Book 44 and Fighting Fantasy is somehow still firing on all cylinders. Stephen Hand had already contributed to the excellent Dead of Night with Jim Bambara but will his sophomore outing be a chance to show what he can do solo? With art by Martin McKenna and cover art by the reliable David Gallagher, Legend of the Shadow Warriors is a curious beast but is it any good? Listen along to find out.

We’re investigating a key piece of gamebook history this episode as we explore The Cave of Time, the first proper Choose Your Own Adventure book by Edward Packard with art by Paul Granger. With 40 different endings this packs a lot of adventure into a small package. It spawned a wildly successful franchise but is this book actually any good? HJDoom plays it to find out and offers a mildly contentious and completely untested theory about the reason gamebooks exploded in the early eighties.

We’re waving goodbye to 2023 in style as we take on Keep of the Lich Lord by the legends of adventure gamebook design Dave Morris and Jamie Thomson. We’ve got all the classic Fighting Fantasy tropes on hand as we explore an island being oppressed by an army of the undead.

Don’t forget that the Lindebaum Prize is a thing. Write a 100 section gamebook and win fabulous prizes. Find all the details here: http://www.lloydofgamebooks.com/2023/12/entries-are-now-being-accepted-for.html

It’s bonus episode time again as we take a look an Endless Quest book suggested by a listener in the form of Spell of the Winter Wizard by Linda Lowery with cover art by Larry Elmore and internal illustrations by Jeffry R Busch.

Don’t forget that entries are now being accepted for the 2023/24 Lindenbaum Prize being run by friend of the podcast Stuart Lloyd. You can find all the details here: http://www.lloydofgamebooks.com/2023/12/entries-are-now-being-accepted-for.html

Fighting Fantasy book 42 presents us with some new approaches and throws us right into the action which is always exciting. But can the book sustain the initial excitement? Listen along to find out.

Link to the Lindenbaum Prize competition

http://www.lloydofgamebooks.com/2023/11/20232024-lindenbaum-prize-announcement.html

It’s horror time on Fantastic Fights once more as we play and review Nighshift by Victoria Hancox with art by  Svenja Wolter and Ventislav Velikov. A deadly race against time in a twisted hospital released in 2019 this is Victoria Hancox’s first published gamebook.

We continue exploring the later stages of the Fighting Fantasy series with Master of Chaos by Keith Martin with art by David Gallagher. Sent on a dangerous mission without our usual gear and beloved packed lunches can HJDoom possibly survive? Listen along to find out.

It’s time for a very recent gamebook, at least by the standards of this podcast. For your delight and edification HJDoom plays through Legendary Kingdoms book one, The Valley of Bones by Oliver Hulme with illustrations by Robin Smith. It was published by Spidermind Games in 2019. This is a vast tome and the playthrough only really scratches the surface but is it a case of more of a good thing or a surfeit of paragraphs. Listen along to find out.

We're into the 40s! Will they start with a bang? Listen along to find out as HJDoom plays through Dead of Night by Jim Bambra and Stephen Hand with art by Martin McKenna.

It’s another bonus episode of Fantastic Fights and I’m delighted to be able to present another gamebook written by a listener, Rulers of the NOW by Stuart Lloyd which is available for purchase here: https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/383730/Rulers-of-the-NOW