Super Mario: How Nintendo Conquered America

Super Mario is a fast-paced history lesson on the world of Nintendo and how they entered the video game market at a time when it was company-suicide. The origins of the famed plumber begin with a failed game that needed a quick conversion to a radical new game: Donkey Kong. Mario was born and the rest is history.

Ryan does a good job taking us through the different Mario games and video game eras of the 80's and 90's while keeping the content light and interesting. While I would've wanted more about how Nintendo dealt with becoming a behemoth with the NES, the focus never strays far from Mario himself. A solid book for anyone who even has a passing-interest in video games.

Executive Summary: I found this a much more enjoyable read than [b:Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation 18505802 Console Wars Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation Blake J. Harris https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1391419511s/18505802.jpg 26198818], but then I was firmly a Nintendo kid growing up, and barely touched a Sega.Audiobook: Ray Porter does a fine job. As a nonfiction book, there isn't really much a narrator can do to impress. He has a clear and easy to hear reading voice, and the volume quality was fine. That's about all you can ask really. This is a fine option for audio, but not a must listen. Full ReviewIn my continuing trend of supplementing my mostly SFF diet of books, and craving for nostalgia, I was excited to see this come up as a daily deal on Audible.It's a short listen at 8.5 hours, but I blew through largely because I enjoyed it so much. Nintendo is a rather secretive company, so Mr. Ryan can be forgiven for not having all the details. I found the history both informative and entertaining.Two things set this book ahead of [b:Console Wars: Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation 18505802 Console Wars Sega, Nintendo, and the Battle that Defined a Generation Blake J. Harris https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1391419511s/18505802.jpg 26198818] for me:1) It actually had details about Nintendo, whereas that book had very little considering it has it in the title.2) Mr. Ryan doesn't make up fake conversations to tell the story.This book does jump around in time a bit, but that's largely because he focuses on different parts of Nintendo with each chapter. He covers mostly consoles for much of the book, and then circles back to talk about Gameboy later in the book.In my 20's I abandoned Nintendo as they seemed to be stuck in the past, and I wanted new games and better variety. After buying every system from NES to Gamecube, I was now an XBox person.Now in my 30s, I find myself wanting to play Mario, Link and Donkey Kong again. I've been awfully tempted to buy a Wii U over the Xbox One. Personally, I still feel like Nintendo would do better going the route of Sega by putting their IPs on as many platforms as possible and leaving the hardware business behind. Shows what I know though. This book talks about how the Wii absolutely crushed the Xbox 360 and PS3 for many months. Nintendo seems content in letting Microsoft and Sony to fight over the hardcore adult gamers and focus on kids, casual fans, and the Mario/Link/etc diehards.If you're like me and grew up on the NES/SNES and want to revisit your childhood gaming, this seems like a good book to do it with.