’d probably find it insufferable and quit. But when he delivers it (at the 1.2x I use for playback) it’s just so much fun.

And so I found myself liking HSW’s delivery, and how it prolongs what ought to be an article-length little thought piece on the collapse of Atari, into a prolonged time machine into a bygone charmed era that I enjoy living through again, with HSW as my proxy.

So, four stars for this thing. I enjoyed it. And four stars for HSW’s delightful performance. These are solid ratings in my book. I can only give the story two stars because, geez HSW, you really, really, really milked the stuffing out of your little tale. But I did enjoy it.

An Entertaining and Insightful Ramble of a Book

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