Videogame books are edging towards a golden era. People are writing about everything under the sun: travelogues, deep analyses of EVE Online, sociocultural inspections, and narrative dissections. For those passionate about the medium, there’s been no better time to learn about it.

In this buyer’s guide, we’ve assembled a sampling of the best videogame books we’ve read. The books listed are not necessarily PC gaming specific, as that would exclude an arbitrary portion of good writing for no good reason—all things in the games industry and creative culture influence one another. Included are links to where you can purchase the publications, with a brief summary of each.