U-Ventures: Return to the Cave of Time Review

Posted by Nina Ignaczak on September 28th, 2010
iPhone App - Designed for iPhone, compatible with iPad

Those of us born in the seventies will fondly recall the "Choose Your Own Adventure" book series by Edward Packard, in which fantastical adventure stories hinged upon decision points made by the reader leading to multiple possible plot lines and endngs. If a literary concept was ever ripe for the computer age, this was it. And now, the stories are being adapted for the iPhone, together with sounds and special effects- for example, at one decision point the reader is confronted by a blinding sun, and upon turning the page is exposed to a bright white screen. Little clever tricks like this certainly leverage the technology to create a rich experience.

One cannot go back and make the opposite decision, as in the book version, which locks the reader into the story in a way the book version did not. I had a lot of fun reading the story to my four-year old and making decisions together. In the debate over e-readers versus print books, I would venture to say Choose Your Own Adventure Books are inherently structured for the digital age. I hope additional stories are released soon!

iPhone Screenshots

(click to enlarge)

U-Ventures: Return to the Cave of Time by Edward Packard screenshot 1 U-Ventures: Return to the Cave of Time by Edward Packard screenshot 2 U-Ventures: Return to the Cave of Time by Edward Packard screenshot 3 U-Ventures: Return to the Cave of Time by Edward Packard screenshot 4 U-Ventures: Return to the Cave of Time by Edward Packard screenshot 5
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