All right, we know what you really want. You want news of the Fabled Lands series. You want to hear when the books will be available again. And, most of all, you want to know when The Serpent King's Domain and subsequent books will finally appear.Hold your breath no longer. The War-Torn Kingdom is already in development as an iPhone game and we are actively looking into putting all the existing Fabled Lands books out in e-reader format later this year.
If these titles are successful, we hope to build a new audience for the Fabled Lands large enough to justify completing the series. And, as they'll be in the form of e-gamebooks, it'll be easy to regularly add content to the previous titles in the form of new quests and treasures. Which is not to say we're ruling out print editions, incidentally, just that the e-book versions will blaze the trail.
As if that's not enough, we're also working on a Fabled Lands role-playing game (you know: pencils, dice, pretzels...) which will be accompanied by a series of sourcebooks, or travel guides if you will, covering the regions of the FL world. That project will kick off with the Akatsurai book, using material reworked from our "lost classic" Oriental RPG Tetsubo. And don't worry, you won't need a bunch of dice shaped like alien coughdrops - it'll be six-siders all the way.
2010 is shaping up to be a year of renewed interest in Fabled Lands. Make sure you're signed up for the ride.
Behold, it is awesome. Glad to see it's come this far, looking forward to the glories to come!
ReplyDeleteAwesome! If you're already going to make an iPhone version, then it would be easy for you to port, or have someone else port, it to the Mac. Are you planning on doing that? And if not could you be convinced to let someone else do it?
ReplyDeleteWe'll definitely explore that possibility with Megara Entertainment, who are doing the iPhone and iPod versions of book one.
ReplyDeleteI'm also looking at online games like Echo Bazaar. Jamie and I considered doing something like that with Fabled Lands five or six years back, and we now have a boardgame (designed by James Wallis) which could be adapted as the basic structure.
That's fantastic - 14 years since the last book, and some of us have been waiting that long! Maybe all those enticing gates to the underworld will finally be open...
ReplyDeleteReason for posting: I developed the open-source FLApp game (http://sourceforge.net/projects/flapp/), which lets the user play through all six published books. I made it as a labour of love on some (admittedly) shaky legal grounds: you'd apparently given permission for free PDFs of the books to be available on the Yahoo group, so I figured this was a fair extension. Anyway, this seems like the right time to ask for explicit permission. I think it may have expanded your potential audience, but you're well within your rights to ask for the project to be taken down.
Looking forward to all things Fabled!
Hi Jon, we're happy to give the FLApp game our blessing. It's the hard work of devoted fans that has kept the torch burning all these years, and Jamie and I are glad we've been able to inspire others like yourself. I don't know whether a publisher of the e-book versions will take a different view (I don't see why they should) but for the time being, at any rate, you not only have our permission, you have our grateful thanks!
ReplyDeletethank you so much. i love the FLApp
DeleteAdding additional content to the existing Fabled Lands titles would be nice. Project Aon has added additional content to their series when they republished their books. I feel that the additional content and expansions should be an after thought for now until the rest of the series is completed. The main books should be published in print as well and the expansions and additional content should be available as a print-on-demand type of deal. You COULD have a print subscription to additional Fabled Lands content, that's what Palladium Books does. They have a print subscription to a book that contains additional source material, rules, items, and other bonus content.
ReplyDeleteThe beauty of the e-gamebook format is that there need be no end to the additional content. I'm not just thinking now of extra quest areas, "dungeons" or whatever, but that the global timeline can continue. For example, every time you go back to Castle Ravayne there will be new developments. Time will have moved on for all the people living there.
ReplyDeleteBut yes, Mike, our first priority will be to complete the series if the sales justify it. Then extra content for the books would come later.
I wouldn't rule out print editions. Icon Books' re-released Fight Fantasy series have done okay. But I expect the case will need to be proven by the ebook versions first.
Just as a question... any potential for an Android version in addition to the iphone version?
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ReplyDeleteI can't believe I'm just now reading this news. I've been wanting to see Fabled Lands come back for so long now and with a hope of finally completeing the series, it sounds almost too good to be true! Couple quick questions:
ReplyDeleteAre ebooks reabable on the Kindle? If not, how do ebooks work?
And is there any time frame in regards to a released that we might expect to see the ebooks released and ball rolling on the Fabled Lands come back?
Wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThe most expected announcement in gamebooks!
This is extraordinary news! I've spent quite some time and money tracking down the original FL books, and even if they lacked the powerful narrative I so loved in Blood Sword, they were an excellent gamebook experience - so different from all others. I would surely buy the e-gamebooks, and all the more gladly if that can pave the way to print editions.
ReplyDeleteSo glad to find this. I bought the books as they came out and they were fantastic. Streets ahead of any other gamebooks. Very excited to see it will be coming to the iphone. And as for a Fabled Lands RPG - cannot wait. I remember playing the books with my friend - me reading it out for him as he played through. Good times. The freeform nature of the adventures is an incredible achievement. Thanks for many hours of fun - both in the past and now the future.
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing. I once played Over the Blood-Dark Sea when I was fairly young (like 12 - am only 24 now). I had rented it at a library, and was forced to return it. When I went back for it the next week, it was gone, never to return. Needless to say, when I was old enough to do so, I tracked down all the books on e-bay, played those I hadn't played before, and played them with my little brother (10 years younger than me... he LOVES them. I read aloud and he rolls and makes choices.)
ReplyDeleteSeriously guys, I'm SO pleased to hear that you may be making the rest of them. Plus I have an e-reader, so will be getting them as soon as you release them.
More excited than I probably should be,
Tyler.
PS - glad you are happy for Flapp to be out there, it's got me through many a dull train ride :)
Wow. Hard to imagine it's been half a life-time ago, since I first played this. I never managed to get Books 5 and 6 though. :(
ReplyDeleteWell, now you can!
DeleteThese books were a huge part of my childhood. I still remember getting The War-torn Kingdom at media play when I was around nine or ten and obsessing over it for months, making different characters and trying everything I could with them. it brings a tear to my eye to see them being resurrected, especially now that I can share them with my own son. I really hope the last 6 get made now. Thank you Dave and Jamie.
ReplyDeleteI would be quite willing to pay 60$ for a large 'rpg style' format of the entire gamebook series provided all the errors are corrected, and code words updated. Something similar to the 'pathfinder core rulebook' form of presentation. Hard bound, quality paper, etc.
ReplyDeleteI suspect the printing costs of a large format hardback edition on quality paper wouldn't be far short of $60, actually!
DeleteI only just managed to get the last book I needed before they went out of print which was over the blood dark sea.I do hope the second set of six is going to be released in paperback to match up with first set of six.
ReplyDeleteThe existing six FL books are all set up on print-on-demand now, so you should have no trouble getting them. We're certainly hoping there will be enough interest to fuel a Kickstarter to do a seventh book. I doubt if anybody would still be pledging by book 12, though.
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