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The Games of a Lifetime
The Games of a Lifetime is an English-language hardcover by Bitmap Books – written by games journalism legend Julian "Jaz" Rignall. Across 420 pages, you travel through five decades of video game history, from Pong to PlayStation 5, told by someone who was there every step of the way.
- 420 pages, hardcover, 250 × 250 mm
- 118 games covered across chronological chapters
- Foreword by Richard Leadbetter (Digital Foundry)
- Illustrations by Wil Overton (Rare, Super Play magazine)
- Cover artwork by pixel-art specialists Army of Trolls
- English language
The Games of a Lifetime – Video Game History from the Inside
This book is written in English and is for everyone who wants to experience video game history not from an encyclopedia, but straight from the source. Julian "Jaz" Rignall – arcade champion, magazine founder, journalist, and analyst – lived through five decades of gaming history up close, and poured it all into 420 pages. This is no dry history book; it's a personal ride through the golden age of arcades, the 8- and 16-bit era, and all the way to the modern gaming present.
Who is Jaz Rignall?
Jaz won the 1983 UK National Arcade Championship, launched iconic magazines such as ZZAP!64, CVG and Mean Machines, later worked for IGN and US Gamer, and played a key role in bringing Japanese import games to Western audiences at a time when nobody else was doing it. Today he works as a video game analyst. In short: he has done pretty much everything there is to do in the games industry.
What's inside?
The book opens with a foreword by Richard Leadbetter (Digital Foundry), Jaz's former Mean Machines colleague. Then Jaz takes the wheel – across 60 chronological chapters that weave his most important gaming experiences together with behind-the-scenes anecdotes, insider knowledge, and personal reflections. Honest, direct, and with plenty of humour: Jaz shares the highs and lows of his life.
The whole thing is illustrated with hundreds of screenshots captured on countless systems – from the Atari 400 to the PlayStation 5. Add to that: archival photos, original box art, vintage arcade flyers, hardware and magazine shots. Wil Overton (known from Rare and Super Play magazine) has contributed exclusive new illustrations in the style of classic Mean Machines artworks. The cover is by pixel-art specialists Army of Trolls – printed with special Pantone inks and packed with Easter eggs for those in the know.
Worth knowing: The book is a deeply personal journey through Jaz's life. If you didn't grow up with Mean Machines, CVG & co., you'll still get a lot of gaming history – but the emotional resonance is strongest for those who did.
Production quality & technical specs
Bitmap Books stands for premium quality, and it shows: hardback cover with special Pantone printing, high-quality edge-to-edge lithographic print, sewn binding (lies flat – ideal for double-page spreads), 250 × 250 mm format, shrink-wrapped. Weight: approx. 2.5 kg. Language: English.
Games featured in the book (selection)
118 games are covered, including:
| Space Invaders | Star Raiders | Star Fire |
| Star Wars (Arcade) | Sabre Wulf | Trashman |
| Spy vs. Spy | Super Pipeline | Thing on a Spring |
| Tornado Low Level | Tower Toppler | Underwurlde |
| Robotron: 2084 | Track and Field | Marble Madness |
| Elite | Bubble Bobble | Summer Games II |
| World Games | Winter Games | Revs |
| Road Rash | Secret of Monkey Island | Sentinel, The |
| Sonic the Hedgehog | SoulCalibur | Street Fighter II |
| Streets of Rage | Super Mario Bros. | Super Mario Bros. 2 |
| Super Mario 64 | Super Mario Kart | Super Mario World |
| Super Metroid | Tetris | Tetris Effect |
| The Legend of Zelda | Pac-Man | Rock Band |
| Unreal Tournament | Wipeout | World of Warcraft |
| Grand Theft Auto V | Horizon Forbidden West | Subline |
… and many more.
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