Bitmap Books has released The Arcade 1971–1999: The Stories Behind Classic Coin-Ops, Told by Their Creators, a new hardcover examining nearly three decades of arcade video game history through interviews, archival material and firsthand accounts from the people who created some of the industry’s best-known titles.
Written by veteran video game journalist Paul Drury, the book covers 120 classic coin-operated games and draws on roughly 20 years of research into the developers, artists, musicians and technology behind the arcade era.
The Arcade 1971–1999 Explores 120 Classic Games
Drury, whose work has appeared in publications including Edge and Retro Gamer, has interviewed hundreds of people involved in game development throughout his career.
Those conversations form the foundation of The Arcade 1971–1999, which examines the stories behind 120 coin-operated games released during a period when arcades played a major role in introducing video games to mainstream audiences.
The book explores stories including how Ms. Pac-Man evolved from an earlier project involving a character named Otto, questions surrounding the creation of Donkey Kong, the origins of Q*bert’s unusual speech and the events surrounding the installation of the first Pong machine at Andy Capp’s Tavern.
Archival Material Shows How Arcade Classics Were Created
Beyond interviews, the book includes rare personal photographs, design sketches, programming notes and other behind-the-scenes material documenting the development process.
Early Atari Concept Art Included
Readers can also see early concept artwork licensed from The Strong National Museum of Play in Rochester, New York.
The archival material includes original development plans connected to Atari games such as Star Wars, Paperboy and Gauntlet, providing a look at how arcade concepts evolved before reaching finished cabinets.
Artist Adam Rufino also contributed a series of arcade cabinet illustrations featured throughout the book.
Drury said the project reflects both his personal connection to arcade gaming and years of conversations with its creators.
“Arcade games, like so many of my generation, are what introduced me to video games. Being able to talk to their creators has been such a privilege and this book is a culmination of hundreds of conversations with my heroes.”
Arcade Pioneers Contribute to the Book
The book includes a foreword by Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell and an afterword by Eugene Jarvis, creator of Defender and Robotron.
Several other prominent figures from early video game development also commented on the project.
“Hearing the OG story is always fun. Going from nothing to something feels a bit like magic, and Paul has captured that magic in all these stories,” Bushnell said.
Al Alcorn, creator of Pong, described the book as “A very well researched account of how a new industry was created.”
Jarvis said, “Hear how legendary digital alchemists turned a blank screen into videogame gold, all in their own words.”
Ed Logg, creator of Asteroids and Gauntlet, added, “Relive the stories behind our favourite games, together in one place.”
Hardcover Targets Collectors and Gaming Historians
Bitmap Books has designed the publication with collectors and video game historians in mind.
The hardcover edition uses high-quality paper and thread-sewn binding and features a foil-blocked cover illustration. Each copy is also shrink-wrapped.
The physical presentation accompanies the extensive collection of interviews and historical material covering the formative decades of commercial arcade gaming, when coin-operated machines helped establish many of the design principles, characters and companies that would shape the broader video game business.
The Arcade 1971–1999 Available Worldwide
The Arcade 1971–1999: The Stories Behind Classic Coin-Ops, Told by Their Creators is available globally with a suggested retail price of $48 in the United States, £34.99 in the United Kingdom and €41.95 in Europe.
By combining creator interviews with sketches, photographs, development notes and archival artwork, the book documents how many influential arcade games moved from early ideas to machines that became fixtures of gaming culture during the industry’s formative decades.
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