tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.comments2024-03-15T17:38:11.992-07:00Turn to 400Murrayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17408095504472495097noreply@blogger.comBlogger411125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-18566330760538862472024-03-15T17:38:11.992-07:002024-03-15T17:38:11.992-07:00Would that mean on the third play through the SKEL...Would that mean on the third play through the SKELETON is unable to grab you, as it is still clutching hard to the mouldering remains of previous Mikes?lurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-19899663909607448072024-02-24T22:47:23.757-08:002024-02-24T22:47:23.757-08:00Thanks for the encouragement! I've done my pla...Thanks for the encouragement! I've done my playthrough of Appointment now and come up with an angle on how to write about it. So hopefully will build some momentum from here.Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17408095504472495097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-55526117144948704042024-02-22T14:26:23.399-08:002024-02-22T14:26:23.399-08:00Some may say successor, but not me haha. Thank yo...Some may say successor, but not me haha. Thank you Murray though, very kind of you. Glad you really enjoyed this one. Thats the great thing about these books, we all have different opinions on them. And to like it despite a disastrous playthrough as well! <br /><br />Making your character a baker to go up against a butcher is a stroke of genius. And if you ever published the Captayne's Logge I would be all in for that! I bet it was brilliant and find myself giggling just of the idea of it!<br /><br />So glad you are back sir and really looking forward to your take on Appointment with F.E.A.R! Deathtraps and Dungeonshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05360463119874679059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-91043693910448772902024-02-02T14:09:31.287-08:002024-02-02T14:09:31.287-08:00Great to see you back :)Great to see you back :)Paul Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08261768440591955192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-91476494190148044062024-02-02T14:08:57.664-08:002024-02-02T14:08:57.664-08:00Exactly where mine stopped!Exactly where mine stopped!Paul Smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08261768440591955192noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-46534194378754492892024-01-29T19:22:09.737-08:002024-01-29T19:22:09.737-08:00You can have your own tiny little Bloodbeast in it...You can have your own tiny little Bloodbeast in its own tiny little acid bath.<br /><br />https://www.bluegiantstudios.co.uk/products/blood-beastlurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-87122207037594402002024-01-29T16:36:54.418-08:002024-01-29T16:36:54.418-08:00Welcome back! It's a nice late Christmas pres...Welcome back! It's a nice late Christmas present to see a new entry on this excellent blog! Please post again relatively soon! Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15552247387999534518noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-26069728357942189332024-01-23T04:42:33.732-08:002024-01-23T04:42:33.732-08:00Great to see you back Murray!
I've fond memo...Great to see you back Murray! <br /><br />I've fond memories of this one too, especially the Cyclops fight (It's particularly satisfying when the option opens up to sock him in the eye).The scene with the warlock was clearly also a fave of Chapman, as he reuses it in Clash of the Princes (except YOU get to be the Warlock casting shade across the waves at an enemy vessel).<br /><br />Speaking of which, I'm going to throw a suggestion out there: how about you and John (of Deathtraps and Dungeons) do a collab playthrough of CotP? The clunky co-op play mechanism should provide plenty of fuel for the LOLs, and advances in technology since 1986 ought to make sending the occasional intercontinental page reference pretty straight forward...Pit Friendhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15199696683128616227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-62529983799809014852024-01-16T10:41:10.832-08:002024-01-16T10:41:10.832-08:00I somehow died to that skeleton trap twice in a ro...I somehow died to that skeleton trap twice in a row, with maybe a few months between plays. The skeletal awesomeness must have trumped my memory (or I am just daft). Mikehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15565246909759697756noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-22501190320048115132024-01-15T03:32:14.469-08:002024-01-15T03:32:14.469-08:00I was going to say Brig Brother, but then I checke...I was going to say Brig Brother, but then I checked and a brig is an 18-century vessel, and I know that Murray wouldn't let that shit fly. So, I'll fall back on I'm a Pirate, Get Me Privateers.Gappyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01210789200459444049noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-83209698640344215922024-01-08T15:07:46.426-08:002024-01-08T15:07:46.426-08:00Always a lovely surprise to find a new post every ...Always a lovely surprise to find a new post every couples of years!! I think you are right about the Vance influence as this review of Clash of the Princes highlights clear Vancian references in that.<br /><br />https://gamebooks.org/Item/1071/Showhoundtanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12286841021897805848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-17413010071062005252024-01-07T17:34:05.519-08:002024-01-07T17:34:05.519-08:00Look forward to reading the next post, in 2027.Look forward to reading the next post, in 2027.lurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-20583928467820424562024-01-07T09:59:54.339-08:002024-01-07T09:59:54.339-08:00Damn, that's the line I needed! Rather than wa...Damn, that's the line I needed! Rather than waving my arm in the general area a joke would go. Murrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17408095504472495097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-42292093281918978542024-01-07T05:31:27.011-08:002024-01-07T05:31:27.011-08:00Hurrah! You're back!
Totally agree that this ...Hurrah! You're back!<br /><br />Totally agree that this "could be an early 21st Century reality show". Indeed, in a playthrough I wrote many years ago, I came up with the title <i>I'm a Pirate, Get Me Out of Yarrr!</i>Ed Jolleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07293815550517824166noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-89623348006778409722024-01-05T12:27:29.690-08:002024-01-05T12:27:29.690-08:00Amazing! I'm so glad you've broken the &qu...Amazing! I'm so glad you've broken the "The Rings of Kether" barrier, which is where FF blogs often seem to come to a halt for some reason. It would be great to hear your take on "Appointment with F.E.A.R", as it's a bit out of the ordinary, here's hoping..:) Hauserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07531605408493385092noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-20174134020065305062024-01-05T04:48:16.611-08:002024-01-05T04:48:16.611-08:00Yes! Welcome back!
I've always liked this one...Yes! Welcome back!<br /><br />I've always liked this one too. I don't think it <i>quite</i> works, but it's almost there, and the concept is great. I love that the challenge involves both a race and the acquisition of wealth; YOU really have to think about where you're going and weigh up which destinations are worthwhile.<br /><br />(I think this is one area of weakness, now I think of it; it never feels like YOU are that well-informed about the area, so there's more guesswork than I'd like.)<br /><br />I've also long thought it would make a good basis for a tabletop rpg campaign.thekelvingreenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01928260185408072124noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-80482138752547321572024-01-05T04:27:53.670-08:002024-01-05T04:27:53.670-08:00Wonderful stuff, and glad to see you're still ...Wonderful stuff, and glad to see you're still at it!jrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08130762576228505965noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-78338043363164984572023-12-17T17:31:54.189-08:002023-12-17T17:31:54.189-08:00A further comment in defence of the Forest of Doom...A further comment in defence of the Forest of Doom (as if the above screeds were not enough).<br /><br />It is different from the gamebooks that came before and most of those that came afterwards in that it lacked a clearly defined Big Bad Evil guy to kill to complete your adventure. In Warlock you were out to slay Zagor (who had done nothing to harm you) and in Citadel you were gonna ice Balthus D (who again, had done nothing to harm you directly, but deserved it because he looks such a smug dick and wears REALLY STUPID spikey things around his wrists that make all manner of basic human activities perilous).<br /><br />But in Forest there is no one person you have to terminate. The different parts of the hammer are, in fact, in the hands of relatively minor monsters. Which is an interesting philosophical development in gamebook design and represents a significant maturation in the genre. Or something.lurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-9395509696648714352023-12-17T17:26:22.795-08:002023-12-17T17:26:22.795-08:00I wonder, is SNARC still checking for updates in 2...I wonder, is SNARC still checking for updates in 2023? Some of us are ...lurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-35400214549187894772023-11-16T09:14:04.881-08:002023-11-16T09:14:04.881-08:00During the last gap i started my own to fill the v...During the last gap i started my own to fill the void. Still plugging away and up to Crypt of the Sorcerer now. Not as good as Murrays but might help fill the void until his triumphant return - https://deathtrapsanddungeons.blogspot.com/2020/12/fighting-fantasy.html Deathtraps and Dungeonshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05360463119874679059noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-72634061776241654252023-09-23T12:34:43.601-07:002023-09-23T12:34:43.601-07:00I just love to see people are thinking about Mungo...I just love to see people are thinking about MungoMurrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17408095504472495097noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-18722494720474298062023-09-23T04:28:53.533-07:002023-09-23T04:28:53.533-07:00Over on facebook they have been holding a world cu...Over on facebook they have been holding a world cup of fantasy illustrations, a truly epic undertaking, confirming that people who played gamebooks in their youth did not go on to have successful or fulfilled lives.<br /><br />It has been noted that Mungo Pics (tm) receive a lot of votes. This lead me to concoct a new theory about Mungo, based on his evident uselessness in fighting pirates or crabs. And yelling "Land ho" when the island is plainly visible is - as you sagely comment - pointless showing off, a little boy playing at being a sailor.<br /><br />Which makes me wonder - was Mungo was a colossal fraud, who made up all the heroic tales of his exploits? Was everything he did was just showboating? I bet if our adventurer had not decided to accompany him to the island, he'd have sailed his boat about a bit, just out of sight of land, then returned home claiming he'd done his best but 'fell sorcery' had prevented him reaching Fire Island - a sort of Allansian Donald Crowhurst. <br /><br />This is suggested because he is "surprised" to see the adventurer - clearly, he wasn't expecting to encounter anyone foolhardy enough to actually accompany him. And after saying he will head off to Fire Island he "stares at you in silence" - presumably praying you'll say something like, "Nah, this ain't my fight" and let him get on with his pretence of heroism. Instead, he had to follow through on his boastful promises and actually try. The final proof he's been living a lie is how he immediately dies in battle before you've even made it over the sand dunes of Fire Island.<br /><br />So yeah, stuff you, Mungo, you glass jawed delusional fool. Thanks for nothing.lurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-83780275904497844362023-08-30T15:36:39.850-07:002023-08-30T15:36:39.850-07:00Two years is a short gap by Murray's exacting ...Two years is a short gap by Murray's exacting standards! houndtanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12286841021897805848noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-31601428027901783392023-08-27T02:20:25.465-07:002023-08-27T02:20:25.465-07:00"next one could be a ways off!"
You wer..."next one could be a ways off!"<br /><br />You were not bullshitting us there. At this rate, I might be dead before you get to 'Return to Firetop Mountain'.lurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2618556584663522444.post-90260899967422650482023-08-27T02:19:47.000-07:002023-08-27T02:19:47.000-07:00This comment has been removed by the author.lurgeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08735536088030480119noreply@blogger.com