This book

https://www.amazon.com/If-Then-Simulmatics-Corporation-Inven...

describes the rise and fall of a would-be competitor to RAND that I enjoyed.

I think Wikipedia deletionists would love to open up a circle of hell just for video games and related topics because it seems quite hard for a book to be considered notable on Wikipedia but hard for a game not to be. For instance only half of this author's books

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jill_Lepore

are considered notable enough to have Wikipedia pages (and notably not the excellent https://www.amazon.com/If-Then-Simulmatics-Corporation-Inven... but maybe that is just my opinion as a computer nerd who works in the public opinion field... If you notice I try not to say things like "most people think that" because I don't want to be caught with my facts wrong.) but truly obscure games like

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Code_of_Princess

seem to not have to fight for notability at all. (Personally I kinda like that one, but I'm a serious weeb and even I'll admit that it is terribly balanced and too grindy)

Jill Lepore's book "If Then" covers the "why" justifying the early demographic modeling (friends of friends, social networks).

Military types wanted to predict revolutions. Political types wanted to target voters. Marketing types wanted consumers.

https://www.amazon.com/If-Then-Simulmatics-Corporation-Inven...