A Tale of Two Halves: The History Of Football Video Games

Painstakingly researched and written by football-obsessed writer and experienced game journalist, historian, and documentarian Richard Moss – author of Bitmap’s own The Secret History of Mac Gaming – A Tale of Two Halves: The History Of Football Video Games stays keenly on the ball as it shares the rich and influential history of video game football  – 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.

A Tale of Two Halves takes 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 Sensible Soccer, Kick Off, Match Day, FIFA, Pro Evolution Soccer, This Is Football, Championship Manager, Premier Manager, and both old-school and new-school Football Manager. 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.

A Tale of Two Halves 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 Kick Off, International Soccer, and Nintendo’s Soccer. Then, following the half-time whistle, it turns its attention to the increasingly realistic 3D outings defined by icons like FIFA, Pro Evo, and Virtua Striker.

Across its 628 pages, A Tale of Two Halves also features a foreword by legendary commentator Clive Tyldesley, hundreds of meticulously realised screenshots, and 13 interviews with pioneering football game developers. Inside you’ll also find a series of illustrations from James Reynolds’ ‘Unlicensed FC’ project – which celebrates Pro Evo’s unusual takes on players’ real names – as well as perfectly pitched pixel art from the team at 8-Bit Football. 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.

Still 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.

It’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 ‘Captain's Edition’ collector’s version, 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.

Whichever 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.

Includes interviews with:
Andrew 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)