Significant Zero
Heroes, Villains, and the Fight for Art and Soul in Video Games
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Significant Zero
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Narrated by:
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Kevin T. Collins
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Written by:
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Walt Williams
About this listen
When his satirical musings in a college newspaper got him discharged from the Air Force, it became clear to Walt Williams that his destiny in life was to be a writer - he just never thought he'd end up writing video games, let alone working on some of the most successful franchises in the industry - Bioshock, Civilization, Borderlands, and Mafia, among others.
Williams pulls back the curtain on an astonishingly profitable industry that has put its stamp on pop culture and yet is little known to those outside its walls. In his reflective yet comically-observant voice, Williams walks you through his unlikely and at times inglorious rise within one of the world's top gaming companies, exposing an industry abundant in brain power and out-sized egos, but struggling to stay innovative.
Significant Zero also provides clear-eyed criticism of the industry's addiction to violence and explains how the role of the narrative designer - the poor soul responsible for harmonizing gameplay with storylines - is crucial for expanding the scope of video games into more immersive and emotional experiences.
©2017 Walter Williams (P)2017 TantorWhat the critics say
What listeners say about Significant Zero
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Rock
- 2020-12-15
Well written and honest
I'm a Game Designer with 10 years of experience in the industry and let me tell you that this is an accurate depiction of reality. I really like that you don't shy away from calling out your own mistakes. I can relate in a lots of situations, including dropping the name of school crushes in my RPG save files :P Great job man ! And I love Handsome Jack because he's so over the top that it makes him actually likeable in such a whimsical world, HAHAHA ! (yeah, I laugh like a frenchie, cauz I'm one)
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- RAM
- 2019-03-18
Struck a chord
I really enjoyed this book. it's a fantastic read for anyone in a corporate creative field. The reading had soul and kept me interested. Also a must if you are a video game fan. Really paints a full picture for a behind the scenes look in the creative process of video game making.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Corey C
- 2018-05-30
Interesting perspective
The author had some funny stories and i enjoyed it. Nice to hear stories from the publishing side over the development side. The biggest peeve I had was the reader miss pronounced almost every video game character's name that wasn't a regular human name. Other than that, well done.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Seth
- 2019-07-24
Really Enjoyable and Funny
Funny, honest, (mostly) light and enjoyable. Great for anybody who likes video games and wants some insight into how they're made or just wants a good laugh.
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