:: GRIPPING STORY
:: MUSICALLY SOUND
:: STILL GOODTin Man Games has announced that they will soon be releasing Steve Jackson’s Appointment with F.E.A.R. as an interactive digital comic book.
Players will be able to design their own superhero with their choice of superpower, gender, appearance, and costume design. The comic allows players to collect clues, pit themselves against super villains using narrative-based combat, and discover the location of the insidious F.E.A.R. meeting. The app also includes a trading card system. Players decisions may lead them to discover rare cards that they can trade with their friends via Facebook.
Appointment with F.E.A.R. will be released at the end of August on the App Store.
Tin Man Games' Gamebook Adventures series is currently available at 50% off. This lets users experience the interactive fantasy adventures at a reduced price of $2.99. Included in the sale are Gamebook Adventures 1 through 8: An Assassin in Orlandes, The Siege of the Necromancer, Slaves of Rema, Revenant Rising, Catacombs of the Undercity, The Wizard from Tarnath Tor, Temple of the Spider God, and Infinite Universe.
Additionally, much of the Fighting Fantasy series and other miscellaneous titles from Tin Man Games are also on sale. Now go set off on a fantasy adventure by discovering these game books!
All the expected and classic gamebook gameplay is present and accounted for. Players can choose between two distinct classes this time around (Rogue or Paladin) and enjoy close to 100 color illustrations along with the orchestrated score. This isn't a mere straight port, however. Megara has added some new story twists along the way, so even battle-hardened veterans might find a few surprises. Heck, they could even stumble across a new magical item or two that could make a huge difference down the line.
iPad-owning gamebook fans should head on over to the App Store right now and grab The Keep of the Lich-Lord for the measly $4.99 asking price. I mean, it's not like that newly-resurrected necromancer is going to change his mind about tearing the land apart, right? At least, not without a little "encouragement."
:: SHOWS PROMISE
Holy crap.
There are very few details available at this time, what with it being just announced and all, but it's going to be a Gamebook Adventure. Only set in the Judge Dredd universe and all that. So plenty of choices, equipment, branching paths, dice-oriented combat and so on. About the only specific things I do know is that it's set to release in "Q2 2012" for both the iPad and iPhone, and it'll cost $4.99. There might be some kind of sale at launch if the recent release of Temple of the Spider God is any indication, but that's pure speculation at this point.
Regardless, this is exciting news! I know I'm looking forward to a tabletop-styled quest through Mega City One. Anyone else?
:: KEEP READING
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Currently there are four adventures available in the Gamebook lineup. The four titles are “An Assassin in Orlandes,” “The Siege of the Necromancer,” “Slaves of Rema” and “Revenant Rising.” All four titles use the same background world to build their story base from, which allows for each of the titles to fill in a piece of an overall fantasy world. Each title also offers updated background information on the world itself that helps to deliver an overall flourishing game world.
The Gamebooks are best described as the next iteration in choose your own adventure books. Players (Readers) travel through the story making choices along the way that help to develop the overall direction of the story. At any point one wrong move can bring up an untimely end to the adventure, which only serves to extend the playability of these stories even further.
The true gem, and the reason these are next iteration choose your own adventure books, is the dice component in the overall story. At the beginning of the story players roll dice to determine their Vitality and Fitness scores. These scores are extremely important to the overall interaction of the story because they determine how much health you have, and how agile you are as a player. Additionally, starting equipment is provided that helps to dictate encounters.
Each story, while being based in the same world, is self contained and provides hours of entertainment depending on how many poor choices a player makes. Thankfully there are a number of bookmarks that allow the story to be started from a specific part of the story. Using a bookmark allows the player to begin from a specific point in the story, rather than the beginning.
The following story summaries are taken directly from the iTunes store descriptions from Tin Man Games. While there is no real order requirements, the overall fantasy world story truly develops from game to game, so my recommendation would be to start from Gamebook Adventure 1 and work your way numerically.
Gamebook Adventures 1: An Assassin in Orlandes
Set within Orlandes City, nobles are being systematically murdered by a ruthless assassin no-one seems able to catch. Finding yourself thrust in the middle of a large conspiracy, you must make decisions that may put yourself and one other most precious to you in great danger. Can you locate the Assassin in Orlandes before it is too late?"
Gamebook Adventures 2: The Siege of the Necromancer
"Set in the coastal town of Myr, you have returned home after a long Summer in the mines of Durath Tor to find your hometown besieged by strange creatures. A dark presence has taken over the town and you are the only one who can rid the stronghold of Erid Buul, the mysterious new Lord and his ghastly cohorts."
Gamebook Adventures 3: Slaves of Rema
"Cruelly taken from your homeland of Orlandes, you find yourself in a far off land at the mercy of a gladiatorial arena. Somehow trying to find a way to escape overseas, can you also unravel a potentially dangerous mystery that puts two nations on the brink of war?"
Gamebook Adventures 4: Revenant Rising
"The mighty city of Falavia, the military backbone of Orlandes, is under attack from an army led by a man claiming to be a God. How did this come to pass you ask yourself? You're sure it all started as some innocent adventure in search of treasure but somehow it turned into a nightmare. Also, why are people staring at you strangely? It’s not as if you look like you've recently been brought back from the dead or something. Oh yes, that's right. You remember now... "
148apps has a limited number of promo codes available for distribution. Leave a comment about Gamebook Adventures and enter yourself for a chance to win a promo code for one of the four adventures.
Thanks for reading the December edition of iD&D. Everyone have a safe and enjoyable holiday season.
