Ready Player One by Ernest Cline

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4.5 Stars (4.5 / 5)

For any child of the 80s or video game nerd, this book is pure gold! So much nostalgia and geekdom, most would have a hard time not liking Ready Player One. I think that many of us dream of the day that VR systems gain the kind of sophistication that we see in the Oasis. But as the same time that Cline shows us this amazing technology, he also paints a bleak picture of what the world could be, where the Oasis is not only a game, but an escape from the destroyed world that’s we’ve created.

While the “post-apocalyptic” nature of the world is not the main focus of the book, it paints a vivid picture of a possible future. Where the world collapses not with a bang, but with a slow downward spiral as resources dwindle and populations grow beyond the planet’s means. Wade lives in a world where he’s never known the comforts that we take for granted, like a bed to sleep in or enough food to eat. In a world like this, it’s easy to imagine escaping inside a game at every opportunity, especially one in which just about anything is possible.

But, Ready Player One isn’t really about all that (though it’s something that certainly brought an edge of realism to the book that really grabbed me). It’s more about the quest; the journey to win the ultimate prize, control over the Oasis itself. And through this, he must go up against the overbearing IOI corporation, who with its unlimited resources plans to claim the Oasis for itself as the largest capital producing machine in the world.

Overall, this is a story of friendship and perseverance that is great nostalgic fun, but also a damn good book. You can’t help but root for the little guy, while still taking notice of the harsh reality our world could become, if we don’t stand up and pay attention.

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