9/10 I was totally engulfed in this film. Everything about it was well done. There was incredible character development, well-executed plot, and honestly an enjoyable world. There were multiple 'Inception' moments and SO many references to pop culture and the gaming world. I thoroughly enjoyed the commentary on today's culture, and where we are going, taken to the extreme. [spoiler]It was neat to see the players who met online, meet in person and continue being friends, despite everyone being different in person. I really enjoyed that message as a gamer myself. Also funny to see commentary on corporate culture trying to take over any power available anywhere (in this case, a hobbyist gaming community.)[/spoiler] Various good messages and insights on what the world has become/is becoming. SUPER ENJOYABLE.

The paradigm of material being cut from a book to fit into the run time of a movie doesn't really apply here because next to nothing from it happens in the film. It bares little resemblance to the book at all and is completely shallow for it. Conservatively I'd put it at 10% of the book translated to the screen in a recognisable form. It should be "Inspired by" rather than "Based on" however I didn't find it that inspired at all. It's unbelievable to me that Cline himself handled the screenplay, at least in part. People that love the film will be thoroughly disappointed by the book, especially the PG-13 crowd the film brought in. The Oasis itself was done an utter disservice by portraying it as basically just a game, it was so much more than that. Disappointing.

What a fun movie! As someone who was born in the 80s, i can appreciate all the pop culture references in the movie. Great cast, with lots of laughs. I'll be watching this one again!

Save your money and buy the book instead.