"The Video Game Years" show: A Must Watch

[Retro STrife]

The Critic's recent post about King of Kong reminded me of a great show I've been watching lately: "The Video Game Years". It's a 10-episode video game documentary series about the 1980s... one episode per year, from 1980-1989. It's done in a style similar to the old VH1 "I Love the 80's" shows.. They'll go from topic to topic -- focusing on the biggest games, systems, and gaming stories of each year -- with video clips and commentary. Most of the commentary is from Youtube personalities (AVGN, Pat the NES Punk, Game Chasers, etc.), as well as some insight from industry insiders like David Crane, Tommy Tallarico, and Keith Robinson.

Best of all, you can stream it for free on the Amazon Video service, for people who have Amazon Prime. I've been watching it on my PS4.

It's really entertaining and informative, and I highly recommend it. I enjoy it more once they get into the late 80s, since that's more when my gaming era starts, and the nostalgia kicks in more. I will note, though, that the show isn't really "bingeworthy". Each episode is 1 hour long, but I'll usually watch a half hour here and half hour there. And some of the commentators are better than others. Still, it's well worth watching an episode or two and see if it's up your alley.

They also did some episodes for 1977-1979, but those aren't on Amazon Prime.. I think they might be online or on DVD though. I'm hoping that they eventually put out a '90s edition as well. The 80s edition was made in spurts over a span of 3 or 4 years though, so I imagine doing another season is a big undertaking.

Any one else seen this? Any other gaming shows or movies that you'd recommend?

[Luigi & Peach]

The 70s can all be found for free on YouTube. Pat and John Delia(?) are apparently in the process of trying to get a Kickstarter campaign for some 90s episodes although apparently production is really expensive. I had posted some thoughts on this show on a thread in "Other Media" about Amazon shows, but in a nutshell I completely agree about the enjoyability of this show. My only disagreement was about the binge-worthyness since my wife and I finished this over 3 days.☺

[matmico399]

I have been watching this with my Girlfriend for the last week. She likes videogaming but not to the extent I do. She was fascinated by this documentary. Thanks for letting me know. BTW each episode is now available for free on YouTube.

Money has been a lil tight for me lately but I did manage to snag a copy of Star Raiders with touch keypad and overlay plus all boxes. The only thing missing is the comic book. $11 off EBay. Plus Star Wars episodes 1-6 on dvd from there.

As finances are tight, I went to the library rather than bookstore. To my surprise they has The Art of Atari which Dave has praised. Great book! And I also picked up another video game book. Plus a dvd called Game Play. I’ll watch it tonight and get back to it in the comments. Never heard of this. Nice for free rentals!

[Retro STrife]

Glad to see a couple people here have watched this. And thanks for the heads up that each of the hour-long episodes is also on Youtube. That makes it even easier for people to watch, for those that don't have Amazon Prime video. Personally, I think this series is best enjoyed on your couch though, so even if you use youtube, I'd watch it on a TV.

I very rarely use the terms "must play" with games or "must watch" with shows/movies. But if you like retro games enough, which is probably most people here, then this is truly something you shouldn't miss. In terms of reliving old games, this is an A+ series and the best video game documentary I've seen. Really hoping we get a 90s edition someday.