# Creating Q*bert and Other Classic Video Arcade Games - Hardcover

by **Warren Davis** (Author), **Ed Boon** (Foreword by), **John Newcomer** (Afterword by)

**_Creating Q\*bert and Other Classic Video Arcade Games_ takes you inside the video arcade game industry during the pivotal decades of the 1980s and 1990s. Warren Davis, the creator of the groundbreaking _Q\*bert_, worked as a member of the creative teams who developed some of the most popular video games of all time, including _Joust 2_, _Mortal Kombat_, _NBA Jam_, and _Revolution X_.**

In a witty and entertaining narrative, Davis shares insightful stories that offer a behind-the-scenes look at what it was like to work as a designer and programmer at the most influential and dominant video arcade game manufacturers of the era, including Gottlieb, Williams/Bally/Midway, and Premiere.

Likewise, the talented artists, designers, creators, and programmers Davis has collaborated with over the years reads like a who's who of video gaming history: Eugene Jarvis, Tim Skelly, Ed Boon, Jeff Lee, Dave Thiel, John Newcomer, George Petro, Jack Haeger, and Dennis Nordman, among many others.

The impact Davis has had on the video arcade game industry is deep and varied. At Williams, Davis created and maintained the revolutionary digitizing system that allowed actors and other photo-realistic imagery to be utilized in such games as _Mortal Kombat_, _T2_, and _NBA Jam_. When Davis worked on the fabled _Us vs. Them_, it was the first time a video game integrated a live action story with arcade-style graphics.

On the one-of-a-kind _Exterminator_, Davis developed a brand new video game hardware system, and created a unique joystick that sensed both omni-directional movement and rotation, a first at that time. For _Revolution X_, he created a display system that simulated a pseudo-3D environment on 2D hardware, as well as a tool for artists that facilitated the building of virtual worlds and the seamless integration of the artist's work into game code.

Whether you're looking for insights into the Golden Age of Arcades, would like to learn how Davis first discovered his design and programming skills as a teenager working with a 1960's computer called a Monrobot XI, or want to get the inside scoop on what it was like to film the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band Aerosmith for _Revolution X_, Davis' memoir provides a backstage tour of the arcade and video game industry during its most definitive and influential period.

### Author Biography

**Warren Davis'** career in the video game industry spans three decades. He began in 1982 working for Gottlieb where his first game was the hugely successful arcade classic, _Q\*bert_. He followed that with a laserdisc game, _Us vs. Them_. In the mid-80s, while working at Williams, he co-programmed _Joust 2_ and helped develop the system that became _NARC_. Davis was also part of the team that created _Terminator 2: Judgment Day_ and _Revolution X_ featuring Aerosmith. He also developed the digitizing system that Williams/Bally/Midway would use for many of their hit games of the 1990s including _Mortal Kombat_, _NBA Jam_, and the aforementioned _Terminator 2_ and _Revolution X_. In 2018, Davis was inducted into the International Video Game Hall of Fame.

**Ed Boon** is the co-creator _Mortal Kombat_ and the creative director of NetherRealm Studios.

**John Newcomer** is the designer and lead developer of _Joust._

**Number of Pages:** 280

**Dimensions:** 0.9 x 9.1 x 5.9 IN

**Illustrated:** Yes

**Publication Date:** January 11, 2022

## Details

- **Price:** 24.95 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 24.95 USD | In stock |

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- Creating Q*bert and Other Classic Video Arcade Games - Hardcover

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