Hot news from Mikael Louys, the business and creative dynamo in charge of Megara Entertainment. The Fabled Lands HD game for iPad is at #24 in the App Store RPG charts! That ranking reflects the incredible hard work that Mikael and his team put into their adaptation - indeed, their spectacular reinvention - of The War-Torn Kingdom, which is a thing of beauty that Jamie and I never dreamed of when we originally wrote the FL books.So here's the thing. If a game can get into the Top Ten then it bobs up onto everybody's radar and it's got a good chance of staying there. And if Fabled Lands HD can get there, with just a little push, that could mean thousands of new FL fans who will help sustain the wave of RPGs, CRPGs and gamebooks that has already begun.
I know what most of you are thinking: "But I don't own an iPad." Okay, well, apart from advising you to sell your wristwatch to buy one, I'm going to say that you can certainly reach out and influence somebody who does. If not in your immediate circle of friends, family and co-workers, how about on blogs where you're leaving a comment? Or failing that, just open the window and shout.
Mikael already has his team back in harness on Cities of Gold & Glory, for which I've seen some of the truly sumptuous artwork, and there's an iPhone conversion coming in the next few months too. Getting Fabled Lands HD into the Top Ten ranking in iTunes RPGs would be a great boost for those guys, and it'd help ensure the future of Fabled Lands releases (both print and digital) as well.
So let me plead with you: if at all possible, can you try and coax at least one person to buy Fabled Lands HD this weekend? It's a steal at $7.99, and this app is no mere ebook but a full-on, full-color, atmospherically soundtracked, immersively art-intensive 2D CRPG with new extended descriptions providing dozens of hours of play. All that for less than the cost of one of the new edition FL books. No wonder the Megara staff know their boss as "Mad Mikael"!
If I understood well, an IPad is not even necessary, since ITunes can be installed freely on each computer.
ReplyDeleteIt would show great commitment to buy it, Olivier, without having an iPad to run it on! But indeed, every sale will help propel it up the charts and so secure the future of the Fabled Lands series.
ReplyDelete"and it'd help ensure the future of Fabled Lands releases (both print and digital)"
ReplyDeleteSo you're basically asking us to promote an App because if that will sell well then more real books will be printed. Yeah.
Why don't we all buy the Destiny Quest book instead. If that sells well it will most certainly be a clear message to writers and publishers that money is to be made with *new* books.
In other news: the Destiny Quest book is now shipping from Amazon in Germany as well (so mine should arrive any day now). I can handly wait!
Have to say just from that one screenshot the digital conversion looks excellent. Unfortunately I don't own an iPad (or any apple devices as I just prefer the alternatives on the market) nor do I know anyone who does own an iPad.
ReplyDeleteHowever if an Android or alternative smart phone application could be marketed then I would certainly be interested... however much would still depend on the release of books 7-12 as I've done so much with books 1-6 already.
The Android market is still to take off fully though so I would imagine perhaps it is more expensive to convert and sell in this format?
There are other digital options too though for Fabled Lands which would open doors to vast amounts of customers. Dave, have you considered the successful Playstation Minis series (does what it says on the tin with mini games at mini prices) or even just a bog standard PC conversion? Obviously it would be a bit unusual for a 'gamebook' to be sold as a 'PC game' but that uniqueness in itself could be a strong selling point and a price of between £5 and £10 would tick the value for money box.
I'm not going to give up on the printed books though either... even if one day it means banging on your door Dave (or Jamie's) and presenting you personally with a blank cheque for books 7-12!!
sorry, but even if i had an ipad, i think i would not like that app. i mean, look at those awful colours of the screenshots, and all the drawings of the characters i have seen so far, those anime-look-alikes with strange hair colours...
ReplyDeletei always liked the pictures in the books and of the book covers. they had an enormous influence on my imagination of the world of fabled lands, they always were an important part of whole feeling.
so, sorry, but i don't think i can chum up with the design of the app.
Bert, of course you should spend your money on what you want. And seeing as you have declared your determination never to buy an ebook (extending, presumably, in this case to 2D CRPGs as well) then I ageee Destiny Quest would be a more logical purchase. But surely if you do have friends who like digital adventure games, it can do no harm to recommend the FL app to them? Or at least to mention it.
ReplyDeleteThe future of gamebooks is not, I'm afraid, going to lie in print books alone. That ship has long since sailed. The economics of print and delivery simply will not support the market for these books, though (as we've already discussed this week) print gamebooks could remain as the prestige purchase for the real diehards.
Anon, fair enough. If you don't care for the look of this specific app you're not going to be able to recommend it to anybody, I can see that. Though do at least tell them about it, won't you? Some people out there like anime. I don't myself, but Megara's game is not the Japanese-style RPG that some of the character design might imply. In fact, much of the art consists of colour re-renderings of Russ Nicholson's originals. Btw talking of big eyes and funny hair, remind me someday to tell you the story about how General Grieve Marlock nearly turned into a girl ;)
Colin, maybe Megara could farm out conversion of the game to Android via a 3rd party. I think they'd have to do it that way as their whole team is tied up doing the iPhone port and starting on FL2. Now, what was that about a blank cheque?
I've only recently stumbled across a very interesting analysis of gamebook app development on mobile platforms over on the Tin Man Games blog (see URL).
ReplyDeletehttp://tinmangames.com.au/blog/?p=977
Unfortunately, the Tin Man site is down at the moment but the page can still be seen in Google cache. To paraphrase Robin of Sherwood; "Nothing's forgotten... nothing's ever forgotten.".
Jiminy, I couldn't find it in cache but I'll be sure to check it out when Tin Man are back up. Now, you've put me in the mood to break out my Robin of Sherwood DVDs tonight :)
ReplyDeleteWell ok so the blank cheque is a last resort and in reality only a pipe dream, though if I ever won a few million...
ReplyDeleteAs another last resort I'd also consider writing books 7-12 myself in order to complete the collection if it weren't for the fact that I'm an accountant and not an author for a very good reason! Aaarrgh I want those books (in one format or another) sooo bad!
Oh well, I'm gonna stick with the positive vibes for now and hope to continue hearing encouraging sales news.
In fact, Colin, books 7 and 9 already exist as team-written works by Fabled Lands enthusiasts. I've deliberately not read them as I wouldn't want to be influenced in case Jamie and I eventually get to do our version. But I'm told they're good, and after all only about 30% of Fighting Fantasy books were actually written by Livingstone or Jackson, and nobody complained about that. So you might want to track down those unofficial books while you're waiting for your lottery numbers to come up :)
ReplyDeleteI would love to see books 7-12 and I'm considering buying an Ipad now that so many gamebooks are being released as apps.
ReplyDeleteCafaristeir - does your post imply that you can play apps on Itunes or just buy them from there?
Maybe you could share a few thoughts in a future blog article about a certain-very-specific title in the Fighting Fantasy series, Dave? 8^)
ReplyDeleteKeep of the Lich Lord? Or the Lord of Shadow Keep? Take your pick, Jiminy.
ReplyDeleteOh, talking of Fighting Fantasy, I notice that Warlock of Firetop Mountain was released yesterday for the Kindle. Don't rush out and buy a Kindle, though. The iPad has a Kindle app that functions the same but with a bigger screen and full colour.
Mr Lloyd (no relation to Dirk, I hope) - no, I'm afraid you can't play the FL app on anything but an iPad. Having iTunes on your PC is just a means of backing up the apps you buy and syncing them between devices. I don't really think Olivier meant he was planning to buy the app just to sit in his iTunes library - though Mikael wouldn't complain, I'm sure.
On a French forum, they seem to cling on paperbooks ! :
ReplyDeletehttp://gamebooks.forumactif.com/t2054p45-reedition-de-la-serie-fabled-lands-et-fin-de-dragon-warriors#102641
Am I wrong if I say that ITunes can be installed on any computer ?
Olivier
I was actually thinking about Keep of the Lich Lord. I recall KotLL was a bit short but had several quite different endings.
ReplyDeleteHowever, an article on Legend of Shadow Keep would be just as welcome. There are some really cool encounters in that book and also some classic illustrations from Mr.Hartas.
Sorry I know this is slightly off topic, but I've been monitoring the sales of the re-issued books 1-4 and when I checked this evening on amazon.co.uk all 4 were in the top 25,000 sales rank! This I think is significant because until now book 1 had been outselling the others by at least 2 to 1 I think. What this suggests now is that people have got hooked on the first book they perhaps bought as a tester and are now investing in the others!
ReplyDeleteI don't actually know what rank 25,000 means in terms of sales, but obviously amazon sells an awful lot of books so it can't be too bad. Let's hope the magic sales mark of 10,000 copies of each book is edging ever closer!
Obviously 50 or even a hundred extra sales wouldn't make much difference to Megara's revenue overall. So I think what you mean is that getting those extra sales in one weekend would shift it up the charts, and that would continue helping sales in future if its in the top 10? If so, wouldn't 5-star reviews on itunes help just as much? I can put itunes on my PC but I don't have an iPad.
ReplyDeleteScott
Olivier and Scott, you can install iTunes on your computer and you can even buy Fabled Lands HD, but you won't be able to play it without an iPad. Really, don't do that!
ReplyDeleteScott, I'm pretty sure you can only rate an app that you own, otherwise it would be too easy to rig ratings. But you are right that I didn't ask people to try and convince friends to buy the FL app this weekend because those sales will make a blind bit of difference revenue-wise. The point is that sales in a concentrated period affect sales ranking, and getting into the Top 10 keeps an app visible.
Sadly, it didn't work. Fabled Lands HD has slipped down to about #40 today. So close...
Colin, the curve of sales in every entertainment medium drops off very sharply. Even the #200 book isn't selling a fraction of the #1. But tortoises can win races, even if it takes a year or two.
I'm so sad ! I will cling to my old paper versions... But that's really a pity that the Megara application can't run on computers... I think this reduces significantly the potential public. (see the link to the French forum)
ReplyDeleteTo be fair, Olivier, Mikael only has the one team so he had to prioritize which platform to go out on first. PC would have put the game in direct competition with the likes of Dragon Age Origins. The iPhone/iPod Touch version will multiply the potential size of the market by ten, and I'm sure Megara will be looking for partners to help get it onto Android, etc. Or, y'know, folks could just wise up and buy an iPad :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the link to the forum. I do understand that lots of people like print books. But every time the ebook/app issue is raised, they get very hot under the collar - no doubt feeling that ebooks will spell the end of print. The exact same fears were raised when paperbacks came in: "This is the end of real books," publishers said. And yet nowadays only a fool would say that paperbacks aren't real books - and, more importantly, having both hardcover and paperback editions has been a huge boon to publishing. People who insist on thinking this is an either/or question are missing the whole point.
The guy who said we have a moral duty - well, he's right. And I have blogged about how that moral duty extends to our characters as well as our readers:
http://mirabilis-yearofwonders.blogspot.com/2010/03/annus-mirabilis_19.html
But when the publisher pulls the plug, there's not much one can do. Finding new ways to bring the FL series back to life using apps, ebooks and print on demand will only work if we can get readers behind the whole plan, supporting even those aspects that they don't plan on buying personally.
Well, here, I was not convinced by the "moral duty" this guy was talking about. The fact that the FL series is unfinished is frustrating, but I see no break of duty there since the books can be played independently. This is not like a gamebook saga like "the Way of the Tiger" with its weird ending.
ReplyDeleteAnother guy boasts on this forum that "you" are indeed writing FL books 7 & 9. Is this true ???
It is frustrating, Olivier, when I hear people say that they won't play the existing books because 7-12 aren't written yet. As you point out, FL is not one storyline like a Fighting Fantasy book, and the existing FL books must provide (at a guess) at least 200 hours' worth of rewarding adventures.
ReplyDeleteI have asked Jamie about that ending to the Way of the Tiger series. I think they were trying for the same kind of feeling as the elevator doors closing in one of the endings to Heart of Ice. I haven't found a single WotT fan who liked that ending... unless anyone out there wants to prove me wrong?
No, I'm not writing FL 7 and 9. There are fan-written versions of those books (see comment above) which must be what the guy was thinking of.
Good god, I had no idea this app existed! I will absolutely 100% buy the app when it is released for iPhone! Eeee I'm super excited now! Thank you so much Dave & Co for being so wonderful to your fans over the years!
ReplyDeleteWe can't take the credit in this case, Sarahbee - the app is all down to Mikael Louys, who could move mountains with his determination and energy. A few more like him at Agincourt and it all could have gone the other way. Mikael's team will have the iPhone version ready pretty soon, and this very day they are starting work on another gamebook that is going to cause a lot of excitement when it's revealed. I can hardly keep up :)
ReplyDeleteWould love to buy it, sadly there isn't a version for the smaller iDevices.
ReplyDeleteMadcat, there will be - very soon! And you'll hear all about it here when I get a release date from Megara.
ReplyDeleteI could get in touch with Mikael Louys. He told me that the application can run on Mac computers, but not on PCs... (and I have a PC...)
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't touch a Mac if I was falling out of a building and it was the only thing to hang onto. Not up to and including the second floor anyway. And yet I am an iPad fanatic...
ReplyDeleteWould the FL app run on a Mac? Presumably you can run an iPad emulator on a Mac, otherwise it would be hard to develop for.
The simple solution, of course, is to buy an iPad. Everybody will have to eventually.
The fan-written book 7 was never finished, unfortunately. Most of it was completed on the Book 7 Yahoo group:
ReplyDeletehttp://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/book_seven/ but we are looking for someone to fill in the blanks. There are extensive notes taken, including Dave and Jamie's official notes, if anyone would like to help out.
I am a WotT fan who liked the ending. It wasn't downbeat - the protagonist was not dead or injured, and he was getting ready to fight the spider god (?) or something when the scene ended. That is a really good ending, and the words "The End" show that his struggle continues even though the reader is no longer invited to share his experiences. That's a more realistic (mature?) ending compared to other game books, where the adventurer wins the prize money, rescues the princess, and lives happily ever after.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read it, wtan, so I can't comment. Some people seem to think the implication was that you don't have a way out and so (gobble) that's The End. But it could equally well have been taken to mean that you don't have any trouble killing giant spiders and hence that's - hmm, nope, I can't see it. I think Min and Jamie really did mean "your life and your quest end here" but you'd have to ask them (see email link at top right).
ReplyDeleteI've been holding onto the first 6 books in the series, just waiting for the day that I would have hope that there MIGHT be more released.
ReplyDeleteI am REALLY hoping this is the boost that's needed to finish the last 6, as it would be a bit of a disappointment for people to get hooked on the series, then realize it's unfinished.
Well, TK, as Olivier pointed out above, FL isn't a single storyline like other gamebook series, and it's possible to have hundreds of hours of adventures with the six books there are. I was doing a back-of-envelop type calculation, and I figure that maybe 10% of each book at most connects to quests in other books. Which means, as half the series is written, that only about 5% of the existing content leads to loose ends that need books 7-12 to complete. So I hope readers will be back for books 7-12, if and when, but in the meantime there is plenty of stuff to do in the series so far.
ReplyDeleteI am curious as to the costs of producing a new Fabled Lands book. I can think of the author's time, the artist's time, printing/distribution, and marketing costs. Which of these is most likely to be the deal-killer, do you think? Obviously author's time can't be cut. But you can go light on the art, distribute digitally, or rely on word-of-mouth to cut costs. Would cutting any of these make writing Books 7-12 feasible, if it came down to that? If it came down to the wire, would you be willing to do so?
ReplyDeleteWtan, let's see now - in producing a book you've got the author's time, the editorial work (which has to be especially thorough in the case of gamebooks), the interior and cover art, typesetting, file processing and set-up for printing. That's for print on demand, then in the case of traditional publishing you also have print costs, warehousing and distribution. And marketing on top of that.
ReplyDeleteOkay, so you're setting up your publishing house and you want to try the low-cal version. So you cut out the art. Unfortunately, while that saves you money it also loses you a lot of customers. You can try digital rather than print distribution, but half your readers will say they miss the smell of paper or the option of using the book to swat flies. And you can rely on word of mouth, but you will sell very few books if you can't back them up with advertising.
The fact is that publishers spend money on art, printing and advertising because those things mean they make more money back. Digital books will, I hope, mean that small indy publishers can start up and thrive - but not in the RPG and gamebook market, where customers tend to be older and of much more conservative tastes than the general reading public.
Print on demand does help for small print runs because it means you don't have the high upfront cost of printing 5000 copies and storing them somewhere. The flipside is that it is more expensive per copy, so your profit margin is less.
The short answer is: don't become a publisher unless you have quite a lot of money to put into it. If you do, however, it can be a very lucrative business indeed.
Dave, thanks for the enlightening post! I guess the form future books will take depends on the target customer base - whether it is the mass market or established game book enthusiasts (to your point, the latter group can be more conservative and dare I say, "picky").
ReplyDeleteAs an aside, a comment was made earlier regarding the anime-influenced art style of the Megara game. I think the art style is absolutely appropriate, as that is what speaks to Generation Y (and younger) readers. It is not the art style that Generation X readers grew up with but I think Fabled Lands - in book or software form - will not enjoy a renaissance unless it can attract readers from different generational groups.
I agree with you, Wtan. I'm not a great fan of Japanese anime/manga - I barely know the difference, in fact - but I appreciate that many are. The old FL visual style was of its time, and Mikael has quite rightly dragged it up to date because that's the only way we will reach new readers.
ReplyDelete