Review: Ready Player One

[livingdeb]

I really liked this book!

In a dystopian future, a high school student finds the first key in worldwide contest from the will of a guy who co-created a giant online interactive environment, and this is the student's version of what happened next. I like him, and I love his best friend, his crush, the company's living co-founder, and the online persona of the dead co-founder (not the real-life dead co-founder though--he had no social skills). There were many read-aloud bits. And many spots that made me laugh, cry, and/or cheer.

It starts off super depressing, like "Idiocracy," only worse because it's closer to our time and not a comedy. And the super-horrible bad guys are too much like many of today's horrible bad guys (unethical businessmen). But then we get sucked into the online world. A USA Today reviewer calls it "Willy Wonka meets The Matrix," and I get that, but it reminds me more of Jumper with all the student's strategizing to deal with the new situation.

The guy with the will loved video games, music, and movies from the 1980s, and anyone who wanted to win would need to learn about those things, too. It's true that I was around and cognizant during the 80s (I was age 17-27), so I definitely got some references that younger people might not get. But I didn't play video games and I mostly listened to music from the 1960s, so I really was not at an advantage in figuring out the mysteries. They explained plenty of things well enough for you to follow what was going on regardless.

One negative review: "What if the entire world revolved around me and the specific video games and movies I like? ... Ready Player One goes so far beyond a reasonable reference-to-plot ratio that it often feels more like binge-reading 1980s-related Wikipedia articles than reading a novel."

Yes, sometimes. It's way better in this regard than Moby Dick, though. (But then, what isn't?) Except I suppose whaling is more interesting than 80's trivia.

I suppose a movie could get around this difficulty. But I have low expectations for the movie. At best, I will like it as much as "Hunger Games," which was well done but left out a bunch of my favorite things. I already know that one of my favorite parts (the secret identity of one of the characters) is being ruined (by not being secret). I'll probably still watch the movie eventually.

Normally I recommend watching a movie before reading the book because the book is generally better and has more details. So you enjoy the movie because you don't know what you're missing and then you enjoy the book because you get to have more. But in this case, I think I recommend reading the book before getting spoilers from the movie. Finding out things as they happen and trying to figure out some of the puzzles is part of the fun.

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

I had wondered for a while why this book was back on the best seller lists...until I heard about the movie (that I also have only modest hopes for).

The book is perfection for computer nerds who were about 7-17 during the 80s and really get the references.

-Sally

[livingdeb]

Maybe so. My favorite parts were not about that stuff, though. I really liked the characters' reactions to tough situations. And some of the dialog, like the co-founder's advice to the finders, and our protagonist's feigned nonchalance while his best friend is freaking out about his first find.

[livingdeb]

Now that I've seen the movie, I think I take back the recommendation to read the book first. That's because I think there's really only one important book plot spoiler in the movie. That's because the movie is very different. For example, every single puzzle is different. I'm going to say that it also has very little of my favorite stuff from the book. And they even managed to throw stuff from the 1970s (as well as the 1980s of course) into it. Just think of it as a parallel universe kind of thing. Where all the good guys are completely different from the ones in the book but happen to have the same names and belong in similar demographic groups.

I'd say the movie is your basic turn-of-the-century special effects movie. With a plot that basically makes sense and the theme to not throw away your friends. As a movie, I'd say it's pretty good. As a movie version of the book, I'd say it's extremely disappointing. (Except that they tell you a little more about what happens after the contest ends.) And I think it would also be disappointing to the "computer nerds who were about 7-17 during the 80s and really get the references."

But you watch good guys escape and outsmart scary bad guys while running around mostly in a cool virtual reality with awesome cars and creatures and choreography and also an interesting quirky real-life world. The characters and plot were more generic and ordinary than in the book; just the kind of thing you expect in an action movie.

[(Anonymous)]

Wow, they changed ALL the puzzles? I kinda figured that the Infocom text adventure wouldn't translate well to the screen, but I'm surprised that the movie is so different. Good to know.

Sally

Not intrigued

[(Anonymous)]

Hi Debbie, this is JayW (couldn't log on). Didn't read the book and don't feel moved by any of the trailers, so probably won't hit the movie either. I played real primitive computer games, like Zork, etc and never got intrigued enough to dive into the scene (I did enjoy a game called Spaceword Ho!). Guess I was too enthralled by playing sports and listening to Austin music. So I'll just blame that I was addicted to living Austin and wait for the next Linklater movie ;-)

Re: Not intrigued

[livingdeb]

I didn't even play Zork (or any other cool InfoCom game), just heard about them later. I just liked it as a coming-of-age sort of book.

To each his own; and there's not even enough time to do everything cool, let alone other stuff too.