Investigating the aesthetics of videogames, Poole notes similarities and differences to other artforms such as cinema, painting and literature, and finally offers a description of games as semiotic systems that may provoke 'aesthetic wonder'.
[7] In a negative review of the book in the Guardian, former British government communications chief Alastair Campbell wrote, 'I am not quite sure what Poole is trying to say.
The Spectator thought it "does show occasional signs of having been written in a rush, but it's a valuable glossary to corporate life and demonstrates the empty-headed arrogance of what passes for management style.
[11] Poole writes book reviews and literary and cultural essays for numerous publications, including a long obituary of Jean Baudrillard for The Guardian,[12] and a critique of the work of Alain de Botton.
[13] In 2004, Poole presented a television documentary for BBC Four called Trigger Happy: The Invincible Rise of the Video Game, based on his book.