Ready Player One – Review

This is NOT the normal review that you would expect to see on Nerd Fu.  I am NOT a reader.  I have NOT voluntarily opened a book many, many years.  Yet, somehow I was drawn to Ready Player One and, thanks to a sign from my great friend Megan (The Nerdy Girlie), I found myself purchasing the 384 page story from author Ernest Cline via iTunes.

I reluctantly started into chapter one (remember… I am NOT a reader) and found myself almost immediately sucked into the world that Cline created.  It honestly seemed as if Cline wrote this book for me.  Somehow, a story about a kid in 2044 began to unearth all of the most amazing memories of my childhood in the 80’s – movies, TV shows, video games and pop culture of all kinds.  By the time I got to pages mentioning Ladyhawke and Krull, I was completely hooked.  I would finish this book.

And finish I did.  In less than three days I completed the intense ride and I think I’ll probably start it again before I pick up another book.

Review This!

I’m not going to review the story or characters or try to find any metaphors that an eighth grade English teacher would force you pull from some assigned text.  I’m not gonna spoil any of the story for you.  Just read the description below (taken from the iTunes page for the book) and if that doesn’t do it for you…. well, you’re clearly in the wrong place.  How did you even get this far into the review??

If you are a nerd, geek, gamer, movie buff, etc. then you MUST borrow or purchase Ready Player One immediately.  You will NOT regret it!

DESCRIPTION – READY PLAYER ONE

In the year 2044, reality is an ugly place. The only time teenage Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the virtual utopia known as the OASIS. Wade’s devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world’s digital confines—puzzles that are based on their creator’s obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them.

But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade’s going to survive, he’ll have to win—and confront the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.

BONUS LEVEL – THIS MIGHT BECOME A MOVIE

It’s no surprise that a book as highly reviewed as this might one day become a movie.  The great news – the movie might happen pretty quickly.  Rumors have been milling and it looks like Warner Bros. might make it happen.

‘Ready Player One’ Movie Update: New Script Complete, Licensing May Be An Issue (slashfilm.com)

Screenwriter Zak Penn Says READY PLAYER ONE Script Is Finished; Project Might Get Stuck on Licensing Issues (collider.com)