If you own a man cave, have ever bought a game “just to have it†and love video game history, Brett Weiss’ “100 Greatest Console Games 1977-87†is the type of book that belongs on your coffee table.
Filled with well-researched tidbits about games from a myriad of systems from the Vectrex to the Sega Master System, this book is the type you can flip through for months and every time, find something new.
This isn’t a “top 100†book though. Instead, it’s a love letter to the first real home console generation, stuffed with details, quotes and other intel that’ll almost force you to take a run to the retro video game store and pick up some of the games featured. Not a consumer guide and not an encyclopedia, it’s a warmly written, easy to read barrage of gaming goodness that you’ll find hard to put down. From Super Mario Bros to Yars Revenge, there’s a comprehensive list of classics, hard to find gems and sleepers that when combined make something wonderfully special.
At the same time, it’s approachable to those who may not be as hardcore as most of the people who will enjoy the book the most. Thanks to a plethora of pictures, from in-game screenshots to cover art (which was much more articulate and creative than this generation), you’ll get acquainted enough with every game featured that you’ll know if you want to purchase it or not, or just play it.
For parents that want to show their children the games they grew up on, or a retro gaming enthusiast hungry for a new read, Weiss’ “100 Greatest Console Games 1977-87†is unlike the ton of cartridge games stuffed in the book- there’s never any need to blow the dust off it because you’ll find it impossible to put down.
Patrick Hickey Jr. is a full-time Assistant Professor of Communication & Performing Arts and Director of the Journalism program at Kingsborough Community College and is the chairman of the City University of New York Journalism Council. He is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of ReviewFix.com. He's also a former News Editor at NBC Local Integrated Media and National Video Games Writer at Examiner.com where his work was mentioned in National Ad campaigns by Disney, Nintendo and EA Sports.
Hickey was also the Editor-In-Chief of two College Newspapers before he received his BA in Journalism from Brooklyn College. Hickey's work has been published in The New York Daily News, The New York Times, Complex, The Hockey Writers, Yahoo!, Broadway World, Examiner, NYSportScene Magazine, ProHockeyNews.com, GothamBaseball.com, The Syracuse Post-Standard, Scout.com and the official sites of the Brooklyn Aces and New York Islanders.
His first book, The Minds Behind the Games: Interviews With Cult And Classic Video Game Developers was released in April 2018 and is chock full of interviews with legendary developers. His second book in the series, The Minds Behind Adventures Games, was released in December 2019. His third book, The Minds Behind Sports Games, was released in September 2020. His fourth book, The Minds Behind Shooter Games, was released in March 2021. The Minds Behind Sega Genesis Games and The Minds Behind PlayStation Games were released in 2022 and The Minds Behind PlayStation 2 was published in January 2023.
Hickey is also a contracted comic book writer, currently penning his original series, "Condrey," as well as "The Job," "Brooklyn Bleeds" "Dem Gulls" and "KROOM" for Legacy Comix, where he serves as founder, owner and Editor-in-Chief.
Hickey Jr. is also a voice actor, having starred in the 2018 indie hit and 2019 Switch, PS4 and Xbox One release, The Padre (also serving as English language Story Editor), from Shotgun With Glitters. The sequel, The Padre: One Shell Straight to Hell was released in February 2021- Hickey also served as a Story Editor and Lead Voiceover performer. He has also done narration and trailers for several other titles including The Kaiju Offensive, Relentless Rex and Roniu’s Tale.
Hickey is also the lead voiceover performer on Mega Cat Studios’ upcoming title WrestleQuest, responsible for nearly 90 characters in the game, as well as Skybound's Renfield: Bring Your Own Blood, where he voices both Dracula and Renfield, as well as several other characters. He also stars in Ziggurat Interactive’s World Championship Boxing Manager 2, where he performs the VO of nearly every male character in the game. He also worked on the Atari VCS’s BPM Boy.
If you own a man cave, have ever bought a game “just to have it†and love video game history, Brett Weiss’ “100 Greatest Console Games 1977-87†is the type of book that belongs on your coffee table.
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