At a time when gaming is increasingly turning to digital distribution and short content, there is one project that goes in the complete opposite direction – it focuses on books. The site The Video Game Library presents a unique online database dedicated to video game literature, and its significance for gaming culture is far greater than it seems at first glance.
The Video Game Library is not a classic portal or news site. It is a digital catalog that collects and organizes books related to video games - from artbooks and guides, through comics and novels, all the way to serious academic works and biographies.
The project was launched in 2022 with the aim of preserving gaming culture through the written word, and today it already contains more than 10,000 titles in more than 25 languages.
Gaming is not only playing - but also reading
When we talk about video games, most people think of gameplay, graphics and multiplayer. But behind every game there is a rich world of ideas, development and creative processes. This is exactly what the books that this site collects document.
In one place it is possible to find:
- official strategy guides (like those for Devil May Cry or Dragon Age)
- encyclopedias related to a specific series, genre, platform, etc.
- artbooks that reveal the design of the characters and the world
- biographies of developers and industrial pioneers
- academic analyzes and books about game design
- comics and novels inspired by popular games
In other words, it is a "written history of gaming".
Why does this kind of project even exist?
One of the key problems of the gaming industry is the disappearance of content. It is estimated that as many as 87% of games published before 2010 are hard to find today or completely lost through official channels.
But the problem is not only in games. Books, guides and analyzes are also disappearing – often sold out, out of print or only available in certain countries.
The Video Game Library tries to solve that problem by:
- catalogs existing books
- links them to available physical and digital editions
- enables easier search and research
This makes it an important part of a broader movement to preserve gaming history, similar to initiatives like video game archives and museums.
Global project, global perspective
One of the most interesting things about this site is its global approach.
Unlike most gaming portals that focus on the West, The Video Game Library includes books from Japan, Europe, South America and other parts of the world.
This means that users can discover:
- Japanese manga game adaptations
- European analyzes and theoretical works
- rare publications that have never been translated into English
Such diversity gives a much broader picture of the gaming industry than we are used to.
More than a database
Although at first glance it looks like an ordinary catalog, The Video Game Library also has educational value.
The page allows filtering by:
- topics
- games
- authors
- publishers
- year of publication
- language
This makes it a useful tool not only for fans, but also for students, researchers and future developers who want to better understand the industry.
The Video Game Library may not be a classic gaming portal, but it is an extremely important project for the preservation of gaming culture. While most of the industry is moving towards faster and shorter content, this site is a reminder that video games have deep histories and stories worth writing down – and preserving. For anyone who wants a deeper understanding of gaming and not just playing games, this is definitely a site worth bookmarking.
