Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 from Tin Man Games brings us digital takes on four of the beloved books from way back in the day. Learn more in our Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 review!
Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 from Tin Man Games brings us digital takes on four of the beloved books from way back in the day. We’re getting Book 1: Warlock of Firetop Mountain, Book 2: Citadel of Chaos, Book 3: The Forest of Doom, and Book 4: Starship Traveler in a convenient collection that you can easily play at home or on the go as you enjoy some old-school-inspired choose-your-own-adventure action. This release features classic art from Iain McCaig, Russ Nicholson, Malcolm Barter, Ian Miller, and more, bringing back some beloved memories for those of us who got to play through these books many moons ago.
Fighting Fantasy is a series of single-player role-playing gamebooks that was created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone in the 1980s, and the first book – The Warlock of Firetop Mountain – was released in 1982. There are almost 60 books in the Fighting Fantasy franchise, and, as previously stated, this particular release includes the first four books in the whole series. Each of the books offers lots of replay value, since you can go back to the start and make different choices along the way so that you can reach new story paths.
This is not the first time the beloved series has made its way to a console near you. Fighting Fantasy: The Warlock of Firetop Mountain was released in 2011 as part of the PlayStation minis range of games for the PlayStation Portable – that would be the PSP – and they could also be played on the PlayStation 3. Another one was Fighting Fantasy: Talisman of Death. There’s also The Warlock of Firetop Mountain: Goblin Scourge Edition on the Nintendo Switch, a 2018 release that took inspiration from classic tabletop adventures. And then we have 2020’s Deathtrap Dungeon Trilogy as well as Fighting Fantasy Legends in 2021,
What is each of the books about? It’s best to use the official description for each book to give you a better idea of what to expect:
Book 1: Warlock of Firetop Mountain.
Part story, part game, in these adventures YOU ARE THE HERO
Your quest is to find the Warlock’s treasure, hidden deep within a dungeon populated with a multitude of terrifying monsters. You will need courage, determination and a fair amount of luck if you are to survive all the traps and battles, and reach your goal — the innermost chambers of the Warlock’s domain.
Book 2: Citadel of Chaos.
Who knows what monstrous creatures lie in wait in the Citadel of Chaos?
The Citadel holds a dark and dangerous peril for anyone foolhardy enough to venture through its gruesome gates. And yet venture you must, for your mission lies at the heart of the Citadel, with the dread sorceror, Balthus Dire!
Book 3: The Forest of Doom.
Who knows what monstrous creatures lurk in Darkwood forest?
Only the foolhardy would risk an encounter with the unknown perils that lurk in the murky depths of Darkwood Forest. Yet there is no alternative, for your quest is a desperate race against time to find the missing pieces of the legendary Hammer of Stonebridge — fashioned by Dwarfs to protect the villagers of Stonebridge against their ancient doom.
Book 4: Starship Traveler.
The fate of the Starship Traveller and her crew lies in YOUR hands!
Sucked through the nightmare of the Seltsian Void, the starship Traveller emerges at the other side of the black hole into an unknown universe. YOU are the captain of the Traveller and her fate depends on YOU! Will you be able to discover the way back to Earth from the alien peoples and planets you encounter, or will the starship be doomed to roam uncharted space forever?
Before you begin a run, you’ll need to determine your character’s strengths and weaknesses based on the roll of the dice. Before you make a roll, you’ll need to pick one of three difficulty settings: Adventurer, Hardcore Hero, or Free Read. The Adventurer difficulty setting is as close to the original experience as possible, with your starting skill being dictated by rolling 1d6+6. The Hardcore Hero difficulty setting is a good option for those of you who already read the original books or who have played through these digital versions at least once. Your starting skill is calculated by rolling 1d6+4. As for the Free Read difficulty setting, you can roll your character just like you want it, but can more easily navigate through the book… sorta like cheating your way to victory!
To make things easier, the game offers some quality-of-life elements to consider when compared to the physical releases from way-back-when and the different reprints that each book has received over the years. There’s a map feature that will make it a whole lot easier to keep track of where you’re going during your current run and where you’ve been before in previous playthroughs. You can also use bookmarks to revisit sections. There’s an automated adventure sheet that will keep track of the different stats, items, and knowledge gained. There’s also a soundtrack that complements the stories, and there are sound effects as well. There are even History of Fighting Fantasy and Rulebook titles as free bonus books to check out!
Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 brings us digital takes on four of the beloved books from way back in the day. We’re getting Book 1: Warlock of Firetop Mountain, Book 2: Citadel of Chaos, Book 3: The Forest of Doom, and Book 4: Starship Traveler in a convenient collection that you can easily play at home or on the go as you enjoy some old-school-inspired choose-your-own-adventure action. This release features classic art from Iain McCaig, Russ Nicholson, Malcolm Barter, Ian Miller, and more, bringing back some beloved memories for those of us who got to play through these books many moons ago.
This particular release is available on Steam as Fighting Fantasy Classics, sans the Vol. 1 part. What this means is that said release is of the free-to-play option, with each of the books available as additional DLC you have to pay for. When bringing the books to the Nintendo Switch, Tin Man Games has instead decided to give us Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 with four books ready to go, which does sorta hint that more of the books will be making their way to Nintendo’s console in the near future.
The collection allows you to use some options to customize your experience. You can activate quick dice and quick combat, big initials, increase or decrease the size of the text, switch between the available font types – Serif, Fancy, Ancient, and Dyslexic – as well as change the page speed. There’s even the possibility of activating a Retro Mode for that old-school feel. Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 is available with a $14.99 price tag.
Disclaimer
This Fighting Fantasy Classics Vol. 1 review is based on a Nintendo Switch copy provided by Tin Man Games.
