Post by thealmightymudworm on Mar 22, 2023 15:07:25 GMT
This book is actually a very good read and it's well built. However I think PD-E could have made use of some secret references, at least during the whole Gloten thing (p.e., Gartax gives you knowledge about him, deduct 50 when he beats you to tell him he is a Dwarf, instead of the hint appearing available to everyone). I like the explanation on how there are Slave Warriors and creatures (dinosaur but not only)... and I personally love the scene where you fail to surrender your sword - one of my personal best deaths.
All in all, can't wait to explore the rest of the book.
I've always thought Portal Of Evil is deeply underrated and one of the best FFs. I think my high opinion of the artwork might not be shared by others, but the writing is rich, concise and action-packed, the world vivid and memorable, and the gamebook doesn't require outrageous starting stats or luck, or both, as can be the case with FF. I've also good memories of Portal Of Evil as one of the first FFs I bought, and not one which disappointed (cough * Star Strider * cough).
As far as IoannesKantakouzenos 's remarks go, I imagine the author's logic, aside from adding a secret reference being complicated, would be your adventurer may work out (perhaps intentionally) Gloten might be a dwarf, possibly based on nuanced clues and artwork in the text. For me absence of complicated reference instructions adds to POE's simplicity and charm.
You could probably argue the Gloten thing both ways. I can see that it's nice to have it more open (though honestly I doubt I'd have got from him being short, stout and muscular to his being a dwarf), but the option does read as quite odd. I can't remember anything I've read or seen in which a man is complimented by comparing him to a dwarf (except possibly by a dwarf) so it's sufficiently weird and weirdly specific to raise an eyebrow on an experienced gamebook reader and make them feel it's worth a shot.
("Would you perhaps like to wipe your face with a haddock at this point?"
"Well, now you mention it...")
Perhaps another way of doing it would be to offer the reader the option of paying a compliment, but then give alternative options. Say: he fights with the discipline of a monk, the explosive force of an ogre, the graceful elegance of an elf or the strength and courage of a dwarf. The first option would result in merely an indifferent shrug, whilst the middle two options would earn you a bone-breaking clout on the nose, causing a SKILL penalty and a fear of mirrors to rival Horfak's.
Anyway, I agree that PoE is an excellent book. Oddly PD-E doesn't agree – at the FFFest4 panel he said it was probably his least successful book. Some would say that being the least successsful alongside Spectral Stalkers and Beneath Nightmare Castle isn't too bad, but still.