Unlike other recent books about videogames which focus on the history of gaming in general or tell stories of a particular development studio’s rise to prominence, Game Boys reads more like a sports story than a book about videogames and gamers.  Counter-Strike may be the game, but it is not what the book is about any more than a book like Brian’s Song is about football or the film Slap Shot is about hockey.

Game Boys is about the rivalry between two top-tier Counter-Strike clans and the personalities of their players and coaches.  With stylistic skill Kane writes about real-life people who seem to fit perfectly into the classic sport stereotypes we have seen time and again.  The behind the scenes coverage of Team 3D and CompLexity, their star players, their coaches, and the tension leading up to their inevitable showdown is reminiscent of every sports story ever told from The Bad News Bears to The Best of Times and, as such, is accessible to gamers and non-gamers alike.

To write the book Kane says he spent about eighteen months with the players and coaches of both teams, watching practice sessions, attending LAN tournaments, and covering the behind the scenes drama on each side.  He recognized the relationship to sports right away.  “When you have a team of five players,” he said, “There’s a range of specific roles both in and out of the game.  Various players bring their skills and personalities [to every aspect of] the team from in-game roles to developing strategies and scouting, et cetera."  It was the perfect formula for a successful story and made a concept that had a large but limited initial audience into a tale nearly everyone could embrace.  “It’s a lot easier to keep people’s attention,” he explains, “When they care about who wins.”

Reading Game Boys and reliving the drama between these two teams will do just that.  Whether you’re a gaming fanboy who knows the Team 3D and CompLexity players by name or an average Joe who may never even have heard of Counter-Strike, you’ll find yourself riveted by the tale and may discover you cared more than you ever thought you would about just who would win a videogame tournament.