Virtual worlds Books

Book SynopsisStep into the Animus and prepare to be transported to the world of Assassin's Creed! With 40 recipes across ten full menus - each inspired by the times and places where the most famous Assassins lived and fought - you can relive the highlights of the Italian Renaissance, the French Revolution and even Victorian London. Follow Altair, Ezio, Arno, Evie, Jacob and all the Assassins of the Brotherhood while enjoying their most celebrated dishes: Masyaf Moutabel, Davenport Homestead Soup, Boston Apple Pie, Colonial Coleslaw, Meringues Mirabeau, Rooks' Bread Pudding and many more.

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Book SynopsisA compendium of sweet and savoury recipes inspired by Blizzard’s hit online card game, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft. Featuring a dynamic in-world design, this fun and engaging cookbook is an exciting follow-up to World of Warcraft: The Official Cookbook. Including food pairings for each dish and tips on adapting meals to specific diets, this portable little cookbook is the perfect culinary guide for weary travellers from Azeroth and beyond.

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Book SynopsisTwenty-five years ago, Matt Leone couldn't think of anything better to pad out his birthday thank you notes, so he filled them withMortal Kombat IIfacts and has been writing about games ever since. Currently, he's an editor at Polygon, working with freelancers and reporting on behind the scenes aspects of the game industry.Table of ContentsThe Interviewees: Shigeo Maruyama, Hironobu Sakaguchi, Motonori Sakakibara, Tomoyuki Takechi, Tatsuya Yoshinari, Kyoko Higo, Yoshihiro Maruyama, Hiroshi Kawai, Yoshinori Kitase, Tetsuya Nomura, Kazuyuki Hashimoto, Keith Boesky, Yoshitaka Amano, Shinichiro Kajitani, Darren Smith, Junichi Yanagihara, Shuhei Yoshida, Jun Iwasaki, George Harrison, Hiroki Chiba, Frank Hom, Nobuo Uematsu, Alexander O. Smith, Kazushige Nojima, Seth Luisi, David Bamberger, Elaine Di Iorio, William Chen, Rex Ishibashi, John Riccitiello, Yoichi Wada, Yusuke Naora

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Book SynopsisThe metaverse is here. Are you ready? In?The Metaverse Handbook: Innovating for the Internet''s Next Tectonic Shift, a duo of experienced tech and culture experts delivers a can''t-miss guide to participating in the most promising new technology since the advent of the web. Through dozens of metaverse creator case studies and concise, actionable insights, you''ll walk away from this book understanding how to explore and implement the latest metaverse tech emerging from blockchain, XR, and web3. In The Metaverse Handbook, you''ll discover: What the metaverse is, why you should care about it, and how to build your metaverse strategy The history of the metaverse and primers on critical technologies driving the metaverse, including non-fungible tokens, XR, the blockchain, and web3 How to unearth unique metaverse opportunities in digital communities, commerce, and immersive experiences As the metaverse has raTable of ContentsAbout the Authors vi Acknowledgments ix Foreword xvii Introduction xxi Chapter 1 A Vision for the Metaverse in 2032 1 Extended Reality Emerges 3 Your Own Personalized Metaverse 4 The Rise of Bots and Digital Humans 6 The Ubiquitous Metaverse 9 Chapter 2 What Is the Metaverse? 11 From Snow Crash to Meta 13 Defining the Metaverse 19 The Metaverse Represents the Next Digital Shifts 21 Changes to Digital Identity 23 Changes to Digital Value 28 Digital Respect and Signaling Identity 30 Access to Exclusive Internet Experiences 31 Crowdfunding 2.0 33 Changes to Internet Immersion 36 It Starts with Web3 Communities 39 What’s the Metaverse’s Interface? 40 Preparing for the Metaverse 41 Chapter 3 Why You Should Care About the Metaverse Now 45 The Well-Timed Interest Geek 47 Interest Geeks of the Metaverse 50 Interest Geeks Over Power Brokers 53 Chapter 4 History of the Metaverse 57 La Réalité Virtuelle 58 The Early Internet 60 Early Virtual Worlds 62 Blockchain and Digital Assets 65 The Modern Metaverse 68 Chapter 5 The Metaverse Building Blocks 75 The Main Metaverse Tools 78 The Secondary Metaverse Tools 82 Building Your First Metaverse Asset 85 Chapter 6 Enter the Metaverse 87 Sandbox Metaverses 92 Decentraland 93 The Sandbox 103 Cryptovoxels 105 Somnium Space 105 Honorable Mentions 106 Gaming Metaverses 108 Miscellaneous Metaverses 114 Digital Presence 114 Phygital Commerce 115 Readymade Metaverse Environments 116 Social VR Worlds 117 The Mass Migration to the Metaverse 118 Chapter 7 Metaverse Assets 121 What We Will Own in the Metaverse 125 Avatars 126 Accessories 129 Objects 132 Real Estate 134 Metaverse Asset Management 136 Chapter 8 Challenges of the Metaverse 139 Interoperable Economies 140 Interoperable Graphics and Hardware 145 The Negative Narratives of the Metaverse 147 Chapter 9 Your Metaverse Plan 151 Designing Your Metaverse Plan 152 For Brands and Corporations with IP 153 For Entertainers 156 For Metaverse Interest Geeks 157 Further Reading at MetaverseQT.com 158 Index 161

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Book SynopsisAs featured on BBC RADIO 4's Start the Week: a dazzling look at modern videogame worlds seen through an architectural lens, utilizing maps, diagrams and graphic illustrations to offer new perspectives on the art of virtual world building. Videogame Atlas presents a journey through twelve well-known videogame worlds via panoramic maps, intricate exploded diagrams and detailed illustrations. The book offers a playful new way of seeing these beloved virtual worlds using the practices and academic rigour that underpins real-world architectural theory. Titles such as Minecraft, Assassinâs Creed Unity and Final Fantasy VII are explored in exhaustive detail through over 200 detailed illustrations of the micro and macro, each with supporting commentary and architectural theory. Taking influence from high-end architectural monographs, the book is carefully designed to the smallest of details and its production is intricately executed. This book, printed in five colours, with neoTrade Review'Aims to showcase the artistic and design merits of video games... Worth a read... One of the precious few publications focusing on the intersection between [architectural and video game design]' - Canadian ArchitectTable of ContentsIntroduction 1. Stardew Valley, Nintendo 2016 2. Assassin’s Creed Unity, Ubisoft 2014 3. Cities: Skylines, Colossal Order 2015 4. Death Stranding, Kojima Productions 2019 5. Dwarf Fortress, Bay 12 Games 2006- 6. Final Fantasy VII + Remake, Square Enix 1997/2020 7. Fortnite, Epic Games 2017 8. Stardew Valley, Stardew Valley 2016 9. Katamari Damacy, Namco 2004 10. Minecraft, Mojang Studios 2009 11. Persona 5, Atlus 2016 12. Dark Souls, Nintendo 2011 Conclusion Notes

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Book SynopsisThe culmination of several years of research by games writer Matt Leone, Like a Hurricane gathers together over 60 voices, spread across continents, disciplines and companies, speaking candidly on the vision, fearlessness, and bold ambition that made Street Fighter II a household name. A collaboration between Read-Only Memory and Polygon, Like a Hurricane is an extended and enhanced print adaptation of Matt Leoneâs series of in-depth oral histories, published online in serial form by Polygon. This physical version has been extended and enhanced for print, featuring over 50 specially commissioned illustrations and extra research content. Featuring: Takashi âPistonâ Nishiyama, Hiroshi âFinishâ Matsumoto, Noritaka âPooâ Funamizu, Yoko âShimo-Pâ Shimomura, and more than 50 others, including dozens of former Capcom employees, former Gamest magazine editor Zenji Ishii, combo video pioneer Tomotaka âTZWâ Suzuki, U.S. Street Fighter box artist Mick McGinty, Incredible Technologies CEO Trade Review'The history of Street Fighter is hardly shrouded in mystery, but few books tell its story as well as Matt Leone’s … excellent … packed with wonderful detail … Leone has done fans a massive service by capturing the memories of those who were vital to Street Fighter’s creation and success, and has preserved them for future generations to enjoy … a treasure trove for any self-respecting Street Fighter fan' - Time Extension'If you’re eager to discover how Street Fighter II came to dominate early Nineties gaming, author Matt Leone has created an impressively comprehensive account of its impact here' - Retro Gamer'Like a Hurricane is crafted with deep love and an invaluable work for a series that has become synonymous with a genre that is living its most interesting days at this moment... This book will please both the fans who want to know the curiosities behind the development of this legendary game, as well as anyone who wants to know more about how we used to perform hadoukens back in the day, and how much has changed since then' - The GamerTable of ContentsChapter 01 Street Fighter; Chapter 02 Street Fighter II; Chapter 03 Fatal Fury; Chapter 04 Street Fighter II: Champion Edition; Chapter 05 Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting; Chapter 06 Bringing the games home; Chapter 07 Ebb and flow; Chapter 08 Super Street Fighter II; Chapter 09 Super Street Fighter II Turbo; Chapter 10 Darkstalkers; Chapter 11 X-Men: Children of the Atom; Chapter 12 Street Fighter Alpha; Chapter 13 Street Fighter: The Movie: The Game; Chapter 14 Street Fighter EX; Chapter 15 Street Fighter III; Chapter 16 Capcom vs. SNK; Chapter 17 Moving on

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Book SynopsisRenée Stevens is an interactive and immersive designer, educator, author, and speaker. Her creative work focuses on innovative ways that design can help overcome learning disabilities and create more accessible and inclusive learning environments. She is the founder of the XR tech startup, tagAR. For more than a decade she has run her own interactive design studio consulting and designing on XR projects and working as a motion designer for Forbes. You can find her teaching at the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, where she is the Associate Chair of the Visual Communications Department, overseeing the undergraduate and graduate design programs. She was named an Educator to Watch by Graphic Design USA (GDUSA). She has been invited around the world to speak about her research and design work in XR, including TEDx, SXSW, Sundance, VR/AR Association, and AIGA. She is the author of the book Powered by Design. She lives in New Table of ContentsCHAPTER 1 PICK YOUR REALITY The tech behind the acronyms You are already using extended reality Prosthetic knowledge Looking ahead CHAPTER 2 TECHNOLOGY CHECK Is any of this actually new? The world in the palm of your hand Projection mapping Head-mounted displays Spatial computing Reality check CHAPTER 3 THE IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE The world in 3D Affordances Multimodal experiences Experience design CHAPTER 4 IDEATION Identify the why Innovation and practicality Outside influence Keep it human The answer to your questions CHAPTER 5 CREATING THE PROTOTYPE Fake it 'til you make it Sketch transparently The power of prototypes Use what you know Process work CHAPTER 6 THE UX OF XR Approachable design Seamless user flow Know thy audience Making reality accessible UX challenge CHAPTER 7 THE UI OF XR The z-axis 3D interface metaphors Time and space Microinteractions Inspiration is all around you CHAPTER 8 HUMAN FACTORS Designing the whole experience Theories of perception Creating hierarchy in 3D Human centered CHAPTER 9 THE UNCONTROLLABLE BACKGROUND Expecting the unexpected Figure-ground Location, location, location Getting emotional Control is overrated CHAPTER 10 AUGMENTED TYPOGRAPHY Legibility and readability Creating visual contrast Take control Design with purpose CHAPTER 11 COLOR FOR XR Color appearance models Light interactions Dynamic adaptation Reflection CHAPTER 12 SOUND DESIGN Hearing what you see Spatial sound Augmented audio Voice experiences Power of sound CHAPTER 13 BRINGING IT TO LIFE To code or not to code Keep it agile Try, and try again User experience research Privacy and ethical considerations Keep it super CHAPTER 14 UP NEXT Where to go from here Breaking out of rectangles Why we need XR right now Extend our physical space

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Book SynopsisFeature Creatures The galaxy hosts a staggering array of aliens both bloodcurdling and benevolent. The pages of Starfinder Alien Archive 3 are packed with creatures designed for use with the Starfinder Roleplaying Game! From starmetal dragons and the spiral-winged irokirois to living holograms and body-snatching flayer leeches, the creatures in this codex will challenge adventurers no matter what strange worlds they're exploring. What's more, player rules for a variety of species let players not just fight aliens, but be them! Inside this book, you'll find the following: • Over 100 bizarre life-forms both classic and new, from bioluminescent cephalumes and quantum-entangled oozes to natives of hyperspace and living asteroids. • More than a dozen races with full player rules, letting you play everything from a life-hungry undead creature to a sapient swarm of tiny insects. • New alien technology to help give your character an edge, including armor, weapons, magic items, and more. • New rules for gaining a creature companion that can accompany you as a pet, a mount, or even a fearsome combatant!

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Book SynopsisAn in-depth look at virtual reality and how it can be harnessed to improve our everyday lives.Trade Review"… [Jeremy Bailenson's] enthusiasm is contagious, and he explains complex issues to an audience broader than fellow scientists, providing a real vision of our possibly VR-infused future." -- Nature"If you want to understand the most immersive new communications medium to come along since cinema... I’d suggest starting with Mr. Bailenson’s [book]. It’s short, it’s levelheaded and it tells you what you need to know. Among other things, the book answers the sometimes vexing question of what VR is actually good for." -- The Wall Street Journal"Remarkably interesting... People interested in the current state of virtual reality’s applications will enjoy Bailenson." -- The New York Times"An accessible introduction, a cogent primer, to the potential and pitfalls of VR." -- The Washington Post"Jeremy Bailenson’s work is unflinching and brave. He helps us see more of our vulnerabilities and our potential than ever before. This book describes the edge of human self-knowledge, and a precipice of human foibles to avoid." -- Jaron Lanier, VR pioneer and author of You Are Not A Gadget"Few people alive know as much about VR as Jeremy Bailenson. For decades he’s been researching how VR affects humans. Read this before you enter this new world." -- Kevin Kelly, founding editor of Wired and author of The Inevitable

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Book SynopsisYou're probably familiar with tired cliches around gaming culture in the media... that video games are violent and damaging. That they re for children, or society's outcasts; for the lazy and those without purpose. Joe Donnelly is here to tell you that video games, in fact, save lives. They saved his. Inspired by his own experience navigating depression following a tragic personal loss, Checkpoint reflects on the comforting and healing effect that entering into new digital worlds and narratives can have on mental health both personally and on a wider scale. From the big-budget triple A studios, to the one-person indie set-ups, there are thousands of eye-opening games exploring human complexities overtly and subtly all waiting to enthrall and comfort players old and new. Through exclusive, in-depth interviews with video game developers, health professionals, charities and gamers alike, Joe makes the case for the vital value of gaming culture and why we should be more open minded and willing to pick up a controller if not for fun, for the well-being of ourselves and our loved ones.

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Book SynopsisUntil spring 2020 the trade fair sector was still boasting: "You can't e-mail a handshake!" Then Covid-19 came along and everything was turned upside down: exhibitions were postponed, cancelled or relocated into digital space. It also brought forth new concepts with which we had not reckoned a couple of years ago: virtual twins, AR or VR walk-through stands, online exhibitions with new meeting formats, or quite different ideas that are currently turning the sector upside down, providing new impetuses and making the trade fair a place as we have never known it before. The new trade fair yearbook presents not only the most exciting exhibition settings of the previous year but also entices us into virtual space.

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Book SynopsisDo you find yourself sat at home wishing you could be in your favourite video game? Or dream of a time when you pretended you were Sailor Moon? Or do you want to embody your Dungeons and Dragons character for real? What's holding you back? Maybe you need to introduced to cosplay! Cosplay is a phenomenon that is taking over the world. If you haven't seen it yet, have you not been looking at social media? Cosplay is a mix of exciting craft skills, heady escapism and passion for pop culture that lets you be whoever you want, whenever you want. Cosplay has made its way into TV shows and documentaries, been included as part of film premieres and video game launches, it's even referenced in the comics, manga and media it comes from! Talk about meta. But what is this super popular hobby? Well, pick up this book, and it's twin A Guide to Movie and TV Cosplay, to get all the answers. Because it's more than just dressing up, promise. With a little bit of help from this handy, dandy guide to cosplay, you can get stuck in. Learn about the history of the hobby (it's been around longer than you'd think!), where it came from and how it got to be the way it is now, get your head around making and designing costumes, find out how about all the amazing skills people are using to make these costumes, and perhaps even try a few yourself. Who knows, you might be rocking out as Astro Boy, Chris Redfield or All Might at the next big comic con! So why not give it a try and play make believe for a day.

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Book SynopsisAn in-depth look at virtual reality and how it can be harnessed to improve our everyday lives.Trade Review"...[Jeremy Bailenson's] enthusiasm is contagious, and he explains complex issues to an audience broader than fellow scientists, providing a real vision of our possibly VR-infused future." -- Nature"If you want to understand the most immersive new communications medium to come along since cinema... I’d suggest starting with Mr. Bailenson’s [book]. It’s short, it’s levelheaded and it tells you what you need to know. Among other things, the book answers the sometimes vexing question of what VR is actually good for." -- The Wall Street Journal"Remarkably interesting... People interested in the current state of virtual reality’s applications will enjoy Bailenson." -- The New York Times"Jeremy Bailenson’s work is unflinching and brave. He helps us see more of our vulnerabilities and our potential than ever before. This book describes the edge of human self-knowledge, and a precipice of human foibles to avoid." -- Jaron Lanier, VR pioneer and author of You Are Not A Gadget"An accessible introduction, a cogent primer, to the potential and pitfalls of VR." -- The Washington Post"Few people alive know as much about VR as Jeremy Bailenson. For decades he’s been researching how VR affects humans. Read this before you enter this new world." -- Kevin Kelly, founding editor of Wired and author of The Inevitable

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Book SynopsisHow gaming intersects with systems like history, bodies, and code Why do we so compulsively play video games? Might it have something to do with how gaming affects our emotions? In Playing with Feelings, scholar Aubrey Anable applies affect theory to game studies, arguing that video games let us “rehearse” feelings, states, and emotions that give new tones and textures to our everyday lives and interactions with digital devices. Rather than thinking about video games as an escape from reality, Anable demonstrates how video games—their narratives, aesthetics, and histories—have been intimately tied to our emotional landscape since the emergence of digital computers.Looking at a wide variety of video games—including mobile games, indie games, art games, and games that have been traditionally neglected by academia—Anable expands our understanding of the ways in which these games and game studies can participate in feminist and queer interventions in digital media culture. She gives a new account of the touchscreen and intimacy with our mobile devices, asking what it means to touch and be touched by a game. She also examines how games played casually throughout the day create meaningful interludes that give us new ways of relating to work in our lives. And Anable reflects on how games allow us to feel differently about what it means to fail.Playing with Feelings offers provocative arguments for why video games should be seen as the most significant art form of the twenty-first century and gives the humanities passionate, incisive, and daring arguments for why games matter.Trade Review"Playing with Feelings traces a compelling intellectual history and uses affect theory to rethink some core game studies debates. Aubrey Anable’s insights on casual, indie, and art games are particularly important at this historical moment in game studies. This is the book many humanistic game scholars have been waiting for."—Adrienne Shaw, author of Gaming at the Edge"Playing with Feelings is one of few works to deeply engage with the theory of affect as developed in media philosophy, sociology, and information studies relative to video games. Written with an eye to the canonical concerns circulating in the lucrative and vibrant field of game studies, the book balances engagement with familiar themes and issues in the game studies and game theory world."—Lisa Cartwright, University of California, San Diego"Playing With Feelings breaks down some fairly weighty themes and theories to create an engaging exploration of how a person’s feelings are influenced by gaming." —The GuardianTable of ContentsContentsIntroduction: Video Games as Structures of Feeling1. Feeling History2. Touching Games3. Rhythms of Work and Play4. Games to Fail WithConclusion: Affective ArchivesAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

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Book SynopsisAn avid gamer and sharp media critic explains meritocracy’s negative contribution to video game culture—and what can be done about it Video games have brought entertainment, education, and innovation to millions, but gaming also has its dark sides. From the deep-bred misogyny epitomized by GamerGate to the endemic malice of abusive player communities, gamer culture has had serious real-world repercussions, ranging from death threats to sexist industry practices and racist condemnations. In The Toxic Meritocracy of Video Games, new media critic and longtime gamer Christopher A. Paul explains how video games’ focus on meritocracy empowers this negative culture. Paul first shows why meritocracy is integral to video-game design, narratives, and values. Games typically valorize skill and technique, and common video-game practices (such as leveling) build meritocratic thinking into the most basic premises. Video games are often assumed to have an even playing field, but they facilitate skill transfer from game to game, allowing certain players a built-in advantage.The Toxic Meritocracy of Video Games identifies deep-seated challenges in the culture of video games—but all is not lost. As Paul argues, similarly meritocratic institutions like professional sports and higher education have found powerful remedies to alleviate their own toxic cultures, including active recruiting and strategies that promote values such as contingency, luck, and serendipity. These can be brought to the gamer universe, Paul contends, ultimately fostering a more diverse, accepting, and self-reflective culture that is not only good for gamers but good for video games as well.Trade Review"Christopher A. Paul is an incisive critic, and The Toxic Meritocracy of Video Games is essential reading for researchers, industry professionals, and players trying to make sense of gaming's culture wars."—Carly A. Kocurek, author of Coin-Operated Americans: Rebooting Boyhood at the Video Game Arcade"Paul offers a compelling and carefully supported argument to deconstruct and reconsider meritocracy in video game culture. An engaging read."—CHOICE "This is a carefully considered book that shines a much-needed light on the toxicity of video game culture and presents some earnest suggestions for how to reform it and the games that inspire it." —First Person ScholarTable of ContentsIntroduction: Growing Up Gamer1. Leveling Up in Life: How Meritocracy Works in Society2. A Toxic Culture: Studying Gaming’s Jerks3. Coding Meritocracy: Norms of Game Design and Narrative4. Judging Skill: From World of Warcraft to Kim Kardashian: Hollywood5. Learning from OthersConclusion: An Obligation to Do BetterAcknowledgmentsNotesGameographyIndex

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Book SynopsisIt's dangerous to go alone! Take this (book). For more than 30 years, The Legend of Zelda—which immerses players in a courageous struggle against the shadowy forces of evil in a world of high fantasy—has spanned more than 30 different installments, selling over 75 million copies. Today, it is one of the most beloved video game franchises around the globe. Video game sales as a whole have continued to grow, now raking in twice as much money per year as the entire film industry, and countless psychologists have turned their attention to the effects gaming has on us: our confidence, our identity, and our personal growth. The Psychology of Zelda applies the latest psychological findings, plus insights from classic psychology theory, to Link, Zelda, Hyrule, and the players who choose to wield the Master Sword. In The Psychology of Zelda, psychologists who love the games ask: • How do Link's battles in Ocarina of Time against Dark Link, his monstrous doppelganger, mirror the difficulty of confronting our personal demons and the tendency to be our own worst enemies? • What lessons about pursuing life's greater meaning can we take away from Link's quests through Hyrule and beyond the stereotypical video game scenario of rescuing a Princess (Zelda)? • What do we experience as players when we hear that familiar royal lullaby on the ocarina, Saria's spirited melody in the Lost Woods, or the iconic main theme on the title screen? • How do the obstacles throughout Majora's Mask represent the Five Stages of Grief? • What can Link's journey to overcome the loss of the fairy Navi teach us about understanding our own grief and depression? • Why are we psychologically drawn to the game each and every time a new version becomes available even when they all have a similar storyline? Think you've completed the quest? The Psychology of Zelda gives you new, thrilling dungeons to explore and even more puzzles to solve.Table of ContentsContents Foreword Introduction Embodying the Virtual Hero: A Link to the Self Jonathan Erickson It’s Dangerous to Go Alone: The Hero’s Journey in the Legend of Zelda Stephen F. Kuniak The Nocturne of (Personal) Shadow Louise Grann The Archetypal Attraction Anthony M. Bean Unmasking Grief: Applying the Kübler-Ross Five Stages of Grief Model to The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask Larisa A. Garski, F. Cary Shepard, and Emory S. Daniel The Protective Power of Destiny: Posttraumatic Growth in the Legend of Zelda Larissa A. Garski and Justine Mastin The Quest for Meaning in the Legend of Zelda Kelsey Klatka and Louise Grann The Song of the Ritos: The Psychology of the Music within the Legend of Zelda Series Shane Tilton Triforce Heroes and Heroines: Transcending the Opposites Through the Golden Power Angie Branham Mullins The Legend Herself: From Damsel in Distress to Princess of Power Melissa Huntley and Wind Goodfriend Acknowledgments About the Editor

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Book SynopsisA collective story of the early British games industry. Composed of interviews with 35 people who shaped the modern videogame, including David Braben (Elite), Peter Molyneux (Populous), Rob Hubbard (Commando) and Jeff Minter (Attack of the Mutant Camels), it documents a vibrant period of invention in Britain's cultural history.Table of ContentsPart 1 First Contact 29; Part 2 Money Makers 75; Photo Scrapbook 113; Part 3 Going Pro 129 Part 4 Booming Business 169; Press Clippings 209; Part 5 Game Press 225; Part 6 The Coming of 16-Bit 261; Game Artworks 305; Part 7 Maturing Industry 321; Part 8 End of the Era

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Book SynopsisRelaxation, creativity, and joy collide in coloring activities for advanced artists and Minecraft fans seeking a fun challenge!Creepers got you down? Pickaxe constantly breaking? Illagers raiding your hard-won homestead? Sometimes even the hardiest adventurer just needs a break. Based on Minecraft, the best-selling video game of all time, this deluxe adult coloring book lets you slow down, destress, and color your way through over sixty epic pages of original art inspired by the expansive, wondrous, and never-ending Minecraft world. RELAX AND ESCAPE: No need to craft a Nether portal. Just grab your pencils, crayons, or markers and create your own colorful Minecraft scenes, no pickaxe required. STUNNING ORIGINAL ART: With over 64 pages of beautiful, never-before-seen art, relive your Minecraft adventurers. We promise the creepers won’t explode. IGNITE YOUR CREATIVITY: Put your own spin on iconic characters, places, and items while exercising your creative spark.

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Book SynopsisLearn to design and build Virtual Reality experiences, applications, and games in Unreal Engine 4 through a series of practical, hands-on projects that teach you to create controllable avatars, user interfaces, and more.Key Features Learn about effective VR design and develop virtual reality games and applications for every VR platform Build essential features for VR such as player locomotion and interaction, 3D user interfaces, and 360 media players Learn about multiplayer networking and how to extend the engine using plugins and asset packs Book DescriptionUnreal Engine 4 (UE4) is a powerful tool for developing VR games and applications. With its visual scripting language, Blueprint, and built-in support for all major VR headsets, it's a perfect tool for designers, artists, and engineers to realize their visions in VR. This book will guide you step-by-step through a series of projects that teach essential concepts and techniques for VR development in UE4. You will begin by learning how to think about (and design for) VR and then proceed to set up a development environment. A series of practical projects follows, taking you through essential VR concepts. Through these exercises, you'll learn how to set up UE4 projects that run effectively in VR, how to build player locomotion schemes, and how to use hand controllers to interact with the world. You'll then move on to create user interfaces in 3D space, use the editor's VR mode to build environments directly in VR, and profile/optimize worlds you've built. Finally, you'll explore more advanced topics, such as displaying stereo media in VR, networking in Unreal, and using plugins to extend the engine. Throughout, this book focuses on creating a deeper understanding of why the relevant tools and techniques work as they do, so you can use the techniques and concepts learned here as a springboard for further learning and exploration in VR.What you will learn Understand design principles and concepts for building VR applications Set up your development environment with Unreal Blueprints and C++ Create a player character with several locomotion schemes Evaluate and solve performance problems in VR to maintain high frame rates Display mono and stereo videos in VR Extend Unreal Engine's capabilities using various plugins Who this book is forThis book is for anyone interested in learning to develop Virtual Reality games and applications using UE4. Developers new to UE4 will benefit from hands-on projects that guide readers through clearly-explained steps, while both new and experienced developers will learn crucial principles and techniques for VR development in UE4.Table of ContentsTable of Contents Thinking in VR Setting up your Development Environment Hello World: Your First VR Project Getting Around the Virtual World Interacting with the Virtual World - Part I Interacting with the Virtual World - Part II Creating User Interfaces in VR Building the World and Optimizing for VR Displaying Media in VR Creating a Multiplayer Experience in VR Taking VR Further: Extending Unreal Engine Where to Go from Here A: Useful Mind Hacks B: Research and Further Reading

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Book SynopsisGet up and running with blockchain, smart contracts, NFTs, DAOs, and decentralization in no time with the help of this comprehensive guide Key Features Get to grips with Web3, NFTs, DeFi, and smart contract development Create fungible and non-fungible tokens, explore DAOs, and more Build powerful apps using Ethereum to secure transactions and create smart contracts Purchase of the print or Kindle book includes a free PDF eBook Book DescriptionWeb3, the new blockchain-based web, is often hailed as the future of the internet. Driven by technologies such as cryptocurrencies, NFTs, DAOs, decentralized finance, and more, Web3’s aim is to give individuals more control over the web communities they belong to. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced developer, this book will help you master the intricacies of Web3 and its revolutionary technologies. Beginning with a concise introduction to blockchain and the Ethereum ecosystem, this book quickly immerses you in real-world blockchain applications. You’ll work on carefully crafted hands-on exercises that are designed for beginners as well as users with prior exposure. The chapters show you how to build and deploy smart contracts, while mastering security controls and discovering best practices for writing secure code. As you progress, you’ll explore tokenization and gain proficiency in minting both fungible and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) with the help of step-by-step instructions. The concluding chapters cover advanced topics, including oracles, Layer 2 (L2) networks, rollups, zero knowledge proofs, and decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). By the end of this Web3 book, you’ll be well-versed in the Web3 ecosystem and have the skills to build powerful and secure decentralized applications.What you will learn Get an in-depth understanding of Ethereum's ecosystem, its status, and key EIPs and ERCs Gain practical skills using non-custodial wallets such as MetaMask for blockchain transactions Write, debug, and deploy smart contracts on test networks Discover Web3 dev tools and set up a local environment Get to grips with tokenomics and create ERC20, ERC721, and ERC1155 tokens Explore decentralized storage with IPFS and integrate it into your Web3 projects Expand your NFT strategy with APIs and SDKs to lead in the NFT space Who this book is forThis book is for blockchain developers and blockchain enthusiasts who want to build powerful and secure decentralized applications. Familiarity with the basics of blockchain, along with knowledge of how they function, is necessary to grasp the topics discussed in this book.Table of ContentsTable of Contents Fundamentals of Blockchain and Web3 Getting Started With Ethereum Your First Ethereum Transaction Introduction to Smart Contracts Creating and Deploying Your First Smart Contract Smart Contract Security and Access Controls Developer Tools and Libraries for Web3 Development Writing and Testing Your First dApp on Web3 Introduction to Tokenization Creating Your First Token Non-Fungible Token Standards Creating Your First Non-Fungible Token Understanding Oracles Zero-Knowledge Proofs and Zero-Knowledge EVMs L2 Networks and Rollups Decentralized Autonomous Organizations – Overview

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Book SynopsisLIBRO OFICIAL DEL VIDEOJUEGO MÁS VENDIDO DE TODOS LOS TIEMPOSMÁS DE 100.000 EJEMPLARES VENDIDOS DE LA SERIEResponde a la llamada de la aventura y prepárate para la acción con el Manual del explorador de Minecraft, el único libro quenecesitas para mejorar tus habilidades como explorador. Desde excursiones cortas hasta misiones épicas, aprenderás a orientarte por el Mundo superior para descubrir construcciones y tesoros ocultos que encontrarás allí donde te lleve la aventura.

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Book SynopsisJohn Ray is a lifelong Apple enthusiast and developer. He created a handwriting recognition engine at 15, published his first commercial application at 16, and continues contributing to development projects today. Over the past 25 years, John has written books on macOS, iOS, and iPadOS development, Linux, web development, networking, and computer security. He currently serves as the Senior Director of the Office of Research Information Systems at The Ohio State University. When John isn't writing, editing, or directing he is either re-creating a marine disaster in his living room or over-engineering apps and embedded systems for home automation and device integration.

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Book SynopsisAs the Allies advance towards Germany, they face dogged resistance from the hard-pressed German forces. Take command of the Allies in their final push to end the war in Europe, or hold fast as the German defenders as the fight is brought to your door. This new Campaign Book for Bolt Action offers new linked scenarios, rules, troop types and Theatre Selectors, and provides plenty of options for novice and veteran players alike.

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Book SynopsisA surprising assessment of the ways that virtual worlds are entangled with human psychologyTrade Review"Nick Yee is responsible for the most thoughtful work on the psychology of avatars and gaming in the past 15 years. He also has a rare gift for writing compelling prose."—Jeremy Bailenson, author of Infinite Reality: Avatars, Eternal Life, New Worlds, and the Dawn of the Virtual Revolution -- Jeremy Bailenson“Yee's breathtaking look at the psychology underpinning virtual worlds is packed with warnings, hopes, dreams, and dangers, all supported by original research. An astonishing tour de force.”—Richard A. Bartle, author of Designing Virtual Worlds -- Richard A. Bartle"This fascinating book proves virtual worlds are excellent laboratories for discovering truths about superstition and ethnic prejudice, love and friendship amidst conflict, and the quest for freedom in an unequal society."—William Sims Bainbridge, author of The Warcraft Civilization and eGods -- William Sims Bainbridge“Our avatars are not exactly ourselves, but we do import an awful lot of the real world into our virtual worlds. Yee has mapped the boundaries of our virtual selves for years. With this book, he’s gathered that research into a lucid and informative package. Highly recommended for anyone who has ever spent time as an online persona.”—Raph Koster, lead designer Ultima Online and author of A Theory of Fun for Game Design -- Raph Koster“Yee practically invented the study of online player psychology. With his lively wit and rigorous methodologies, he has once again made the complex understandable, the bizarre normal, and the scientific fun.”—Dmitri Williams, University of Southern California and CEO Ninja Metrics -- Dmitri Williams"With clarity, insight, and above all hard experimental data, Yee has written what may be the last word on the tantalizing promise of virtual worlds. A must-read for social theorists and game designers alike."—Julian Dibbell, author of Play Money: Or How I Quit My Day Job and Made Millions Trading Virtual Loot -- Julian Dibbell“Based on surveys, experiments, and observations of thousands of players, Yee’s work offers compelling evidence that digital experiences shape us—and not always as we might expect or hope. If you want to know more about the consequences of spending time in a virtual world, you need to read this thought-provoking book.”—Mia Consalvo, author of Cheating: Gaining Advantage in Videogames -- Mia Consalvo"This is a terrific read based on solid research, logic and inferences--a must for anyone interested in our growing digital universe and culture."—Jim Blascovich, author of Infinite Reality: Avatars, Eternal Life, New Worlds, and the Dawn of the Virtual Revolution -- Jim Blascovich“Nick Yee’s fascinating new book on the human relationship to online games uses years of exhaustive studies to calmly debunk some of the persistent myths about online games.”—Leigh Alexander, The Columbia Journalism Review -- Leigh Alexander * Columbia Journalism Review *“It is often difficult to find a textbook suitable for undergraduates wanting to know more about video games and virtual worlds. Some texts are scientifically rigorous but lead the readers through a labyrinth of difficult prose, whereas some texts are ‘soft’ and easy to follow but lack the scientific rigor. Yee's book is a perfect balance of both. Based on over a decade's expertise in video games and how they influence players' attitudes and behaviors, Yee presents a multifaceted, up-to-date discussion of how game players think and why they are motivated to invest so many hours immersed in virtual worlds.”—Sun Joo Ahn, Grady College, University of Georgia -- Sun Joo Ahn“It is the most important, challenging, and accessible study yet conducted on the rich, sprawling culture the players have built. It is also a fine way for nonplayers to learn what gamers actually do.”—Reason Magazine * Reason Magazine *

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Book SynopsisMalaby shows how the workers of a very young but quickly growing company were themselves caught up in ideas about technology, games, and organizations, and struggled to manage not only their virtual world but also themselves in a nonhierarchical fashion.Trade ReviewMalaby presents an ethnography of Linden Labs, the creators of the Second Life virtual world. Which is to say, he focuses not on how users of Second Life feel about their experience, but rather on how the Linden Lab people strategize and implemented the wider structure of that virtual world. Malaby looks at the clash at Linden Labs of the liberal ideology espousing a flat organization of creative peers with the reality of a hierarchy in which people are ranked according to their perceived level of creativity. * Choice *

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Book SynopsisConsiders the construction of race, gender, and sexuality in virtual reality.Table of ContentsContents Acknowledgments Introduction. Cyberpunk's Posthuman Afterlife1. The Legacies of Cyberpunk Fiction: New Cultural Formations and the Emergence of the Posthuman2. Meat Puppets or Robopaths: The Question of (Dis)Embodiment in Neuromancer3. The Sex Appeal of the Inorganic: Posthuman Narratives and Constructions of Desire 4. Trapped by the Body: Telepresence Technologies and Transgendered Performance 5. The Souls of Cyberfolk: Performativity, Virtual Embodiment, and Racial Histories6. Replaying the L.A. Riots: Cyborg Narratives and National Traumas7. Franchise Nationalisms: Globalization, Consumer Culture, and New EthnicitiesConclusion. The Antinomies of Posthuman ThoughtNotesWorks CitedIndex

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Book SynopsisClear, proven solutions for virtual project management challenges Projects Without Boundaries offers project managers a clear framework for bringing both project management practices and project team leadership principles to the virtual space. Written by a team of authors with years of experience managing nationally and internationally distributed teams, this book provides a suite of best practices, checklists, and actionable strategies for managing a project and building a high-performing team in a virtual and multicultural environment. Real-world examples illustrate the application of the concepts discussed, and the Virtual Project Readiness Assessment facilitates both team evaluation and transformation planning for virtual project management improvement. Each chapter focuses on the critical challenges encountered while managing virtual projects and details proven solutions that improve a virtual organization, boost project performance, and facilitate pTable of ContentsPreface vii Acknowledgments ix I Introduction 1 1 Working in a Virtual World 3 Forces Driving Virtual Transformation 5 Rise of Virtual Organizations and Projects 9 Virtual Projects Are Different 10 Transitioning to the Virtual World 18 Assessing the Virtual Project Manager 19 Notes 22 II Planning the Virtual Project, Building the Virtual Team 23 2 Planning the Virtual Project 25 Planning a Virtual Project 26 Establishing Project Alignment 31 Architecting the Virtual Project 36 Understanding the Complexity of Virtual Projects 37 With Complexity Comes Risk 41 Planning Virtual Communication 43 Assessing Virtual Project Planning 45 Notes 48 3 Building a High-performance Virtual Team 49 Virtual Project Team Types 50 Differentiating High-Performance 55 Building a High-Performance Virtual Project Team 56 Assessing Virtual Project Team Members 68 Notes 69 III Managing Project Execution, Leading the Virtual Team 71 4 Executing the Virtual Project 73 Managing Assumptions 75 Hyper-vigilant Governance 76 Managing Outsourced Project Work 84 Managing Change 85 Integrating Distributed Work 87 People Side of Project Execution 89 Influencing Virtual Stakeholders 92 Assessing Virtual Project Execution 99 Notes 101 5 Leading the Virtual Project Team 103 Be the Project Compass 104 Be the Team Conductor 105 Be the Champion 106 Recognizing the Virtual Team 115 Leverage Your Leadership Style 117 Adding “E” to Leadership 119 Becoming an Effective Virtual Team Leader 120 Assessing Virtual Team Performance 120 Notes 122 6 Empowering the Project Network 125 Centralize First 125 Empowering by Decentralizing 133 Centralized/Decentralized Project Construct 148 Assessing Virtual Team Collaboration 149 Notes 151 IV Organizational Considerations 153 7 Leading a Multicultural Virtual Team 155 Putting Culture in Context 156 Cultural Intelligence 157 Challenges of Multicultural Virtual Project Teams 157 Cultural Factors 158 Creating a Cultural Strategy 165 Converging Company and Country Culture 169 Assessing Cross-Cultural Awareness 171 Notes 173 8 Using Technology to Communicate and Collaborate 175 Role of Technology 176 Using Technology to Communicate 176 Using Technology to Collaborate 179 Technology Options for the Virtual Project 180 No Shortage of Options 194 Technology Selection 194 Increasing Technology Usage 197 Notes 197 9 Sustaining Virtual Project Success 199 Changing Organizational and Team Structures 200 Modifying the Project Execution Model 203 Changing Behavior by Changing Rewards 205 Promoting Cultural Awareness 206 Developing Virtual Project Managers 208 Virtual Project Management Journey 219 Notes 219 Appendix Virtual Project Readiness Assessment 221 Index 227

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Book SynopsisHow gaming intersects with systems like history, bodies, and code Why do we so compulsively play video games? Might it have something to do with how gaming affects our emotions? In Playing with Feelings, scholar Aubrey Anable applies affect theory to game studies, arguing that video games let us “rehearse” feelings, states, and emotions that give new tones and textures to our everyday lives and interactions with digital devices. Rather than thinking about video games as an escape from reality, Anable demonstrates how video games—their narratives, aesthetics, and histories—have been intimately tied to our emotional landscape since the emergence of digital computers.Looking at a wide variety of video games—including mobile games, indie games, art games, and games that have been traditionally neglected by academia—Anable expands our understanding of the ways in which these games and game studies can participate in feminist and queer interventions in digital media culture. She gives a new account of the touchscreen and intimacy with our mobile devices, asking what it means to touch and be touched by a game. She also examines how games played casually throughout the day create meaningful interludes that give us new ways of relating to work in our lives. And Anable reflects on how games allow us to feel differently about what it means to fail.Playing with Feelings offers provocative arguments for why video games should be seen as the most significant art form of the twenty-first century and gives the humanities passionate, incisive, and daring arguments for why games matter.Trade Review"Playing with Feelings traces a compelling intellectual history and uses affect theory to rethink some core game studies debates. Aubrey Anable’s insights on casual, indie, and art games are particularly important at this historical moment in game studies. This is the book many humanistic game scholars have been waiting for."—Adrienne Shaw, author of Gaming at the Edge"Playing with Feelings is one of few works to deeply engage with the theory of affect as developed in media philosophy, sociology, and information studies relative to video games. Written with an eye to the canonical concerns circulating in the lucrative and vibrant field of game studies, the book balances engagement with familiar themes and issues in the game studies and game theory world."—Lisa Cartwright, University of California, San Diego"Playing With Feelings breaks down some fairly weighty themes and theories to create an engaging exploration of how a person’s feelings are influenced by gaming." —The GuardianTable of ContentsContentsIntroduction: Video Games as Structures of Feeling1. Feeling History2. Touching Games3. Rhythms of Work and Play4. Games to Fail WithConclusion: Affective ArchivesAcknowledgmentsNotesIndex

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