{"product_id":"a-tale-of-two-halves","title":"A Tale of Two Halves: The History Of Football Video Games","description":"\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePainstakingly researched and written by football-obsessed writer and experienced game journalist, historian, and documentarian Richard Moss – author of Bitmap’s own \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.bitmapbooks.com\/collections\/all-books\/products\/the-secret-history-of-mac-gaming-expanded-edition\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Secret History of Mac Gaming\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e – \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e \u003cem\u003eA Tale of Two Halves: The History Of Football Video Games\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e stays keenly on the ball as it shares the rich and influential history of video game football\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e  – or ‘soccer’, for our American readers – striving to understand the very best the genre has to offer; and those releases that go a little wide of their target.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Tale of Two Halves \u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003etakes you on a fascinating journey from the very first examples of the form all the way through to the genre’s 2000s’ heyday. It hits the back of the net with expert analysis of over 400 football games, including \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eSensible Soccer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eKick\u003c\/em\u003e \u003cem\u003eOff\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eMatch Day\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eFIFA\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003ePro Evolution Soccer\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eThis Is Football\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eChampionship Manager\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003ePremier Manager\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, and both old-school and new-school \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eFootball Manager\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. Gathered together in a single volume, that remarkable spread of releases presents a surprising variety of interpretations of the beautiful game, showcasing one of the medium’s most creative, beguiling realms.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e \u003cem\u003eA Tale of Two Halves\u003c\/em\u003e primarily focuses on footy gaming’s formative years – meaning from around 1980 to 2010 – and carefully divides the genre into two distinct halves, taking a considered look at each. As such, the first half is dominated by the fast and simple 2D action of icons like \u003cem\u003eKick Off\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eInternational Soccer\u003c\/em\u003e, and Nintendo’s \u003cem\u003eSoccer\u003c\/em\u003e. Then, following the half-time whistle, it turns its attention to the increasingly realistic 3D outings defined by icons like \u003cem\u003eFIFA\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003ePro Evo\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eVirtua Striker\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAcross its 628 pages, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Tale of Two Halves\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e also features \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ea foreword by legendary commentator \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/clivetyldesley\/?hl=en\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eClive Tyldesley\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e,\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ehundreds of meticulously realised screenshots, and 13 interviews with pioneering football game developers. Inside you’ll also find a series of illustrations from James Reynolds’ \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/bbcthree\/article\/3b7a50b1-9b8f-4bab-aa41-d689103b0382\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e‘Unlicensed FC’ project\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e – which celebrates \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePro Evo’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eunusual takes on players’ real names – as well as perfectly pitched pixel art from the team at \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/8bit-football.com\/\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e8-Bit Football\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003cspan\u003e. Numerous gaming platforms are covered, from the Atari 2600 and C64 to the Collecovison, via the Amiga line, PlayStation 1, Xbox 360, Arcades, and many more.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eStill not enough for your footballing appetite? Fear not. There’s also a captivating spread of themed deep-dive features, nostalgic Easter eggs to uncover, and numerous quick-read mini-essays. And it’s all contained within an eye-catching gold foil blocked cover, and features boot laces that function as bookmark ribbons.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eIt’s a feast for soccer fans to devour, and a chance for any retro devotee to better understand the tremendous legacy football games have left. The most devoted can even pick up the tightly limited \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.bitmapbooks.com\/products\/a-tale-of-two-halves-captains-edition\"\u003e‘Captain's Edition’ collector’s version\u003c\/a\u003e, which comes in a heavy duty foil blocked slipcase. Around the slipcase is a fabric armband, holding your books securely while celebrating the effort of football’s captaining greats.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhichever edition you pick, you’ll be sure to find Bitmap’s renowned standards when it comes to vibrant design, high-calibre printing, and excellence in production.\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIncludes interviews with:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003eAndrew Prime (Ultimate Soccer Manager), Andriy Kostiusko (Football Tactics), Ben Fawcett (This Is Football), Carlos Abril (PC Fútbol), Chris Wild (Giant Killers and Official Club Manager), Gerald Köhler (On The Ball and add-on Antoss), Jim Bagley (Striker), Kevin Toms (Football Manager), Marc Aubanel (FIFA International Soccer), Mariusz Trzaska (Liga Polska Manager), Matt Furniss (Soccer Kid), Michitaka Tsuruta (Captain Tsubasa) and Simon Prytherch (LMA Manager)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!----\u003e","brand":"Bitmap Books","offers":[{"title":"Hardback Book","offer_id":48489058631873,"sku":"TALEHB","price":49.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0943\/3604\/files\/Bitmap_Footy_DSCF7031_692a2913-8033-4ea6-bbb5-9fcba7ee71f5.jpg?v=1725225503","url":"https:\/\/us.bitmapbooks.com\/products\/a-tale-of-two-halves","provider":"Bitmap Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}