Well, it's been a while. This isn't a childhood favourite (like Whoever Fights Monsters), but one I picked up recently in a bookshop on Mull for fifty pence. This blog is a great excuse to dig it out, while deciding what to read next. YOU decide what to read next, etc.
I decided to play it by the book - no re-rolls for stats, no stamina resets after fights. I even drew a map as recommended. I'm a grown man, dammit. And otherwise I'd only be cheating myself.
You start by choosing a wizard on the edge of the swamp, who gives you a mission and different spells. Good, evil, and wild card. I plumped for the wild card. Turns out he's not even a wizard. Bad move.
My first attempt ended after two steps on encountering the Master of Spiders. I, predictably, died. I started again at the swamp entrance with the same stats, and carefully avoided him. This time I got a lot further, survived a few fights and ended up in a scrap with three orcs. After killing two, I was finished off by the last one.
I had to rethink my whole strategy. So I started from scratch, created new stats (which were much healthier) and decided to see the good wizard. I chose wisely. Better spells, and a lot more people helping me out.
This time, I did it. I was successful in my quest, as the book says. Oh, it wasn't easy. I had to be careful, make notes, keep my map up to date and use my spells at the right moment. And you can't get anywhere in Fighting Fantasy without some lucky rolls. Yes, I found myself screaming at the dice. Yes, I punched the air when I killed the Sword Trees (trees with swords) for the final time. No, I'm not proud of myself.
That's not true - I am.
Since there are three different missions here, I should really give it another go with the evil wizard. But I've learned something today - it's nice to be nice. You help people out, people help you out. Non zero sum. I choose not to be evil.
There's now a Citadel of Chaos iphone app. You shake the phone to roll the dice! On the basis of Scorpion Swamp, I think I'll be checking it out.
7 comments:
Not just citadel, there's Firetop Mountain, Deathtrap Dungeon and the ball crushingly difficult Creature Of Havoc. Another company seems to have done the first Sorcery book too, how awesome.
What about House of Hell? They'd need an app within an app there - Franklins: "Having trouble getting out of our kitchen? There's an app for that!"
The Citadal app's really good, but painful to play on my icrash.
I see there's a House of Hell movie in the works. A normal movie at the cinema (or possibly "DVD premiere") and an interactive blue ray version. Sounds stupid, and the kitchen will never live up to your expectations.
I'm not sure that's based on the book. YOU isn't in the credited cast for a start.
Maybe they'll do it all from a first person camera. Like Bogart in the first hour of Dark Passage. Didn't really work in that either, but it was pretty cool as he gets plastic surgery, so presumably he wasn't Bogart up till then.
Or maybe they'll do it as a horror mockumentary! Genius idea, I should patent it.
I've found these on youtube about the hoh movie:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hI51gf_pIaE
and a video diary.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPmDwXjNWTU
I've read somewhere that they are using 2 actors for the lead, they said that having one like the book could get boring when watching up to 8 hours on the interactive version, that does make sense.
They have also said the script follows the book nearly 100%, this has never been done before.
I love the idea of this, I know the blu ray player can handle "remembering" things so it should make for a huge movie experience.
I'm currently going through all the iphone FF apps. Creature of Havoc's a bit odd, and Citadel of Chaos is insanely hard. Still - only 1.79 each, so not bad value I reckon.
I'll do a roundup when I'm done.
Post a Comment