» Gamebooks
Friday, March 5, 2010
Windhammer Gamebook Competition Entering Third Year
In case you missed out on the first two years, the third annual Windhammer Prize is posting its rules and schedule early to allow plenty of time for writing and judging original gamebooks. While this hasn’t quite reached the scale of the computer-based Interactive Fiction Competition, it’s a similar opportunity to be creative in a medium with a lot of potential, and I hope it keeps growing. Do your part and check it out! Oh, and did I mention the cash prize?
Sunday, December 13, 2009
OgreCave’s Christmas Gift Guide 2009, part 3
If you plan to give gifts this holiday season – or better yet, receive them – you’ve surely been perusing local stores and forming a list. The Cave dwellers have done the same, in the third section of our OgreCave Christmas Gift Guide 2009. This portion, the Twelve Boxes for Christmas, focuses on board games, in the hope of guiding some of your big-ticket expenses toward enjoyable gaming choices.
All that remains is our traditionally last-minute PDF/downloadable product list. We’ll be sure to drop it down your chimney when you’re least expecting it. … No, that’s not a euphemism for anything! Sheesh!
Friday, December 11, 2009
OgreCave’s Christmas Gift Guide 2009, part 2
Another weekend of holiday shopping is here, and you’ve probably formed some ideas of the larger-cost items you’ll be picking up (or requesting from others). In case your mind’s not quite made up yet, the OgreCave Christmas Gift Guide 2009 continues with its second section, Twelve Days of Roleplaying. This list of gift suggestions is entirely RPG related, and the Cave dwellers have chosen a range of roleplaying goodies that would make great gifts.
Our board game list will be up shortly (work and sickness have caused delays), followed by our traditionally last-minute downloadable product list. So listen closely each night – those bells might be a jolly Ogre… or more likely, an Ogre stepping some other jolly critter.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
Lone Wolf gamebooks to become feature film
Variety.com reports that Convergence Entertainment has secured the rights for a live action Lone Wolf feature film. Joe Dever’s classic fantasy gamebook series has already made the transition to full roleplaying game through Mongoose Publishing, but the leap to the movies is a big step. Convergence also secured the rights to produce a Gungrave film, based on the anime series which has already spawned two PlayStation games. According to the story, Convergence plans each film to have “budgets in the $30 million-$35 million range”. If the project comes to fruition, this could be interesting – or another good idea mangled by Hollywood. We’ll see.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
OgreCave reviews – Dragon Warriors & Citadel of the Corruptor
A pair of lovely new reviews have just gone up in our RPG section. First, Demian has become acquainted with the new edition of Dragon Warriors from Magnum Opus Press, and he clears up why the RPG used to be mistaken for a gamebook. Then Gerald joins our illustrious (dubious?) Cave-dwelling crew with his review of Dungeon Crawl Classics #61: Citadel of the Corruptor from Goodman Games. Have a look at these write-ups, or browse through our review index for much more.
Monday, December 1, 2008
State of the Mongoose 2008 report posted
Still a significant publisher in tabletop gaming, Mongoose Publishing has just given its fans a status update in the form of its annual State of the Mongoose report (also copied below). Points of interest include plans for Hammers Slammers, a full color Traveller-powered game based on David Drake’s classic sci-fi series; a 25th Anniversary edition of Paranoia; the end of the Babylon 5 line and license; new supplements for Wraith Recon; a multiplayer Lone Wolf gamebook; and plenty more. Add in an overview of what Mongoose went through in its (ultimately failed) attempt to set up its own printing facility, and I’d say the current state of the Mongoose is “surly and determined”.
Read More…
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Voting begins in new gamebook competition
This year, the home of the free online Chronicles of Arborell gamebooks is hosting a competition to encourage new authors. All the entries are in, and readers are now encouraged to take a look and vote for their favorites. The adventures begin here. Take a look, put in your votes, and think about contributing if this rolls around again next year. I’d love to see gamebooks get their own competition as large and interesting as the computer-based Interactive Fiction Competition, which is also in the voting stage at the moment.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Best Choose Your Own Adventure list at AOL
It isn’t often that we link to an AOL feature article, but their list of the top 20 Choose Your Own Adventure gamebooks is somewhat entertaining. We lend even more credence to the list due to the author thanking Gamebooks.org, a site created and run by OgreCave’s longtime staff member and gamebook specialist, Demian Katz. Good to know some AOL writers recognize quality when they see it.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
State of the Mongoose ‘07: aggressive and hungry
For everyone’s safety, we try to keep tabs on any snake-eating mammals lurking nearby, and come to grips with what Mongoose Publishing plans to unleash on gamers in the year ahead. The traditional State of the Mongoose address was posted today, this time as a temporary forum, and so far, we’ve learned the following: Read More…
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Magnamund tourist season nearly open again
As promised last year, the Lone Wolf gamebooks, a popular entry point into roleplaying for many nostalgic gamers, are returning this September thanks to Mongoose Publishing. Original series author Joe Dever has expanded and updated the 28 original books, which Mongoose will release in both paperback and hardbound collector’s editions (now you can choose not just your adventure path, but your level of buy-in). The the fabled, yet-unwritten final four gamebooks in the series are finally due as part of the series’ return, as are Lone Wolf novels. The Darklords start things off with their strike on the Kai Monastery when Lone Wolf 1: Flight From the Dark – Collector’s Ed hits at the end of July for $19.95.
Read More…
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Torchlight Gamebooks Unveiled — Free!
For years, Wayne Densley’s world of Arborell has been growing through the online publication of gamebooks and fiction at www.arborell.com. Today, the latest addition has been unveiled: Quest for the Orncryst, the first in the Torchlight series of card-based gamebooks. Through a combination of a 101-page book and several decks of cards, a player can have an ever-changing solitaire role-playing experience, exploring a dungeon that never has quite the same layout or dangers twice. Best of all, the whole thing is free — you just provide the paper and scissors.
Saturday, October 7, 2006
Dungeons & Dragons Online wins British award
On Thursday, the British Academy of Film & Television Arts (similar to the Oscars) announced its 2006 winners in Video Games categories – and we’re as surprised they have the categories as you are. In the Multiplayer category, Atari’s Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach took the prize, which must mean they’re doing something right even if World of Warcraft hasn’t been pushed off its throne. Other notable winners were Shadow of the Colossus (for Artistic Achievement and Action/Adventure), Rise and Fall: Civilizations at War (for Strategy), and Lego Star Wars II (for Gameplay). Also of interest is the Academy’s games committee list, which includes none other than Ian Livingstone, of Games Workshop and Fighting Fantasy fame, among other achievements.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
A step beyond making scene selections
I’m surprised our gamebook specialist Demian never posted about this, but then again, he’s adjusting to being a newlywed (congrats, man!): the first Choose Your Own Adventure animated DVD. This thing is being pushed hard – I keep running into online ads and TV commercials for The Abominable Snowman, which is based one of the classic interactive books. In fact, the big marketing push for the DVD has encouraged big bookstore chains like Barnes & Noble to stock up on Choose Your Own Adventure books, introducing them to a new generation of gamebook players. Now, if we can just get the Lone Wolf books stocked right next to them, we can convert more youth into the fine, upstanding gamers of tomorrow.
Sunday, June 26, 2005
Project Aon Pleases Lone Wolf Fans, Depresses eBayers
There are a few rare and valuable books that could be considered the holy grails of gamebook collecting, and most of them are part of Joe Dever’s Lone Wolf series. One such book is The Magnamund Companion, a full-color, large-format reference book featuring everything from a short solo adventure to instructions on building miniatures. Often found selling for ludicrous sums on eBay, it can now be downloaded free and legal from Project Aon, the official online home of Joe Dever’s gamebooks. Just click on “The Books,” and you can find the PDF file in the “Other Materials” section. Enjoy!
Monday, March 21, 2005
Freebie Update
The Internet is a great source of freebies for gamers, and two reliable producers of cost-free goodness have both struck again at nearly the same time. First, Project Aon went and released another free Lone Wolf adventure, The Legacy of Vashna. Soon thereafter, Invisible City did their thing, providing two free creations, the all-new family card game I Want Candy, and a revision of their Easter candy-themed Peep War. Whether you prefer to adventure in Magnamund, relax with the kids or command legions of marshmallow fluff, you should be able to find something entertaining to do today without spending a penny!
Tuesday, February 1, 2005
New Arborell Gamebook Arrives
Although the elusive Earth and Stone is still under development, a new interactive mini-gamebook has been added to the online Chronicles of Arborell series. In Shards of Moonlight, a prequel to the main series, the reader takes on the role of Tansen’Delving, a character who figures into the later Chronicles. This is just the beginning, though — more adventure will be coming soon in a second story, A Murder of Crows.
Saturday, October 30, 2004
Sports Gamebooks Reach the UK
It’s not often that a new gamebook series hits the market these days, but Fighting Fantasy publisher Wizard Books has just launched a new product likely to bring page-flipping to a different demographic. The Football Fantasy Gamebooks allow players to control the actions of football (i.e. soccer) teams, playing either solo or against a human opponent. Each book represents a different team and features a design by gamebook veteran Jon Sutherland and extensive visuals by Lone Wolf illustrator Gary Chalk. It’s hard to say whether these will get an American release in the immediate future, but British collectors can find them in stores everywhere while Americans can get them shipped in via amazon.co.uk or the overseas bookseller of their choice.
Saturday, October 9, 2004
Joe Dever Captured by Mongoose
Well, perhaps that’s putting it a bit strongly… but Mongoose Publishing will be having an open house on November 6th which will feature a live appearance by Lone Wolf gamebook author Joe Dever. He will be chatting and signing autographs. Only one catch — you’ll have to be in England at the time. More details are available here. Speaking of all things Lone Wolf, Mongoose is also offering some nice new freebies for their RPG based on the gamebooks including character sheets and a D20 conversion of the first adventure. Check it out here.
Monday, June 28, 2004
Grey Star Goes Beyond the Nightmare Gate
Project Aon has just announced the release of the third World of Lone Wolf gamebook as a free online adventure. In Beyond the Nightmare Gate, you get to explore the dangerous Daziarn Plane in search of a magical item called the Moonstone. If you haven’t played the first two adventures in the series, they remain available and have just had some revisions and corrections made. If you’re a gamebook fan or if you just want to explore the world of Magnamund in preparation for trying out the new Lone Wolf RPG, it’s definitely worth taking a trip to Project Aon’s site.
Sunday, April 25, 2004
Lone Wolf howls with previews
The fellows at Mongoose have posted more teasers for the Lone Wolf RPG. This time, we get a look at the official character sheet, and a second rules preview which includes full rules for the Magician of Dessi, among other things. Now, should I pick Tracking as my next Discipline, and know which page to try next, or… oops, flashback to the original gamebooks. Sorry.
Wednesday, April 7, 2004
Saturday, March 27, 2004
Arborell Update
Wayne Densley, author of the Chronicles of Arborell free online gamebook series, wrote in to report some new developments. While the second book in the series still hasn’t been released yet, work is proceeding, and in the meantime, he has released both a compilation of Blood and Iron web serial episodes (available here) and an Atlas of Arborell. Keep an eye on this stuff; it seems to have a promising future.
Friday, March 12, 2004
Fighting Fantasy on warpath at Myriador
Myriador Ltd. has announced their product schedule for most of this year. Of particular interest is the Fighting Fantasy Role Play Game due in June 2004. The game will use the d20 System, just as the other Fighting Fantasy derived Myriador releases, but remain a “fully contained game.” The company’s forums also mention plans for world guides, though none are officially scheduled yet.
Friday, February 6, 2004
Mongoose Year in Preview
On the heels of Mongoose’s Starship Troopers announcement, the company has outlined this year’s planned releases. Bruce Graw, formerly of Agents of Gaming, has joined the Mongoose staff, and will bring his Babylon 5 Wars experience to the company’s plans for miniatures games. Planned product highlights include: a new boardgames division; Schism, a “mature” RPG about a war in Heaven; Judge Dredd: Turf Wars, a miniatures combat game; Mighty Armies, a 15mm fantasy miniatures wargame that will package an entire army for $19.95; and hints toward another unannounced license, based on “an old and very popular RPG”. Click “Read more” for the full release, and start your drooling.
Read More…
Friday, October 31, 2003
Grey Star Rides Again
It’s been a few months since Project Aon last published a book, but they’ve just managed to put together a new release: The Forbidden City, second of the World of Lone Wolf gamebooks. If you need a dose of gamebook goodness, you can’t go wrong here!
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