Confessions of the Game Doctor

by Bill Kunkel, Leonard Herman (Editor), Michael Thomasson (Illustrations)

In 1981 Bill Kunkel and Arnie Katz founded Electronic Games magazine, the first magazine devoted entirely to the new generation of plugged-in entertainment from video and computer games to hand-helds, tabletop games, coin-ops and even state-of-the-art military and training simulators. Although the magazine only lasted just a few issues past its third birthday, it is still regarded as one of the finest game magazines ever published. Now, Bill Kunkel, a.k.a. The Game Doctor, reveals the untold stories behind both the magazine, and the people who brought us the ‘classic’ era of electronic gaming, along with other personal memoirs ranging from his early days as a comic book writer and rock guitarist to the sad saga of how his lifelong dream of becoming The Batman became the basis of a nightmarish movie/computer game tie-in experience. Whether you’re a fan of videogames, comic books, or simply love to hear good inside stories told with a spark of wit and candor, gather round. Confessions of the Game Doctor is just what the doctor ordered.

Genres: Video Games, Nonfiction, Ebooks, Gaming

188 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

Reviews

[Chris Chinchilla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bill Kunkell helped create “Electronic Games Magazine” in 1981,  the first magazine dedicated to video games. It seemed a great research resource for Chip Shop to get some anecdotes and atmosphere for the era.

Being born in 1981, I remember the 80s, but not in any great detail, my first real memory being the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. Hence I am aware of the hedonism of the era, but sometimes reading about it is still a surprise.

It would be hard to imagine computer journalists of the present having access to the same level of expense accounts and celebrity status as those of the 80s. This makes for some entertaining stories about parties, substance consumption and working in an industry in its infancy.

There are many tales of working on the magazine, convincing advertisers, interactions with famous personalities and the difficulties with capturing the spirit of a game in print in the 80s.

I struggle to know how I would replicate a lot of this ‘feeling’ in the game, but it’s something I will consider over time. What I would most like to capture for the game is that pioneering spirit when everything was unknown, unproven and uncertain. Legal cases were the first of their kind as were some products and markets. Companies came and went quickly and I feel this essence is something I would most like to try and capture through the event and personality cards in Chip Shop.

An easy and entertaining read for anyone with an interest in early gaming History. Earn me a few cents and buy a copy from Amazon here

[Jason Corfman · Rating 3 out of 5]

When the title says "confessions", it means "confessions." Bill Kunkel, who was one of the founding three people of the very first video game magazine back in the early 80's, talks about his life and his experiences covering the video game industry. Along the way, he spent a lot of time talking about his (former?) drug habits and also discusses some of his sexual encounters (in non-graphic ways). Still, there is a lot of insight into the video game industry as well as history of early video games.

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book should either have been a collection of standalone articles or a memoir - instead it tries to do both and that makes it frustrating to read.
While there are many fascinating anecdotes about the birth of Videogame journalism and the history of Videogames in this book, they are rather lost among repeated digressions into the author's 'sex, drugs and rock'n'roll' stories. The latter are quite tame compared to offerings from the likes of Anthony Kiedis or Nikki Sixx, and add nothing of real interest to what could have been an otherwise good book.

[Alexia · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't know about Bill Kunkel before getting this book, and I was also born during the 90s, so I guess I might have appreciated the book more otherwise. There was some interesting information about the history of videogames, though a bit too US-centric. I did not find the "memoir" parts of the book particularly engaging.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great insight into the very beginning of the video game industry from a journalist's perspective. As a bonus, also includes a variety of amusing anecdotes involving silly coworkers and copious amounts of cocaine!

[Eduardo Pescador · Rating 5 out of 5]

Es bastante interesante leer sobre la industria de los videojuegos en sus inicios, por alguien que lo vivió desde adentro e incluso estuvo ahí para vivir el Crash del 84.

[Bec · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are some nice moments in this book, but for the most part it is self-indulgent and not written in an engaging style.