At it's best moments, this book does a really great job of being both about games and evoking the if-then logic of games and game decision points. It also has interesting stuff about game engines (how they shape and constrain creation) and collaboration (the Jobs+Woz dynamic of a salesperson and a designer). It also feels like it was written for late Gen-X or early Millenials - references to Donkey Kong, Oregon Trail, Everquest, etc.

I think I would've liked it more if it were shorter...I liked the first half much better than the second, and some of that is because the latter half ends up pulling in mass shootings and 9-11 in a way that didn't feel like it connected with the core of the novel.

I should add that I listened to this, and I do think reading it would provide even more of that if-then logic. It's hard to pay close attention to structure (the book does some interesting stuff with chapter titles and branching logics at one point that doesn't translate as well in an audiobook).