Steve Jackson's Fighting Fantasy

[Jayaprakash Satyamurthy]

Ahdkaw mentioned these on the Final Fantasy thread, thought I'd start a seperate topic.

This was a series of fantasy gamebooks, created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone in the 80s. They had fairly simple game systems, and were usually mazes of some sort or the other. They afforded me hours of dice-rolling, pencil pushing, page turning fun when I was younger. Some of the books were incredibly complex and challenging.

Standouts include: House of Hell, a nearly unsolvable maze of a creepy, haunted, bedevilled house. Creature of Havoc was marginally simple, but very gripping, with its core narrative hook of the player not knowing who he/she is. There were books with sf settings (Starship Traveller), Japanese samurai tales (Sword of the Samurai), horror and fantasy.

They're actually being re-released now, and I did pick up a couple of my favourites for old times' sake. Sitting around with a game book and chating out a convoluted maze isn't high on my list of leisure activities anymore, but I remember these books fondly as among the best gamebooks I've ever played.

This chap has the whole set: http://www.fightingfantasycollector.co.uk/index.html

Another good site: http://www.fightingfantasy.com/

Online FF-like gameplay: http://www.ffproject.com/

 

[Brian G Turner]

Glad the topic is raised.

I played a number of the earlier ones - Deathtrap Dungeon and Island of the Lizard King I believe were favourites - but I found that Starship Traveller seemed to lose the plot a bit - far too easy to die meaninglessly.

Of course, we all read up on the various options first, before choosing which direction to take, yes?

First of the genre I read I think were called Grailquest - played a character called Pip. Remarkable fun - excepting that in one of the two book you could get halfway - and then you ran around in little circles because for some daft reason someone had left a page reference out to move on.

Ah - now on Fighting Fantasy - did anyone ever get the accompanying magazine - Warlock? The actual Fighting Fantasy books I believe were tested out in there for feedback before making it into the longer book form - I played Caverns of the Snow Witch and House of Hell via the Magazine before they came out in book form - though apparently they were larger and more complex in book release.

In fact, I just checked - I had issues 2 and 3 and kept them for nostalgic reasons - issue 3 has House of Hell in it. I don't have a scanner, though, so I can't show you what the covers or insides are like.

 

[Ahdkaw]

Ah great stuff, thank you knivesout, well played that man.

I was raised on Fighting Fantasy novels, it was where I got my first taste of 'roleplay', from which point I never looked back.

Of course, my favourites included Deathtrap Dungeon (and the seminal Return to Deathtrap Dungeon that was released much later on in the series), Talisman of Death (see pic - wonderful cover that is - one of my favourite covers ever), House of Hell (which I NEVER could complete - and I tried many times let me tell you), City of Thieves (loved being a thief - became my favourite character class in the end), Appointment With Fear (the comic book superhero one - that was class). What the hell, they were all great!

I believe I purchased every single book up until book 28. I really did enjoy them that much. I remember later that Weetabix was doing some special offer with the new Make Your Own Adventure books, which I partook of, only to discover that they were merely very bad versions of Fighting Fantasy with no real greatness to them at all (and no dice either! boo-hiss!). I also remember two books that were just images of a dungeon, released by Jackon & Livingston I think, that were designed for two players, just can't remember the names of them.

I did however find the Lone Wolf series another set of top quality books that rode on the back of the success of the FF novels. There is a webpage with the covers here:
http://homepages.tesco.net/~parsonsp/html/lw1-10.html
Seems there were more then ten of them - hmm, I only knew of the first ten. great set of books though, as you continued the same character through the each of books, keeping all the experience, skills, and equipment from your previous adventures. Very enjoyable.

Some of the other books mentioned at the above link I had too, but none really ever compared to the original Fighting Fantasy and Lone Wolf novels. Ah, happy days (don't even think about humming the theme!).

Oh and Brian, I never cheated.

Well ok, maybe once or twice.

 

[scalem X]

Argl I have two of those books and one really held me trapped in a labyrinth for almost a day . Finnally I mathematically sorted it out since I was unable to draw a map. The second book I was constantly killed and finally gave up.

 

[Brian G Turner]

City of Theives! I think that was the first one I actually bought, having had to borow the earlier ones from friends.

And, yes, my first taste of role-play, though I'd already been warming up to it from what others had said.

 

[Jof2004]

It's good to hear about others who have enjoyed Fighting Fantasy. I've still got my 50 novels. It's funny that most people prefer Deathtrap Dungeon. I'm off that ilk also. I find with advancing years I stuggle to recall much about them

Did ant of you get the spin off series by Steve Jackson. The Cretian Chronicles I believe it was called

 

[garreth Jacks]

I found 18 of them in a car boot and got them for four pound one of the best buys ever

 

[monkeydude]

I did however find the Lone Wolf series another set of top quality books that rode on the back of the success of the FF novels. There is a webpage with the covers here:
http://homepages.tesco.net/~parsonsp/html/lw1-10.html
Seems there were more then ten of them - hmm, I only knew of the first ten. great set of books though, as you continued the same character through the each of books, keeping all the experience, skills, and equipment from your previous adventures. Very enjoyable.

Some of the other books mentioned at the above link I had too, but none really ever compared to the original Fighting Fantasy and Lone Wolf novels. Ah, happy days (don't even think about humming the theme!).

Oh and Brian, I never cheated.

Well ok, maybe once or twice.

I found a website that has most of the books:

http://www.projectaon.org/


It's free and legal. Very fun they are. I'm on the second book, and can't seem to beat it.

 

[Brian G Turner]

Anyone else get Steve Jackson's Warlock magazine? The coming FF books were serialised in this first - I guess as a tester for feedback, as I recall Caverns of the Snow Witch had some significant differences.

Also, has anyone bought any of these on iPad, as per this thread?
https://www.sffchronicles.com/threads/536104/

I think my enthusiasm died after the 10th book, House of Hell, perhaps because I'm not a horror fan, and it was becoming a little predictable - or perhaps I just wanted more. I always held a degree of affection for the earlier books, though.