5 comments about Paid to Play: An Insider's Guide to Video Game Careers.

1. As a graduate advisor for gaming students at Westwood College Online, I can not stress enough how important and worthwhile this book is. I recommend this book to every student that I work with because it is full of numerous "wake-up calls" and good ideas for breaking into the industry. Check this book out, it will greatly help you in your career search.



2. This book gave me more insight about what the Gaming work world is like than all the other research I did my whole life.
   
   This is an essential read for anyone who wants to design electronic games!



3. Are you considering going into the video games industry, but you want to find out more about it before making the decision to make the jump? This book will give you an honest and insightful look at just about every facet of this competitive industry.
   
   Whether your serious or curious about the games industry, you'll enjoy this entertaining read. I wholeheartedly recommend it!



4. I bought this for my bf because he was thinking of a video game career, he hasn't done anything with this field yet, but he said the book was good



5. This book was extremely informative and answers most of the questions you would have about the gaming industry. I'm hoping for a second edition! Definitely purchase this book if you are considering a career in this field.

4 comments about Second Life: A Guide to Your Virtual World.

1. Basically, I did the same thing a lot of other people did in Second Life. I registered, then walked away after not getting the fun of it right away. I came back to it because I needed a new creative and social outlet. Mr. Whites book approaches the problem that the Second Life folks are only now getting a handle on and solves it. By going through the chapters in whatever order, at your own pace, You can get a handle on this experience and use it to help remake your world. First and Second. Now my Second Life is all about making new friends and doing and making things with the tools and talents I can muster.... and talking to people who like dancing....while talking, and making things....
   The best game engine is another human being.
   Thank you Brian White.



2. This is a superbly done, informative, beautifully illustrated (and printed), densely packed yet easy-to-understand, highly informative, tour-de-force introduction to everything you want or need to know about Second Life. They don't get any better than this. If you are interested in SL, you've got to get this book!
   
   All the best,
   
   will



3. I love this book!! It rocks!! It really helps you get around in Second Life (SL) as a struggling "Newbie" those first few days and weeks. The book is beautifully presented, with high quality illustrations, great tips, and the author's Avatar; "Ansel Gasparini" is a cool dude : ) It really enhanced my whole SL experience.
   After you read the book and get on Second Life, go visit the in-world site where you can see some of the stuff in Brian White's book. I highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to start their Second Life adventures..! Let's get this party started... let the adventures begin!!
   
   See you in Second Life!! : )



4. A good intro that is well illustrated. Almost all the tutorials work like they are supposed to. Much better than the Official Guide.

5 comments about The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (Prima's Official Strategy Guide).

1. I just got Zelda-the Wind Waker for Christmas and it's a great game! Though this isn't the game, I'd think the book would be good too. You start out as Link to run to your grandma's house. You get dressed in the green uniform and you save a girl from a bird. The bird kidnapps your sister and then your story begins.I'll try to find the game to tell more about it.....



2. what can I say, it has everything I need to know and more. Its Good.



3. First, let me state that this review should be considered only by those who play games for FUN.. This means, NOT those who play first person shooters online for 16 hours at a time, but those who play video games as a hobby, not a lifestyle; i.e. a few hours a week. Second, don't even consider this book if you're looking for help on the Ocarina of Time, because it won't help. Someone stated previously that it looks like a review out of a video game magazine, and their absolutely right. I've used an Ocarina book I got right here from Amazon for that game, and it was perfect..
   
   On to the review: The game is GREAT, and the book certainly compliments that. I know the first thing potential buyers are looking for is PROBLEMS, so instead of pretending there aren't any, I'll hit those first.
   
   The main problem here (as previously mentioned) is the organization of the book, and it all comes down to your playing style.. If you want to play the game yourself and only have the book as a reference for when you get stuck or for finding little extras, than it's perfect. However, if you want to have everything spelled out for you and not play the game at all without first consulting the book, than this probably isn't the right one for you.. It walks you through the quests for the first 3/4 of the book, and has little footnotes at the bottom of each page, referring you to the side-quests which are detailed towards the end of the book..
   
   If you've played the game, then you know that it's a HUGE ocean, broken up into 49 different squares, with 49 different islands, and once you've passed a few preliminary tasks, the entire world is open to you to explore on your own.. In my experience with the game, this book worked PERFECTLY, because the best part was sailing around the map and stumbling upon new islands and landmarks on your own, without someone or something telling you where to go.. The book complimented this, because it has an entire section showing what you can do on each island, and how far into the game you need to be in order to accomplish each task. This is separate from the walkthrough, which details the actual quests, and not the hidden items and extra goodies available on each island. Again, the organization of the book may be a problem for some, but it will be perfect for others..
   
   Otherwise, the problems are VERY minimal.. There are a few instances where the book will tell you something is worth 100 rupees (dollars) when in fact it's worth 200, or vice versa, but these are few and far between.. I'm 4/5 of the way through the game and I could count those mistakes on less than one hand..
   
   The pictures are clear and crisp, and plenty large enough to see if you have the ability of sight, and the walkthrough itself is well written, inclusive, and comprehensive. It's gotten me through all of those spots where your just scratching your head wondering what to do next, but at the same time the game is simple enough that you should be able to get through the majority of it without help.. Besides, exploring the vast world they created is the best part of the game!



4. The best ever,Prima's done it again...
   Prima made winners of all us gamers with this guide.



5. This guide was great it was helpfull in all the dungeaons and MOST of the ftriforce(More on this later). It helped me from Dragon roost to all the mini games. The one thing i found to my displeasure was that they messed up on the triforce pieces. When it shows you were to find them, it is messed up and i had to work for like a half an hour to match them. Also it is missing one ALL together. Again this one the best strategy guide i have used but I would not be so quick to buy it if you are nt great with the maps.

5 comments about Final Fantasy IX Official Strategy Guide.

1. I usually like play the Final Fantasy more than once. I had to restart some of Final Fantasy games because, I missed a lot of items or some of side-quests. I bought the guide book for Final Fantasy VI and I was able to follow through it without any trouble. However; I bought the guide Book for Final Fantasy IX Well, I can't believe you HAVE TO go ONLINE every TIME you want to find out more about the items or side-quest and you have to go online and type the stupid keywords to find out, Which is complete waste of time! The problem is here, when you DO go online The FF9 keyword Or even the FF9 site itself isn't on there anymore! So, it was kind of pointless of buying this book. Since you are better off with Gamefaqs or Rpgclassic walkthrough.



2. Almost everywhere you look in this book, it basically tells you "Go to this website blah blah blah to know this secret"...
   What a rip-off!



3. I have pretty much the same gripes as everyone else. Although the Internet is faster, more widespread, and more reliable than when this guide was first released, I still don't approve of essentially half of the guide being on PlayOnline. It's a nuisance to have to stop in the course of a game, and it takes the information away from your fingertips. Aren't you entitled to have the full guide in front of you at all times, seeing as you paid for it? I think so.
   
   The bestiary is also very lacking, so much that I don't even refer to it. The descriptions of boss battles seem thrown together at the last minute, and they don't really offer much insight. There is a wealth of information about the game in here, so the guide isn't worthless, but I still would have liked a much better one.



4. For an "official strategy guide", this book is very short on strategy.
   
   Apparently, the idea with this book was to make it more interactive. It frequently points you to an official Square company website and has you use keywords to find the information you need. "For more strategies against this boss, or to find a special treasure in that room, go to the site and input such-and-such keyword!" Interesting idea in theory. Very bad in practice.
   
   First of all, how many people have the time to leap up to their computers in the middle of the game and hit a website? It can be done, but that is so annoying. The point of having a dead-tree guide is to have the info at your finger tips when you need it. But a huge chunk of the info can't be found in the book. Useless.
   
   And just to add insult to injury, the website is barely functional. If you actually do go there and input a keyword from the guide, there's a good chance that you'll get back an error message telling you the page you want doesn't exist. Gee, how wonderful that the main feature of this interactive strategy guide **frequently doesn't work**. Of course, you may be spared the annoyance of the website not working, because instead you'll suffer from the annoyance of not even being able to find it. While it is still up, it is no longer at the playonline URL included in the book and is not easy to find.
   
   Now, the actual book-portion of the guide does have some good info that you don't have to coerce the website into giving up. For instance, in the book there are tables of all the learnable abilities, organized by which characters can learn them, complete with which items the character can learn them from. That is quite handy if, for some reason, you're hunting down a specific ability for a specific character. There is also an appendix of info about the monsters. This beastiary really is quite complete and, from what I've been able to see, quite accurate. Though, again, a fair amount of info about each monster has been redacted from the book and can only be found on the website.
   
   But the lion's share of the book (the walk through, side-quest info, and treasure hunting) is abysmally lacking. So no, this guide isn't completely useless, but it is mostly useless. Don't waste your money on this rip-off. Web-surf to a Final Fantasy IX fan site or to Gamefaqs instead. It's free and their strategy guides are much more informative.
   
   
   Pros:
   
   + Good info on abilities and monsters.
   
   
   Cons:
   
   - No info on pretty much everything else.
   - Partner website is hard to find and almost non-functional.
   - Complete waste of money.



5. This guide depends on the Final Fantasy IX online site to function. THIS SITE HAS BEEN TAKEN DOWN. THIS BOOK IS NOW NON-FUNCTIONAL. DO NOT BUY.

5 comments about Microsoft Flight Simulator as a Training Aid: A Guide for Pilots, Instructors, and Virtual Aviators.

1. The first few chapters offer more background then actual gaming tips. I would have liked to see more material on flying commercial airliners on flight simulator. This book concentrates on small planes.



2. I have wanted to get my pilots license since I was 13. I could never get the cash.
   
   The Flight Sim Pilot Training on Flight Sim 2004 and Flight Sim X is OK but not great.
   
   This book is so incredibly awesome when it comes to how you can use Flight Sim to lean how to fly and the things that you shouldn't. (Let's just say the computer program is a little "optimistic")
   
   I have talked to so many trainers who told me dozens of stories about people who got their sport or private pilot license in a much shorter time and cheaper because of this book.
   
   And my local flight school instructor told me the more I can learn in Flight Sim the better pilot I will be because when he goes over the stuff I need to know he will be reminding me of the things I already know and filling in everything else.
   
   He says all his pilots who have used Flight Sim saved from $1000 to $3000.



3. For rank beginners to MS FSX, the first half of this book, while a bit lengthy could prove helpful. My major criticism is that the book makes a fairly big jump to what could have been more substantive and useful information. I bought the book with accompanying CD to help me prepare for real world IFR training in a single engine G1000 aircraft. While there are loads of example flights that let you practice departures, enroute navigation, arrivals, and approaches, there is little discussion and preparation for these examples. It would seem that the book might then be quite good for instructors who are already familiar with these concepts.
   All in all, while well organized and obviously written by a devotee of FSX, it failed me in my IFR training.



4. I bought this book at the same time as Jeff Van West's book, and
   I found that even though the latter makes you go download the missions
   from the Wiley website, they were still much more useful. The lessons
   on the CD with this book had no more structure than say something I
   might have saved while flying. If you are buying a book that is
   real-aviation oriented, West's book is a must have, this I would take
   a pass on.



5. A comprehensive book that seems to spend a lot of time justifying the use of PC based Flight Sims for pilot training. I possibly expected more on how to use the Flight Sim program than there was. nevertheless, worth reading.

5 comments about Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time: Prima's Official Strategy Guide.

1. This book takes you step by step and the descriptions are clear. Although it may take a while to acutally complete the game while trying to read a player's guide at the same time, it does not take away from the excitement.

   And a big plus would be that this guide doesn't take away from the plot. BEWARE those that do!




2. Dear Zelda fans& lovers,
   This book is sure to help you on the 2nd level to getting the Goron Ruby.Soon I have this book to help me.
   P.S. This guide is the best!



3. This is a great companion to the game. It is descriptive and offers a number of strategies for certain situations. I noticed a couple of flaws in it, but nothing major. For example, in the back where it describes where to find all the gold skultulas, it usually has what you need to get it, what dungeon or town it is in, and where it is in the dungeon or town. However, one of them had the dungeons in one column, but what you need to use to get it in two coulmns, so I had no idea where to find it, even after searching. I think there is another flaw, but that is about it. They are very minor and don't take away the fact that this is a great guide!



4. This is a really good guide, I had a copy of this, but it was like five years old, and the pages fell out. But before, it was really a good guy, and it helped me out of a few tight spots. The one thing I think it could have is more puzzle-help. Especially the one in Forest Temlpe, the one where you have to move the crescent blocks. But, it might have had it, that pages has been missing in my copy for years. Overall, excellent. Highly recommended. Being a kid (-13) myself, I can say that most kids will find this easy to understand and comprehend, and the complete maps, listings, and charts are very clear!



5. Not being a "game" person, I must admit to having to struggle through the most simple of computer and other electronic type games. I simply could not have completed this one on my own. If this guide helped me, then I certainly feel it would be helpful to anyone! Ghe graphics in this book are excellent and the instructions are quite easy to follow. Recommened this one highly.

5 comments about Mass Effect Collector's Edition: Prima Official Game Guide.

1. I found the hint guide to be very helpful, While I only referred to it after finishing a section or when getting stuck for awhile. It has information on all equipment, powers, locations and charecters and maps for all locations too.
   
   The art book was nice, with lots of background information, though it lacked the depth that went into Half Life 2 Raising the Bar, its a good addition to any collection.



2. Considering the Art-work had been given as well I couldn't recommend this one enough, this was a great guide, informative and helpful if only a little lack-luster when providing alternative strategies and approaches to certain bosses and enemies.
   
   Still, if you're like me and like extended manual's that you can pick up and start reading wherever you go, this one is great.
   
   A recommendation though, even as it is a guide and should be obvious, more guides should implement "SPOILER" warnings before key plot element's are given away.



3. What I like the best of this game is the atmosphere, the art of the game, and in the Artbook I have had what I expected, very good.
   
   The guide looks very very very complete, but it has A LOT of text and tables. It's a complete guide but not a funny read



4. This collectible book is rich of a beautiful illustration set and show the creation process of a such great game as Mass Effet. If you consider a video game as a piece of Art, you will find this item as a must have. It give you the opportunity to continue the Mass Effect journey.



5. I got this for the art book, so I don't have a strong opinion on the guide. That said, the guide is useful for completionists like me. The "collecting" side quests may be quite hard to complete without any help as many of the objects don't show up on the maps until you get near them. This book will save you a lot of time by marking them out for you. Although you can get all the information you need online, it's handy to have a printed version while you're within the game.
   
   The art book contains a lot of gorgeous concept art that really shows how much attention has gone into the design of this fabulous game. Mass Effect has one of the best game stories I've encountered, and if you love the story as much as I do, you'll enjoy reliving the game via the artwork and seeing how the design of the characters and aliens evolved into their final versions.
   
   The chapters cover the gamut: characters, races, environments, vehicles - there's even a "details" sections that covers miscellaneous stuff like furniture. The pages are dominated by the pictures, descriptive text is present but minimal; the way it should be.
   
   I would give the art book a 5 star, but overall the set receives a 4-star because the guide is pretty straightforward, and there's nothing really special about this so-called collector's edition.

5 comments about KINGDOM HEARTS Chain of Memories Official Strategy Guide (Signature Series).

1. The Official Guide for Kingdom Heart: Chain of Memories is a useful book for helping you understand the more generic aspects of the game. For example, the sections on cards, combos and room descriptions are very well done. Of course, you can always get these information on the Internet for free, but hey, this book has colors!
   
   The walkthrough for the various worlds, however, is a little thin. It's understandable though, considering the randomized nature of these rooms. That said, the book at least attempted to provide deck and levelling up strategies, which always help in an RPG game like this. The tips for boss fights are also quite helpful, even though some of these fights are rather straight forward.
   
   Fans of this game may also know that when you complete the game, you can unlock an additional mode. This guide included some snippets on this mode too. All in all, I'd say the book just about cover everything you need to know about the game, and a little more. I'd recommend this to those who doesn't mind shelling out the cash for a more colorful version of an Internet FAQ.



2. this book helped a lot I like both the kingdom hearts games and this made it easier to see if i missed anything :-)



3. when i bought the item i opened the box and the book included everything it said. Also it was in perfect condition-no dented corners or riped pages-. when i used the book it it included all the secret items in the game. if you are a kingdom hearts fan i suggest this book to you. perfect product



4. It helped dramatically and I found it to be really well done and very helpful in explaining the different cards and what they truly did....... Also its a good thing to have when deciding on going through the game and what world cards to use....although I was already half way through with the game when I had it.....It was still nice and helped me with my other half decisions....



5. I really do like this guide book the maps are really helpful. As well as the instructions for the boss fights. You will really find this book useful.

5 comments about Sims 2 Box Set: Prima Official Game Guide.

1. I was actually going to rate this 4 stars, but decided that the item description didn't lead me to expect quite what I got.
   The content is good, I've learned new stuff and I've been playing Sims 2 for several years. However, the quality of the books themselves aren't good. The type is sooo tiny it is hard to read and I find it difficult to read for a very long period of time. It would be okay, but they used super cheap paper as well, so the paper has a grayish tinge, which makes it even harder on the eyes.
   I had anticipated the full-size color guides (maybe I just wasn't paying close enough attention), whereas these are normal "novel size" books and no color. Mostly for me that is okay as they are actually easier to store and I'm familiar enough with the Sims 2 that I don't need the pictures to know what they are talking about. Nevertheless, it would have been nice to realize this before I received them.
   So, all in all, if you are gettig these to use for the occasional reference on something, they're just right for that. But if you actually want something you can read through or that looks nice, find the larger color guides and get them. It'd be worth the extra expense in my opinion.



2. This cheap reproduction on newsprint in microscopic fonts was a very big disappointment. The guides for some games recently have an occasional section or two printed on the cheap (The FF XII guide by Brady Games comes to mind), resulting in poor readability for that section, but this takes the cake.
   
   An entire set of guides reproduced so cheaply that legibility is poor at best, and unintelligible at worst.
   
   Standard text within the guides is readable with a magnifying glass with good lighting. Text that appeared in the original publication within a shaded box for emphasis is less legible. Text that was itself a lighter shade appears to be nothing more than a pixelated mess since this black and white reproduction is of a low quality resolution.
   
   Think very poor quality grainy newspaper print. With a tiny font. If you didn't need reading glasses before you tried to view these, you will afterwards.
   
   Pictures that were originally in full color reproduced by this method are useless for their intended purpose. Some points in the guides are explained ONLY in pictures, which are now little better than gray misty blobs.
   
   They could have used a better quality paper, or a better resolution, or color, or made the font larger/books thicker, or made the font slightly larger/books slightly larger. Actually, they could have tried any ONE of these, and made a more legible product, but they were horrifically cheap about it.
   
   You'd think that someone in quality control, or management saw this thing before it went to market, and had the guts to say it was bad, pull it from production, but I guess not.
   
   I wouldn't even get it for the occasional reference. If that's all you need out of a guide rather than cover-to-cover reading, I suggest searching the internet. It will be both cheaper and infinitely more legible. These books were a waste.



3. Theese are a must have for the serious to normal gamer. Full of helpful tips and information to get your Sims to show their full potential.



4. I thought I was getting full-size color Prima Guides, instead these are black, white and gray Pocketbooks that are so small I have to read them in very good light during the day and even then it's kind of hard. The illustrations are crappy not only because of the lack of color, but the material of the pages reminds me of newspaper rather than what I'm usually used to from a Prima Guide. I was very disappointed when I received the package, to say the least.



5. The content of the books is excellent - that is, if you can actually read the print. I refer to the guides quite often but only in short doses because it usually gives me a headache. Also, the pictures are pretty useless.
   
   I would recommend getting the individual books, though most of them are out of print. I think you can get the individual book for Freetime since it was just released. Also, I think you can purchase digital versions of the books at Prima's website. I have bought other digital Prima Guides and they were much more readable than these were. The only problem is you either have to print them out if you want to refer to them while you are playing the game. (Or switch back and forth from the game to the guide, which is a pain.)

5 comments about Player's Guide to Faerun (Dungeons & Dragons d20 3.5 Fantasy Roleplaying, Forgotten Realms Accessory).

1. I'm usually a pessimist when it comes to the glut of D&D monthly products, but this book is entirely character options, and while none of them are top notch, it's got very detailed info on deity and regional stuff that pertains to players. Very useful, and although some of it is only a rules update from the F.R. campaign book (3rd edition), it's also a lot easier to skim through for bits of information. It's definitely a solid book, a must-have for DMs, and I'd give it 5 stars if it weren't campaign-specific.



2. A USEFULL GUIDE FOR FAERUN PLAYERS
   
   This book contains 3 specification
   - 3.5 Updates of FR Realms Campign Setting
   - A gathering book from other FR Rule Books
   - Some new addition things
   
   The most important thing of this book that is care us; it is a gathering guide book from main books of Forgotten Realms. (FR Campaign Setting, Faiths & Pantheons, Races of Faerun, Magic of Faerun) This Guide takes the important things for players from these 4 books and collects together. It is a Summary of them.
   
   Player Guide to Faerun includes nearly all things for Forgotten Realms players. The players can find necessary knownlodge for their characters in one book. But if they wants more details and other specific things they should to have ektra books.
   
   The main reason for to get this book is; The standard Faerun Players may use this book without need the other books. They may take only two book to games; The Players Handbook and Players Guide to Faerun. This may be second main book for them.
   Also, they can create their characters and play after for dont need the FR Campaign Setting.
   
   It is only few new additon things whose is not other books. So dont think to buy for only new additions.
   
   If you thing to have minimal number books to play in Forgotten Realms, you should buy only two books; FR Campaign Setting, Player Guide to Faerun. (After to have 3 core rule book of D&D)
   The players who have other FR books, they may also get this book if they want quick summary guide under their hand during their games.
   
   Includes the Collection of these:
   Races, P.Classes, Skills, Feats, Domains and Spells, Magic Items, Epic Levels.
   
   This was my fifth FR book, I have had before these books; FR Campaign Setting, Faiths & Pantheons, Races of Faerun, Magic of Faerun, but I want to take this guide also because I want a usefull thin guide for bring it to games. Sometimes it is some difficult to look and find your needs other 4 books, it may took time.
   
   I recommended this book for Players of Forgotten Realms Players, but not for any DM. It is a Player Guide like name. And I repeat this; it is a summary book for FR players.



3. I'm always a little leary about buying "Player's Guides" since I'm a DM most of the time, but this one was almost necessary to correct the errors and region system in the original Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting (Dungeons & Dragons). Also upgrades spells from the Magic of Faerun! Very cool and worth every penny I spent so far.



4. This book was well worth the money I spent, it was delivered to me in quick timing, and was in almost perfect sondition.



5. Player's Guide to Faerun is a very good FR supplement, but it lacks any information on the facts that happened (are going to happen depending on the year your campaign is going on) after the Year of The Rouge Dragons. It focus a lot on the planes other then the material plane and prestige classes, but not much on geography and politics between the realms.