Eileen's primary literary love is comic books, but she’s always on the lookout for her next literary adventure no matter what form it takes. She has a Bachelor's in media studies, a Master's in digital communication, a smattering of published short stories, and a seriously cute dog. Follow her on Bluesky.
Are your parents pestering you to put down the controller and go read a book? I’m not saying you should, but if you do, you could do worse than one of these comics about video games.
With one exception, this is not a list of comics based on real video game. Rather, these graphic novels explore the positives and the negatives of playing video games, how to enjoy gaming without letting it take over your life, and the skills and lessons that video games can teach us.
Cat + Gamer Volume One by Wataru Nadatani
Riko loves video games and, well, that’s about it. Video games are her entire life, right up until she makes the life-changing decision to adopt a stray cat. Will that be enough to drag her out of the virtual world and into the real one?
Cemetery Kids Don’t Die Volume One by Zac Thompson and Daniel Irizarri
Nightmare Cemetery is a vital lifeline for four kids whose real lives are an even bigger horror than the game. But when the line between fantasy and reality starts to blur in dangerous ways, the only way they can save themselves is by uncovering the truth about the popular game.
Glitch by Sarah Graley
Wouldn’t it be cool if you could actually go inside your video games? Izzy thought it was pretty neat, until her obsession with saving the fictional Dungeon City started interfering with a real-life friendship. What’s a chosen one to do?
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Janus Silang and the Creature of Tábon Volume One by Edgar Calabia Samar, Carljoe Javier, Mervin Malonzo, and Natasha Ringor
Adapted from a popular Filipino novel, this is the story of Janus, a teen who finds himself the sole survivor of a video game tournament. What monsters are lurking in–and outside of–the games that he loves so much?
Level Up by Gene Luen Yang and Thien Pham
When life gets too stressful, Dennis finds himself booted from college, with no hope of becoming a gastroenterologist like his parents wanted. Next thing he knows, he’s being followed around by a gaggle of angels who push him back on track–whether he wants to be there or not!
Minecraft Volume One by Sfé R. Monster and Sarah Graley
I let this one slide since it features an original storyline and characters not present in Minecraft itself. Follow along as Tyler uses the game to stay connected with his friends after he moves to a new city.
No Game No Life Volume One by Yuu Kamiya and Mashiro Hiiragi
Brother and sister gamers Sora and Shiro are fantastic at video games and nothing else. As such, they might be the only ones who can save humanity in an alternate universe where winning video games is very literally all that matters.
English (US) · 