Stay Awhile and Listen by David L. Craddock

But not even they could have imagined the phenomenon Mortal Kombat would become when it hit arcades in October 1992, or the controversy that would follow in its wake.īased on extensive interviews, Long Live Mortal Kombat: Round 1 chronicles the arcade era of the video game industry's most infamous fighting series, the creative and technical hurdles its team had to clear, and the personal stories of the fans whose passion has made Mortal Kombat a pillar of popular culture. He is the bestselling author of Stay Awhile and Listen : How Two Blizzards Unleashed Diablo and Forged a Video-Game Empire - Book I, and Heritage : Book One of the Gairden Chronicles, an epic fantasy series for young adults. From dedicated hustlers who put thousands of miles on their odometers driving coast to coast to challenge the top players in arcades, to fans who devote their free time to collecting action figures, setting world records, and plumbing the depths of its lore, the Mortal Kombat franchise has topped sales charts for thirty years, and its popularity shows no signs of waning.īut before Mortal Kombat offended politicians and sold over 12 million units (and counting), executives at Midway saw it as filler-a stopgap between more promising games like NBA Jam.Ĭocreators Ed Boon and John Tobias felt differently. Stay Awhile and Listen: How Two Blizzards Unleashed Diablo and Forged a Video-Game Empire - Book I invites readers to discover the origin of the two Blizzards.

Outside of writing, he enjoys playing Mario, Zelda, and Dark Souls. He is the author of over a dozen nonfiction books about videogame development and culture, including the bestselling Stay Awhile and Listen series, Arcade Perfect: How Pac-Man, Mortal Kombat.

To politicians and parents, Mortal Kombat was a menace to society. He is the author of the Stay Awhile and Listen series, and the Gairden Chronicles series of fantasy novels for young adults.

Stay Awhile and Listen by David L. Craddock