A late round-up article this month, however, the delay has beneficially allowed us to feature a few more titles! Plenty here for gamers seeking all types of interactive fiction – old, reimagined classics and continuing series in both print and digital, and new adventures featuring various game systems.
Fighting Fantasy Classics: Trial of Champions & House of Hell
Delve into the dread corridors of Baron Sukumvit’s terrible challenge for a second stab at glory in Tin Man Games’ latest addition to their Fighting Fantasy Classics collection. Trial of Champions was selected in a recent reader’s poll as the next title to be added to your digital bookshelf, so prepare yourself to take on Ian Livingstone’s classic adventure once again.
But beware! The Trial will be even more devilishly difficult this time as you begin your adventure having been captured and sold into slavery! With nothing to prepare you for this arduous adventure but your SKILL, LUCK and STAMINA, you must explore the deadly labyrinth beneath Fang. For only by triumphing in the Trial can you win back your freedom from Baron Sukumvit’s evil brother – Lord Carnuss.
A remastered version of another old favourite – Steve Jackson’s House of Hell – has also been added, now featuring:
- Altered difficulty modes to accommodate the challenging mechanics of this spooky adventure.
- The dynamic Adventure Sheet has (of course!) been updated to include the Fear mechanic from the original book.
- The Adventure Sheet now also supports a special ‘Knowledge section’ to help keep track of all the clues you will need to solve the mysteries of the House of Hell!
- Tim Sell’s original artwork, as well as coloured editions of each piece.
- An additional ‘Haunted Hallways’ ambient music track has been added to your collection of tracks.
- New audio sliders for music and SFX, allowing you to play with exactly the audio setup you desire.
Fighting Fantasy Classics is now available on iOS and Android, and will also come to PC/Mac (via Steam) very soon.
Dark City Games: Echoes of the Old Ones
Dark City Games, creators of ready-to-play tabletop RPGs, has just released Echoes of the Old Ones, a three-part fantasy adventure for solitaire or group play.
Once, the Old Ones ruled the earth. Today, they are mostly forgotten, aside from a few die-hard cults and scattered passages in moldy tomes. But suddenly, there is a rise in the activities of those who remember… a ripple in reality…
Adventures produced by Dark City Games incorporate a text booklet of numbered (gamebook) sections, a hex location map, and cardboard counters for your adventuring heroes and their opponents. You play as a party of characters, making decisions that will change the story as you progress, and engaging enemies in strategic combat using the board and playing pieces.
To find out more about Dark City Games and to purchase a copy of Echoes of the Old Ones, visit their website.
Tunnels & Trolls Adventures: Ultimatum
MetaArcade recently concluded their multi-story campaign for the Tunnels & Trolls Adventures app. This final adventure in The Crown of Klade arc, Ultimatum, sets the stage for your final confrontation with Duke Ravasz, who, after all these years, still wants nothing more than to see you dead for good. You have powerful allies, but their support comes at a price…
The Tunnels & Trolls Adventures app is available on iOS and Android. Further information can be found at MetaArcade’s blog.
5e Solo Gamebooks: Menace of the Icy Spire
Menace of the Icy Spire is the latest Dungeons & Dragons solo adventure from 5e Solo Gamebooks. A conversion of the Fourth Edition adventure Menace of the Icy Spire (appearing in Issue 159 of Dungeon Magazine), this updates the adventure to Fifth Edition, and also changes it from a party adventure to one for solo players. The quest is set in the Forgotten Realms, with the town of Loudwater serving as the base, although it could be changed to feature any town in the Forgotten Realms.
Purchase Menace of the Icy Spire at Dungeon Master’s Guild, noting that you will need a copy of the original adventure, which is also available on DM’s Guild. And don’t forget to check out the many other solo offerings available from 5e Solo Gamebooks, as previously featured here on GBN.
Cthulhu Chronicles: The Good Professor
MetaArcade have now released the next chapter in Investigations in Lovecraft Country for their Cthulhu Chronicles app. This original scenario called The Good Professor, builds on everything experienced so far in Cthulhu Chronicles; tensions are rising, and your decision-making skills will be put to the test. Like all others, this scenario is available for 20 tickets, or you can play it for FREE using one of your trials. The Good Professor will be followed by 3 more scenarios, as the campaign arc reaches its epic conclusion. Are you ready for the challenge?
MetaArcade are also working hard on improving the game itself, and will soon deploy a fix to prevent the app crashing after first launch. Cthulhu Chronicles is currently available only on iOS.
Choose Cthulhu
In other H.P. Lovecraft news of interest, the upcoming ‘choose your own insanity’ gamebooks in the Choose Cthulhu collection are now nearing publication. The special hardcover Deluxe Editions feature fantastic full-page cover art by Juapi that combine to create a unique 7-part illustration when all the books are placed together. Glorious cosmic horror on a grand scale!
Choose Cthulhu was successfully funded via Ulule at the beginning of the year, and will be released in September. More information about this exciting project can be found here or on Facebook.
Midnight Legion 0: Last Recruit
Studio 9 now has the limited edition prequel to the Midnight Legion trilogy, Midnight Legion 0: Last Recruit, available for purchase from their online store. Originally available for Free RPG Day, this 24-page solo adventure booklet reveals how you joined the Legion and began your training. Each Midnight Legion gamebook contains detailed instructions for creating your character, however, if you play Last Recruit, you can skip that process, and by the end of the adventure you will have a character that you can keep and use throughout the Midnight Legion gamebook series. Last Recruit also features some minor character alterations that you can only access by playing this prequel adventure, and completing the story will unlock an otherwise hidden scene in the third and final Midnight Legion volume.
You have been recruited into the Midnight Legion, a clandestine group created to preserve human civilization after society’s inevitable collapse. If you complete your training, you will become a full agent. Unfortunately, figuring out who to trust won’t be as easy as it looks.
There’s no time to waste – the human race is depending on you.
Note that Midnight Legion 0: Last Recruit will feature as one of the backer rewards in the upcoming Kickstarter campaign for The Portal of Life.
Joe Dever’s Freeway Warrior and Lone Wolf
Here’s a look at two new covers for upcoming releases from the late gamebook master, Joe Dever. At left is the second Freeway Warrior release from Swedish publisher Åskfågeln, for their updated version of Slaughter Mountain Run. The energetic art is by Lukas Thelin.
At right is Alberto Dal Lago’s stunning cover art for the Italian edition of Dead In The Deep (LW30), to be published in October by Vincent Books. Publication details of an English edition will hopefully be announced sometime soon!