Anyone who grew up during the 90s will be very familiar with the SEGA versus Nintendo battle that raged throughout the decade. In the schoolyard, you either a Nintendo kid or you were a SEGA kid. And now, it’s being turned into a movie.
Based off Blake J. Harris’ book of the same name, Console Wars charts how the two companies went to war during the 80s and 90s for video game supremacy. Despite not being released until May this year, the option for a movie adaptation has already been purchased (ironically) by Sony with Scott Rudkin (No Country For Old Men, Frances Ha) producing. Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogan, who wrote the foreword for the book, are tapped to write the screenplay. Harris will also serve as a producer on the movie.
Here’s the book synopsis from Amazon.com…
In 1990, Nintendo had a virtual monopoly on the video game industry. Sega, on the other hand, was just a faltering arcade company with big aspirations and even bigger personalities. But that would all change with the arrival of Tom Kalinske, a man who knew nothing about videogames and everything about fighting uphill battles. His unconventional tactics, combined with the blood, sweat and bold ideas of his renegade employees, transformed Sega and eventually led to a ruthless David-and-Goliath showdown with rival Nintendo.
The battle was vicious, relentless, and highly profitable, eventually sparking a global corporate war that would be fought on several fronts: from living rooms and schoolyards to boardrooms and Congress. It was a once-in-a-lifetime, no-holds-barred conflict that pitted brother against brother, kid against adult, Sonic against Mario, and the US against Japan.
Based on over two hundred interviews with former Sega and Nintendo employees, Console Wars is the underdog tale of how Kalinske miraculously turned an industry punchline into a market leader. It’s the story of how a humble family man, with an extraordinary imagination and a gift for turning problems into competitive advantages, inspired a team of underdogs to slay a giant and, as a result, birth a $60 billion dollar industry.
Which side did you take? Are you excited for a movie based on SEGA vs. Nintendo?
Originally published February 24, 2014. Updated April 11, 2018.
