This book really nails the balance of personal and journalism. And in small ways managed to bring you back to a time before the Internet (but just before, not the Middle Ages) -- a time that was different in so many ways that we strain to appreciate now... Or more likely just forget. The real joy in the book, for me, were the essayistic/ rhetorical flights of fancy around mid-book. The off-the-cuff re-telling of the life of Jesus in RPG terms? Yes, please.

It weaves Bible camp kids, 80s nostalgia, international copyright law, and cooperate espionage into a weird and engaging tale. There is an adept writing style and various pop culture observations usually only made by the likes of wish Chuck Klosterman and a depth typically only plumbed by writers like Charles D'Ambrosio. This is good stuff. One of the best books I have read in years.

Great first read from the Boss Fight Books series! I was happy this book went beyond waxing poetic on how shit these games are, instead extending its investigation of these stinkers into what they say about the game dev industry, faith, and the intersection of religion and commerce. It's truly a fascinating tale that goes way beyond these bizarre pixellated Christian games from a bygone era. Excited to read more from this series, I'd definitely recommend this book even to those not super familiar with the games, it's such a strange story that does a great job putting you into the context even if you're not up on yah gamer history, as my Dad says chugging a Surge™ and a Monster™ at the same time.

How could a small gaming company survive in a world where Nintendo installed chips to make sure that no unauthorized games could be played on their NES system, or where any major store who sold unauthorized games would find themselves without the blessings of Nintendo? The out of the box answer was to make "Christian" games--collect animals 2x2, work up to fighting Goliath by hurling things at Philistines, launch baby Moses into the river--created by a team of people who had almost no interest in religion, but sold enthusiastically by Christian book stores and allowed by strict parents. Durham takes on one of the oddities of his childhood, along the way examining the economic world of Christian stuff, big gaming companies, programmers and retro-players.

Informative and thoroughly entertaining look at an obscure(ish) company that used to make Christian (and I use that term loosely) video games, with observations from the author's own faith journey sprinkled in. As someone who was part of the target market for Wisdom Tree's titles as a kid and whose Christian views have also evolved quite a bit since then, I found this to be a relevant and worthwhile read.

As an old-time gamer, I was intrigued by this religious title I’d never heard of, and it turned out as a fascinating story. Religious gaming, niche and strange, but a really good read nonetheless.

I was not expecting this to be as well written or insightful. I thought I was going to read a book about the terrible NES game Bible Adventures, but he had much more to offer.

I picked this up from a Humble Bundle. This was the first Boss Fight Book I've read and I'm looking forward to reading the other ones.

A fascinating corner of video game history, presented alongside the relevant personal history of the author. Quick and satisfying. Would have appreciated some illustrations but these are easy enough to Google.

Man, I tore through this book. What a great story. There are a handful of really fascinating stories that are coming out of the video game world, and this book captures one that's gone mostly untold, or at least hasn't been condensed into a single spot until now.

More than the other Boss Fight Books, this one is a great read for gamers and non-gamers alike. It covers the story of Wisdom Tree, a company created to make non-Nintendo-licensed games for the NES that had a basis in religion. I mean, sort of.

Within that story, we get a lot of great questions. I mean, what is a truly Christian product, anyway? Is there any way to sell something with every link in the chain being Christian? Why can't we play a video game AS Jesus? What is retro and what is nostalgia, and why is it becoming such a powerful force in recent history?

And how does a single game company go from making weird games like Robodemons to making Bible Adventures, and then to starting in on a Hellraiser game? How do the building blocks of Wolfenstein, a game about shooting Nazis and ultimately Hitler, become transformed into a game about Noah, as in big-ass boat Noah?

WHAT IN THE HELL IS THIS ------> FREEFALL!?

It's a great little book that covers a very niche part of gaming, but also isn't afraid to expand into the larger world.

This book also had the best ending of the books I've read in the series. It ties everything up with some questions. If video games, it turned out, really did make you dumber, if gaming was worse than a night of hard drinking, if there was a real toll to pay, would gamers still game?

Read this book. And I am so goddamn pumped to read Metal Gear Solid, the next installment in the series, I think, that it's hard to describe.