Ready Player One

[Kai "the spy"]

I haven't read the book, but the trailer alone makes it clear that the real world of 2045 is pretty shitty with a whole generation of people so disillusioned and so lacking in prospects that they've pretty much given up on real life and seek their life's meaning in pop culture and fantasy worlds. That might not be the most original idea, but it's pretty damn relevant.

 

[crookeddy]

I wrote my own version for the sequel, which is based on 90s culture. Here is an excert.
So I was playing PaRappa the Rapper against the devil from Doom, and I tripped on that Biggy Song as I have only practiced Will Smith songs prior to entering this multi user dungeon, believing him to be the prince of rap. Fortunately I was faced with a bit of lag, allowing me to study the lyrics and get a passing score.

 

[David cgc]

There were a couple of tweets I saw talking about if RP1 was about 80s girl-nerd shit instead of boy-nerd shit and how it'd be held lower than contempt

This one's in an image, which I don't think I'm supposed to embed here since I don't own Twitter.

@JFriedhoff:
Can you imagine how shittily men would treat Ready Player One if it was all femme stuff?

“I arrived in my flying model of the Thelma & Louise car. I’d installed a Polly Pocket dashboard AI, and, to complete the look, slapped some Lisa Frank dolphins on the outside”

 

[Mudd]

That's a good point.

My kid explained all this to me: the book is utter crap.

Glad she cleared that up and potentially saved me a couple of hours.

 

[Mudd]

Right, because he's the only person who fits that description who can act...

He's the only one who fits that description that anyone wants to cast.

 

[Reverend]

Just finished reading the book, mostly out of curiosity than anything and I found it to be enjoyable, even though despite being and 80's/90s kid I didn't get all the references and had to google some of them (I was never exposed to much Japanese pop culture as a child, so I had to look up who most of the giant robots were and arcades were way to expensive for me to be able to play on any kind of regular basis.)
Clearly the author is drawing mostly from his own childhood and adolescent obsessions so I can see why someone not so clued in might find the whole thing dull and alienating. I can already tell from the trailer though that Spielberg has opted to broaden the appeal with a mix of new stuff (and presumably whatever Warner Bros already owns the rights too.) So that may be lessened somewhat.

For what it's worth the ultimate message of the story is that while yes, a lot of this stuff is cool and fun it's no substitute for reality and retreating into a fantasy world will only make the real world's problems even worse.

 

[JD]

That's a good point.

My kid explained all this to me: the book is utter crap.

Glad she cleared that up and potentially saved me a couple of hours.

Even if the book is crap that doesn't mean to movie will be.

 

[Grendelsbayne]

The book isn't crap at all. Some people just have a BS obsession with the idea that anything they don't fall in love with must be utterly terrible.

The truth of the matter is that it's a perfectly enjoyable and entertaining story, with solid characters and fun world-building, that is perfectly adequate in terms of writing while occupying a very specific story niche. And like all such books - of which there are many in all genres - when someone just doesnt care about the basic premise/niche employed theyll likely be bored.

 

[Mudd]

Even if the book is crap that doesn't mean to movie will be.

Well, nothing about it so far suggests otherwise.

This kid is right about most things.

 

[Tosk]

"Perfectly adequate" ...such glowing praise.

 

[Reverend]

There's nothing wrong with an interesting story, well told. If you expect everything to be of earth shattering quality and worth then you're just setting yourself up for constant disappointment.

The book is good. Not a contender for best novel ever written, nor will it be responsible for altering the course of human civilisation as we know it. But then, it's really not trying to be. It's a simple adventure story (literally, if you get the reference ) with a unique hook. As I said, if you've no interest in or knowledge of 80's pop culture then most of it will probably be lost on you. So yes, it's niche but that's sort of the point. It has a very specific intended audience. It's not meant for everyone.

If I had to sum it up as a story, I'd say it's like a cross between 'High Fidelity' and 'Sword Art Online' (yes, I very occasionally watch anime. Also John Cusack movies. Sue me!)

 

[JD]

Well, nothing about it so far suggests otherwise.

This kid is right about most things.

I have one word for you..... Spielberg.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

It's been almost 20 years since I've been genuinely bowled over by a Spielberg film. But the trailer looks fun. As a "Back to the Future" fan, I'm perfectly happy to be pandered to.

 

[JD]

I'll admit he hasn't really done any SFF at the level of Jurrasic Park or ET in quite a while, but I have seen almost all of his movies and the only one I didn't at least enjoy was 1941. I have not seen Duel, Something Evil, Twilight Zone, Always, Amistad, War Horse, Lincoln, The BFG, and The Post.

 

[Tosk]

1941 rules, damn you!

 

[Starscream2112]

Loved 1941

 

[JD]

I might have to give it another try sometime.

 

[Grendelsbayne]

There's nothing wrong with an interesting story, well told. If you expect everything to be of earth shattering quality and worth then you're just setting yourself up for constant disappointment.

The book is good. Not a contender for best novel ever written, nor will it be responsible for altering the course of human civilisation as we know it. But then, it's really not trying to be. It's a simple adventure story (literally, if you get the reference ) with a unique hook. As I said, if you've no interest in or knowledge of 80's pop culture then most of it will probably be lost on you. So yes, it's niche but that's sort of the point. It has a very specific intended audience. It's not meant for everyone.

If I had to sum it up as a story, I'd say it's like a cross between 'High Fidelity' and 'Sword Art Online' (yes, I very occasionally watch anime. Also John Cusack movies. Sue me!)

For the record, I grew up just after the 80s, probably missed at least half the references if not moreso, and many of those I did get were not big nostalgia points for me at all, but I still very much enjoyed the story.

 

[Reverend]

I might have to give it another try sometime.

I wouldn't recommend it unless you *really* like chaotic slapstick and jokes that don't land. It's considered his worst movie for a reason.

Of those others you mentioned, 'Always' and 'Amistad' are probably more likely to entertain. The former lighthearted and a bit too sentimental, but it also has John Goodman, which is always a win. The latter is I feel a little underrated so far as such things go, though I admit my being biased due to my nationality may be a factor in my opinion (believe it or not, the red coats are on the side of the heroes on this one!)

For the record, I grew up just after the 80s, probably missed at least half the references if not moreso, and many of those I did get were not big nostalgia points for me at all, but I still very much enjoyed the story.

Likewise, I didn't get many of the references and even then only a handful of the ones I did get had any nostalgic hold on me. (Wargames, BTTF, Ghostbusters, etc.)

I think it's safe to say that anyone with at least a passing familiarity with geek culture and retro gaming specifically should find something entertaining in it.

 

[Starbreaker]

I liked the novel a lot. Just replace the arcade game with Super Mario and Wargames with Star Trek II and some people on here would give it an A+. You don't have to have the exact same pop culture interest to enjoy something.