MetaGame - Review

MetaGame - by Sam Landstrom - was pretty awesome. It is hard to believe this is his first book. I certainly await anxiously for more of this quality - so much so that I immediately after finishing, I came to the computer to Like his page on Facebook and write this review.

The world in MetaGame is pretty unique. Sure, there are a few staples of SF - nanotech, virtual reality, immortality, and more. But in this world it is all about the game.

The game is not just a form of entertainment - every kind of work is rephrased as a game, where you get points instead of money. This can be used to optimize output - as mentioned in the traditional fake encyclopedia chapter starts, and also on real work (this reminded me of the chapter "Learning from Video Games" on Designed For Use which also mentions Flow in user design).

One neat point is that with ubiquitous tracking of everything you say applies to an universal affiliate system. All recommendations of a product that you make get points per person that hears you, plus a cut of the sales. That sounds incredibly possible... (I'm typing this as I look at the Amazon affiliate links on this review :-) )

The game is also a form of religion, which most people follow. And this religion can offer you immortality, if you can get enough points...

There is plenty of action in the book, and a very satisfying ending.

Very much recommended.

PS: Just heard this music after a while and remembered Rule Seven...

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