1st Edition

Science Fiction Video Games

By Neal Roger Tringham Copyright 2015
    536 Pages 71 B/W Illustrations
    by A K Peters/CRC Press

    536 Pages
    by A K Peters/CRC Press

    Understand Video Games as Works of Science Fiction and Interactive Stories
    Science Fiction Video Games focuses on games that are part of the science fiction genre, rather than set in magical milieux or exaggerated versions of our own world. Unlike many existing books and websites that cover some of the same material, this book emphasizes critical analysis, especially the analysis of narrative. The author analyzes narrative via an original categorization of story forms in games. He also discusses video games as works of science fiction, including their characteristic themes and the links between them and other forms of science fiction.

    Delve into a Collection of Science Fiction Games
    The beginning chapters explore game design and the history of science-fictional video games. The majority of the text deals with individual science-fictional games and the histories and natures of their various forms, such as the puzzle-based adventure and the more exploratory and immediate computer role-playing game (RPG).

    Video Games and Science Fiction
    Further Reading

    Game Narratives
    Further Reading
    Game Design
    Further Reading

    Hyperfiction
    Further Reading

    Independent Games
    Further Reading

    Adventures
    Further Reading
    Beneath a Steel Sky
    Beyond Good & Evil
    Bioforge
    Bureau 13
    Call of Cthulhu
    Chronomaster
    Cyborg
    Dark Earth
    Destroy All Humans!
    Dig, The
    Dishonored
    Enslaved: Odyssey to the West
    Exile
    Fahrenheit 451
    Fish!
    Full Throttle
    Gene Machine, The
    Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The
    I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream
    inFAMOUS
    Infocomics
    Journeyman Project, The
    KULT: The Temple of Flying Saucers
    Last of Us, The
    Leather Goddesses of Phobos
    Longest Journey, The
    Machinarium
    Manhunter
    Maniac Mansion
    Maniac Mansion: Day of the Tentacle
    Marsport
    Mind Forever Voyaging, A
    Mindwheel
    Nomad Soul, The
    Obsidian
    Outcast
    Pathologic
    Pepper’s Adventures in Time
    Planetfall
    Portal
    Prototype
    Remember Me
    Shadow of Memories
    Silicon Dreams
    Snatcher
    Space Quest
    Starcross
    Starship Titanic
    Star Trek: 25th Anniversary
    Suspended: A Cryogenic Nightmare
    Tex Murphy
    Timequest
    Time Zone
    To the Moon
    Trinity
    Woodruff and the Schnibble of Azimuth
    Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders

    Computer Role Playing Games
    Further Reading
    Albion
    Alien Logic
    Anachronox
    Autoduel
    B.A.T.
    Borderlands
    Buck Rogers XX VC
    Chrono Trigger
    Circuit’s Edge
    Empire I: World Builders
    Fallout
    Final Fantasy
    Freedom Force
    Front Mission
    .hack
    Infinite Space
    Mass Effect
    MegaTraveller
    Further Reading
    Mother
    Phantasy Star
    Resonance of Fate
    Rogue Galaxy
    Sentinel Worlds
    Septerra Core: Legacy of the Creator
    Shadowrun
    Space
    Space: 1889
    Starflight
    Star Ocean
    Starquest
    Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
    Sundog: Frozen Legacy
    Twilight: 2000
    Wasteland
    Worlds of Ultima
    Xenoblade Chronicles
    Xenogears

    Online Worlds
    Further Reading
    Anarchy Online
    Champions Online
    City of Heroes
    Defiance
    EVE Online
    Star Wars: Galaxies
    Star Wars: The Old Republic
    Tabula Rasa

    Alternate Reality Games
    Further Reading
    Beast, The
    Majestic

    First-Person Shooters
    Further Reading
    Aliens Versus Predator
    Bioshock
    Cryostasis
    Crysis
    Deus Ex
    Doom
    FEAR: First Encounter Assault Recon
    Half-Life
    Halo: Combat Evolved
    Heavy Gear
    Marathon Trilogy
    Metaltech
    Metro 2033
    Perfect Dark
    Quake
    Rage
    Red Faction
    Resistance: Fall of Man
    Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl
    System Shock
    Unreal

    Third-Person Shooters
    Gears of War
    Metal Gear
    Oni

    Survival Horror
    Dead Space
    Resident Evil

    Computer Wargames
    Further Reading
    Andromeda Conquest
    BattleTech
    Further Reading
    Battlezone
    Carrier Command
    Command & Conquer
    Darwinia
    Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty
    Frozen Synapse
    Galactic Saga
    Homeworld
    Hostile Waters: Antaeus Rising
    Laser Squad
    Midwinter
    Ogre
    Perimeter
    Renegade Legion: Interceptor
    RobotWar
    Sins of a Solar Empire
    Starcraft
    Starfleet Command
    Starfleet Orion
    Star General
    Star Trek
    Supreme Commander
    Syndicate
    Total Annihilation
    Warhammer 40,000
    X-COM

    4X Games
    Emperor of the Fading Suns
    Galactic Civilizations
    Master of Orion
    Reach for the Stars
    Sid Meier’s Alpha Centauri
    VGA Planets

    God Games
    Evil Genius
    Fate of the World
    Spore
    Startopia

    Toy Games
    Microsoft Space Simulator
    SIMEarth

    Space Sims
    Further Reading
    Archimedean Dynasty
    Battlecruiser 3000 AD
    Captain Blood
    Elite
    Freelancer
    Freespace
    Independence War: The Starship Simulator
    Space Rangers
    Star Control
    Star Raiders
    Star Wars: X-Wing
    Transarctica
    Universe
    Wing Commander
    X Series, The

    Others
    Angry Birds Space
    Another World
    Asteroids
    Crimson Skies
    Defender
    Deus Ex Machina
    It Came from the Desert
    Lunar Lander
    Mercenary
    Metroid
    Mirror’s Edge
    Missile Command
    Mule
    Psychonauts
    Robotron
    Sentinel, The
    Space Invaders
    Further Reading
    Spacewar
    Further Reading
    Speedball
    Star Saga
    Strange Adventures in Infinite Space
    Trust and Betrayal: The Legacy of Siboot
    Wings out of Shadow
    Wipeout

    Glossary

    Bibliography

    Index

    Biography

    Neal Tringham is a videogame developer, a former astrophysicist, and a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society. He is also a contributing editor of and contributor to the third edition of the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction , winner of the 2012 Hugo Award for Best Related Work. He has worked on a number of games, including Aliens versus Predator, Taito Legends, and Ghost Master .

    "Neal Tringham has created an essential book that critically explores a significant breadth of video games that stand apart as proper works of science fiction. Video game and science fiction fans alike are sure to be engaged by the well-wrought narrative presented."
    —Bill Loguidice, Armchair Arcade, Inc.

    "A great star ship captain once said space, the final frontier, was where no one has gone before. Well, it’s certainly a place that many gamers have gone before. Indeed, science fiction is, as this book makes clear, the premier destination for games since their inception. Why science fiction worlds and narratives in games have remained so prevalent is a question worth pondering. This book will be vital reading for any and all game designers and writers interested in science fiction in games, as well as critics and students researching the connections between game design, narrative, and the literary study of science fiction."
    —Matt Barton, Armchair Arcade, Inc.