kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 6, 2023 16:18:49 GMT
By my count, 44 though my memory of some of them is very vague
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 6, 2023 16:05:31 GMT
Am I right in thinking the 6 judges are the only ones who get to vote? No blind choices at all will be a tough one! This year, the winning entries will be decided from a combination of judges' decisions and reader votes. The judges' votes and the readers' votes will have equal weighting when determining the winning entry. This year, the winners will be determined from a combination of judges and votes. I really have to get better at reading stuff.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 6, 2023 15:44:14 GMT
Am I right in thinking the 6 judges are the only ones who get to vote?
No blind choices at all will be a tough one!
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 5, 2023 23:52:56 GMT
It was less complex than A Princess of Zamarra (the last one I played), with a less convoluted plot, but I suspect this one was written earlier. Yep, about 7 or 8 years earlier. Glad you enjoyed it.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 5, 2023 13:26:43 GMT
Adventures of Goldhawk is We All Stand Together - a spin-off more aimed at children, derided by many, but not without its fans.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 2, 2023 16:03:13 GMT
Nice to see this get some love.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 1, 2023 19:13:48 GMT
Happy to do a Lone Wolf one though I'd struggle with any questions regarding books past Book 16.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 1, 2023 18:17:13 GMT
what was up with that space battle? YOUR squadron thought Omoz's ship might be disabled, then when it wasn't, you were hopelessly outgunned. Did you actually have an advantage as long as you didn't move in close? Then why not use this to actually make sure the ship was disabled (or blown up)? And if so, why would Omoz open himself up to that in the first place? And if not, what were you actually hoping to accomplish? I guess it makes your guys look less like a "crack team" in the end. Now, now, don't be bringing logic into all this.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 1, 2023 16:33:56 GMT
Out of interest, I compared my top and bottom ranked stories of each series with how they ranked in this poll. Stories that I seem to like a lot more than the average fan: The Invisible Enemy - K9 and Fantastic Voyage - what's not to like? Colony in Space - I'm a sucker for lost civilizations, stories about colonization and exploitation, and Gail Platt The Monster of Peladon - Can understand this as it is a retread though for me it's one that fixed the issues with the previous. Four to Doomsday - I'm even more of a sucker for Burt Kwouk than I am for Gail Platt The Time Monster - I love the more out-there stories and this is probably my favourite use of the Master so far. Stories that I seem to like a lot less than the average fan: Terror of the Zygons - Seriously? The Loch Ness Monster one is a fan favourite? Fair enough I suppose. The Deadly Assassin - Very surprised by this one given how uninspiring Gallifrey was revealed to be The Ark in Space - Still say it's boring. Although apparently it may have inspired Alien which I also am alone in thinking boring. So maybe I'm the problem.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 1, 2023 15:40:28 GMT
Dead of Night Sk10 St16 Lu11 - Holy Circle, Sense Demon, Speak Demon
I made it to Myurr's Tower which I don't think I've ever managed before. Unfortunately, I read something I shouldn't have and ended up withering and dying.
Kills: 16 Zombie Magrand Moon Demon Mage Skeleton x3 Tentacles Demonic Servant Demonic Servant x2 Orc x6
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 1, 2023 13:03:50 GMT
I like Halloween but it is one of these movies where I scream in frustration at the characters. 'Hit him when he's down! Don't just assume he's dead!'
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Nov 1, 2023 9:02:19 GMT
If I am to nitpick everything, I must note that the title of this adventure seems oddly redundant to me, as if instead of the usual juxtaposition of two elements (such as a location and an attribute), here we have just one; after all "hunter" and "prey" seem to be complementary concepts, each one implying the other. Maybe it's just me. Not just you. It's not a great title, but I couldn't come up with anything I liked better! Oops!
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 31, 2023 23:27:09 GMT
Well whichever cage I'm in, it's a poor performance from me. Well done to Sylas and Evilwizard and thanks Greenspine.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 31, 2023 20:48:58 GMT
For some reason, I was convinced that everyone would go for the letter opener.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 31, 2023 15:53:50 GMT
Shouldn't Evilwizard be on 5 rather than 4 points in the tall cage? In the 'tall cage' system, scores are multiplied, not added. 4 x 1 = 4 Ah, my mistake
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 31, 2023 15:40:27 GMT
Shouldn't Evilwizard be on 5 rather than 4 points in the tall cage?
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 31, 2023 14:38:40 GMT
One of the members of this forum has been standing up for Dilemma in Who fandom for decades, so you're not alone. Ah well, that's good. That seems more believable actually. I can't really see why the magazine editors would want to prevent Dilemma coming bottom, but I could understand why they might not want to draw attention to more recent stories being unpopular. Although I imagine there's no conspiracy and the editors just wanted to do a different format from previous. I see, thanks.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 31, 2023 9:51:27 GMT
"Twin Dilemma" is the least liked DW story of all time. It has consistently polled last since 1984, not just for the season but for the show overall. Some fans have even accused DWM (Doctor Who Magazine) of trying to obfuscate this with the 2023 60th anniversary poll by not ranking all the stories together as they have done in the past, but just by doctor (although even here it still polled last of the 6th Doctor). I really buck the trend with that one I guess. The opposite of The Ark in Space which is apparently heralded as one of the best stories ever for reasons I cannot fathom, but bored the life out of me. One thing you can't say about The Twin Dilemma is that it's boring! What issue of DWM is this poll in? Wouldn't mind giving it a read through once I finish the show.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 30, 2023 20:48:41 GMT
Legend of Zagor Stubble Sk7 St16 Lu9 Go16 (roll of 11)
Some astonishingly bad dice rolling saw me only hitting the corpse lizard once before he hit me 8 times.
Kills:0 Just checking re gold - the book says 'roll three dice and add 2' and that Stubble gets an extra 5, so when you say 'roll of 11' do you mean that the dice added up to 9, or did you forget to add the other 2? The latter. Don't think it would have made much difference though!
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 30, 2023 14:31:49 GMT
I always think of Battleblade Warrior as the most 'OK' book in the series. It has its flaws but nothing too bad. It has its strengths but nothing that makes it stand out. I enjoy it whenever I play it, but always feel I'm forgetting it as I'm playing it.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 30, 2023 8:29:11 GMT
Welcome.
I was lucky enough to complete my collection before prices got really crazy. I think Revenge of the Vampire was the book I spent the most on at about £20.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 27, 2023 11:15:34 GMT
Legend of Zagor Stubble Sk7 St16 Lu9 Go16 (roll of 11)
Some astonishingly bad dice rolling saw me only hitting the corpse lizard once before he hit me 8 times.
Kills:0
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 24, 2023 12:44:44 GMT
Nice one, it seems ages since the previous season appeared here. Hopefully will do Series 22 a bit quicker! Yeah, I completely understand that. I suppose because his awful behavior was acknowledged and condemned it didn't bother me even though it was worse than the bad treatment the previous three doctors dished out which largely went without comment. Interesting that while we disagree a great deal about Frontios and The Twin Dilemma, our ranking otherwise is very similar. I wouldn't mind another attempt at a semi-villainous companion. I did speculate about Romana possibly being an unwitting agent of The Black Guardian and I was pleased that this initially seemed to be the direction for Turlough. But in the end, his moral compass and motives were too inconsistent for the character to really work. It seemed like the writers bottled it a bit with him.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 24, 2023 9:50:15 GMT
Series 21 took me 5 months to get through, mainly because it started quite poorly though picked up very well at its midpoint. If I was to pick one word to describe it, it would be 'violent'. There's a lot of grim-faced mercenaries gunning people down and women getting strangled (sometimes by the Doctor!). Was this show no longer primarily aimed at children at this stage?
Warriors of the Deep This story has probably the silliest looking sequence in the show so far where a middle-aged lady tries to kung-fu kick a rubbery pantomime horse. As memorable as that is, this is a pretty dull story, particularly for the first three episodes. We're in Base Under Siege territory again with the base being filled with particularly unlikeable humans apart from two - and one of them throttles the other early on in a scene I can't believe got past censors. The enemies this time are the Silurians and Sea Devils (I guess the Brigadier didn't quite manage to genocide all of the former then). These guys are in my opinion the most interesting enemy races in the series, but sadly here they're mostly just grunts who plod slowly along corridors shooting people. Things do improve in the final episode where we learn the Silurians/SDs intend to ignite a cold war between the humans - meaning if the humans weren't so bloodthirsty they would be spared which is a good commentary on humanity and fits with how the Silurians/SDs would have understood human nature from prior experience. The Doctor gets to decry humans and voice his guarded support for the Silurians but it ends like these stories always do with the Doctor failing to mediate a peace. Though at least the humans get wiped out along with the Silurians and SDs this time round. Apart from all that, there's the aforementioned rubbery pantomime horse monster and a couple of double-agents for the rival cold war power (which the script writers don't even name) whose conspiring adds very little to proceedings and leads to a lot of arguments between deadpan actors trying to out-deadpan one another. Meanwhile Turlough's character is all over the place, acting alternately brave and cowardly as the plot needs.
The Awakening I didn't realise when I started this that it was only a two-parter - maybe if I had, I'd be a bit better disposed to it. The first episode sets the scene nicely and I quite like the idea of battle recreation enthusiasts having their hobby turn more sinister and Sir George is a very engaging semi-villain. It reminded me quite a lot of The Daemons actually though I feel the setup wasn't quite so believable here - I just don't believe a town could cut itself off like this, especially as not all the residents seem to have fully bought into the war games. It might have been better to set it in the 19th Century instead especially as Tegan's grandfather doesn't add much to the story. What is it with Tegan's family getting caught up in sci-fi shenanigans anyway? Also he looks surprisingly young. Malus was a bit cheesy looking, but I liked his little animations anyway. Unfortunately, the second episode is a rushed mess where the villains basically all get themselves killed with very little input from the Doctor or his companions. Speaking of companions, I hope all these newcomers aren't sticking around or my companion ranking is going to get even more unwieldy.
Frontios There's a lot of Prime Directive-esque hand wringing in this one which doesn't really sit well with the concept of the show or indeed anything that's gone before. That aside, I had mixed feelings about this one. I thought the villains were quite a cool concept and I liked their design, but the people of Frontios with only two exceptions are just so unlikeable that I just wanted to be rid of them. The Doctor does gradually win their trust, but it's a long time coming and pretty tedious to sit through. Meanwhile Tegan has nothing to do but slowly come to the realisation that the Doctor is only pretending to sympathise with the Gravis - I did like her indignation as the Doctor pretended she was a substandard android though. Turlough gets to threaten people with a coathanger, do some terrible overacting at being traumatised then be Basil Exposition at the end. There is a decent subplot about a character who 'comes back from the dead' and ends up seen as a saviour and an intriguing mystery as to what happened to Plantagenet's father but nothing terribly interesting comes of either one. Not unwatchable, but I think I'm going to struggle to remember anything about this one in a couple of weeks.
Resurrection of the Daleks I have mixed feelings about this one. On its own, it's very good with menacing villains all with their own agendas and the Doctor and his companions trying to outfox them all. There's also some solid action, great costumes and set design and strong supporting characters in Stien and Styles. I particularly liked Stien's role as seeming coward who turns out to be a double agent... of sorts - and his arc was well realised. Turlough also gets his strongest storyline in a while, his previous self-serving nature fitting his stance here as a cold pragmatist who is still, in his way, attempting to do the right thing. Davros' fate was perhaps a bit too convenient but thematically it worked - he's more like the Daleks than even he realises. So with all this praise, what's the issue? It just doesn't really feel like Doctor Who - it's too bleak and violent with even the Doctor brandishing guns and threatening to execute people. When Tegan ends up leaving (for real this time?) because being a companion just isn't fun anymore, I can't really blame her.
Planet of Fire Two things that the Doctor seemed to have forgotten about - Turlough's past and Kamelion - finally get addressed in this story. Although it starts poorly (mainly due to the awfulness that is new companion Peri though she does improve as the story goes on), I thought it was pretty good as a whole. The dynamic of the Master controlling Kamelion was well done and I loved the revelation that he was just a little guy in a box the whole time. And it was good to finally get the backstory for Turlough even if his reunion with his brother was a bit blah. After two strong stories for a character I've had mixed feelings about previously, it's a pity this seems to mark his exit especially as I am less than thrilled by his replacement. While the superstitious people mistaking technology for God has been done a few times before, I think it was handled well here. I liked the ending for Timanov - even when his beliefs have been exposed as false, he still clings to his faith with an odd dignity even where it means his death. The ruthlessness of the previous story remains to some degree with the Doctor mercy-killing Kamelion and leaving the Master to seemingly burn to death. Maybe this is just the way things are going to be from now on?
The Caves of Androzani Another gritty, shooty story but some amusing banter in the early stages helps lighten the mood - I can't remember the last time The Doctor and his companion(s) had some funny banter. Banter aside, Peri is still a bit annoying though she does spend a good portion of the story semi-comatose. The complexity of the plot is well done here, there's so much going on and so many double-agents and triple-agents yet it's handled very well, never coming across as confusing or overburdened. The Phantom of the Opera inspiration is quite obvious but still engaging though the reactions to Jek's face were a bit silly - he's not that hideous that two characters would end up blundering to their death from the shock of seeing him without his mask. Jek's treatment of Peri is very creepy and uncomfortable to watch but (I assume) intentionally so. There's also an intensity to proceedings with a race against time to find an antidote and again some decent action scenes and cliffhangers. One oddity though is Morgus - he has such an unnatural way of talking, really fast with no emotion, perhaps to symbolise for him that everything is business. Even ignoring that, he often makes dramatic asides to the audience which is plain weird and not something the show has ever done before. Still, it's certainly makes for a memorable villain. I thought Stotz was just a plain great villain though, a vibrant performance for an utter scumbag. Finally, the Doctor's death was very well done - so much better than any of the previous deaths with him nobly sacrificing himself and fading with visions of previous companions and the Master. Great stuff all in all.
The Twin Dilemma Things have been a bit more gritty and down-to-earth of late, so it's good to go back to a more 'out there' story. And you don't get much more out there than bio-engineered super twins using magical maths to move planets about in order to cause a drought to kill off giant space weevils which then turns out to be a plan to actually unleash said weevils upon the galaxy as a whole. It reminded me of that episode of Red Dwarf where Lister plays pool with planets. I also liked the look of the aliens though not so much Mestor the main villain. And it's always fun when another Time Lord shows up, so long as it's not on Gallifrey. The story in general is a lot of fun. It's hard to judge Colin Baker's Doctor just yet given how unstable he is, but he's very entertaining here - this is the most amoral the Doctor's been since early Series 1! And while the past three Doctors were all snappy (not sure about Peri's assertion that the Fifth Doctor was always polite, but then she never saw how he treated Tegan and Nyssa), they never quite got to the point of throttling their companions! Not sure how long I'll be able to put up with his selfish child schtick if he continues in that way, but for now anyway I found it very amusing. The story isn't perfect - the climax is a bit dull and not enough was made of Drak's death given his established friendship with Azmael. Meanwhile Azmael's death wasn't as effecting as the writers were going for given how little we'd seen him interact with the Doctor. Hugo is also a bit annoying but Peri is actually very good here, taking charge of both Hugo and the Doctor and proving she can do more than whine. Nice story.
Series 21 ranking: 1. The Caves of Androzani 2. The Twin Dilemma 3. Resurrection of the Daleks 4. Planet of Fire 5. The Awakening 6. Frontios 7. Warriors of the Deep
So time to update my Doctor ranking. To the surprise of probably no-one, Peter Davison goes to the bottom of my list. He seemed just as grumpy as Pertwee and Tom Baker, but without the underlying warmth of the former or the wackiness of the latter. If he'd actually been more like he was in his final story, I probably would have ranked him higher but alas. It seems a case of diminishing returns when it comes to the Doctors with me - will Colin Baker be the first to break that pattern?
1. William Hartnell 2. Patrick Troughton 3. Jon Pertwee 4. Tom Baker 5. Peter Davison
As for my companion ranking, I did think Tegan had a few good moments on her return but not really enough for me to put her any higher than I did previously. Meanwhile Turlough was a nice idea - a somewhat amoral companion with his own agendas but I don't really feel enough was made of this and his character frequently felt all over the place. I also really had to suspend my disbelief with how forgiving the Doctor was towards him. I'll put him below Zoe but above Adric.
1. Jo 2. Leela 3. Ian 4. Sarah-Jane 5. Barbara 6. Romana 7. Ben 8. K-9 9. Liz 10. Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart 11. Vikki 12. Steven 13. Tegan 14. Victoria 15. Nyssa 16. Harry 17. Zoe 18. Turlough 19. Adric 20. Jamie 21. Polly 22. Susan 23. Dodo
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 23, 2023 18:51:36 GMT
and I'm not sure it's even available on the iStore anymore. I can't speak for the iStore, but you can still get it on Android as part of the Gamebook Adventures 4-6 compilation app.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 21, 2023 22:50:13 GMT
Would be up for any of those, but I think it would be a shame not to finish reviewing the Puffin books.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 20, 2023 13:35:17 GMT
Dave Morris's Knightmare gamebook The Forbidden Gate. Well, actually The Forbidden Gate was the name of the novella which I largely ignored because of the much more interesting thing at the back of the book where you could make decisions that influenced the story and roll dice!
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 20, 2023 13:30:21 GMT
Choose Your Own Adventure, Tunnels and Trolls and the odd little experiment preceded it, Endless Quest launched about the same time. FF is probably responsible for making the concept super popular though, at least in the UK. CYOA was probably bigger in the US and worldwide. Tracker Books also preceded FF. Not sure a series of 12 gamebooks published over the course of almost a decade constitutes a 'little experiment'. Good call - never heard of them!
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 20, 2023 8:56:45 GMT
FF created the Gamebook Genra. Choose Your Own Adventure, Tunnels and Trolls and the odd little experiment preceded it, Endless Quest launched about the same time. FF is probably responsible for making the concept super popular though, at least in the UK. CYOA was probably bigger in the US and worldwide.
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kieran
Baron
Posts: 2,472
Favourite Gamebook Series: Fighting Fantasy
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Post by kieran on Oct 20, 2023 8:51:15 GMT
I used to enjoy reading (and frequently disagreeing with) Mrs Giggles' reviews but these days her site seems to flag as malware.
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