Confessions of the game doctor

180 pages

English language

Published Dec. 15, 2005 by Rolenta Press.

ISBN:: 978-0-9643848-9-7

(2 reviews)

In 1981 Bill Kunkel and Arnie Katz founded Electronic Games magazine, the first magazine devoted entirely to the new generation of plugged-in entertainment from video and computer games to hand-helds, tabletop games, coin-ops and even state-of-the-art military and training simulators. Although the magazine only lasted just a few issues past its third birthday, it is still regarded as one of the finest game magazines ever published. Now, Bill Kunkel, a.k.a. The Game Doctor, reveals the untold stories behind both the magazine, and the people who brought us the ‘classic’ era of electronic gaming, along with other personal memoirs ranging from his early days as a comic book writer and rock guitarist to the sad saga of how his lifelong dream of becoming The Batman became the basis of a nightmarish movie/computer game tie-in experience.

Whether you’re a fan of videogames, comic books, or simply love to hear good inside stories …

In 1981 Bill Kunkel and Arnie Katz founded Electronic Games magazine, the first magazine devoted entirely to the new generation of plugged-in entertainment from video and computer games to hand-helds, tabletop games, coin-ops and even state-of-the-art military and training simulators. Although the magazine only lasted just a few issues past its third birthday, it is still regarded as one of the finest game magazines ever published. Now, Bill Kunkel, a.k.a. The Game Doctor, reveals the untold stories behind both the magazine, and the people who brought us the ‘classic’ era of electronic gaming, along with other personal memoirs ranging from his early days as a comic book writer and rock guitarist to the sad saga of how his lifelong dream of becoming The Batman became the basis of a nightmarish movie/computer game tie-in experience.

Whether you’re a fan of videogames, comic books, or simply love to hear good inside stories told with a spark of wit and candor, gather round. Confessions of the Game Doctor is just what the doctor ordered.

1 edition

LemmiSchmoeker reviewed Confessions of the game doctor by Bill Kunkel

Review of 'Confessions of the game doctor' on 'Storygraph'

3 stars

Due to some semi-personal encounters with Mr. Kunkel on the internet I have never been a big fan of his, so this book was a good opportunity to see another side of him. I had never heard of the Game Doctor before, but that might be a German (on rather non-American) thing. Doing some research showed me that indeed, the Kunkel/Katz/Worley team had been among the very first to professionally write about video games. From that perspective, this is a very interesting book. It is also quite humourous and sets a light-hearted pace that makes reading the book a pleasure. Unfortunately, one can never shake off the feeling of an insecure and bitter author who feels he has not been getting the attention he so clearly deserves for his achievements. He misses no chance to point out how cool and how much of a scoundrel he was, even his drug …

Due to some semi-personal encounters with Mr. Kunkel on the internet I have never been a big fan of his, so this book was a good opportunity to see another side of him. I had never heard of the Game Doctor before, but that might be a German (on rather non-American) thing. Doing some research showed me that indeed, the Kunkel/Katz/Worley team had been among the very first to professionally write about video games. From that perspective, this is a very interesting book. It is also quite humourous and sets a light-hearted pace that makes reading the book a pleasure. Unfortunately, one can never shake off the feeling of an insecure and bitter author who feels he has not been getting the attention he so clearly deserves for his achievements. He misses no chance to point out how cool and how much of a scoundrel he was, even his drug abuse is mentioned in a somewhat melancholy way. While there are many interesting and funny anecdotes to be found, this narcissism leaves a bad aftertaste that taints the whole experience.

Terrance

rated it

May 31, 2013