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Categories: Books
Tags: alan wake, Books, Cory Doctorow, dead space, gears of war, god of war, mogworld, star wars
School’s almost out, summer’s almost here — but there’s more to summer vacation than gaming. There’s also reading about gaming! Here are some video game-based novels begging for your attention span.
May 2010
For the Win
Author: Cory Doctorow
Publisher: Tor Teen
ISBN: 978-0765322166
Released: May 11, 2010For the Win
Mala is a brilliant 15-year-old from rural India whose leadership skills in virtual combat have earned her the title of “General Robotwalla.” In Shenzen, heart of China’s industrial boom, Matthew is defying his former bosses to build his own successful gold-farming team. Leonard, who calls himself Wei-Dong, lives in Southern California, but spends his nights fighting virtual battles alongside his buddies in Asia, a world away. All of these young people, and more, will become entangled with the mysterious young woman called Big Sister Nor, who will use her experience, her knowledge of history, and her connections with real-world organizers to build them into a movement that can challenge the status quo.
Alan Wake
Author: Rick Burroughs
Publisher: Tor Books
ISBN: 978-0765328434
Released: May 25, 2010Alan Wake
Welcome to Bright Falls-a seemingly idyllic small town in the Pacific Northwest. The perfect place for Alan Wake, a bestselling crime novelist, and his wife, Alice, to relax for a few weeks. Maybe a second honeymoon and the fresh air will cure Wake of his writer’s block. But when Alice goes missing under mysterious circumstances, Wake’s desperate search for her leads him into a hell only he could imagine. In the depths of nearby Cauldron Lake, a dark and malevolent presence has awakened from a long slumber. It’s reaching out now, turning the townsfolk into mindless killers. Sheathed in shadows, vulnerable only to light, they are Taken. Wake’s journey will lead him to the very edge of madness, and deep within the dark woods, he will come face-to-face with a story he has no recollection of ever writing.
God of War
Author: Matthew Stover and Robert E. Vardeman
Publisher: Del Rey
ISBN: 978-0345508676
Released: May 25, 2010God of War
A brutal warrior, Kratos is a slave to the gods of Olympus. Plagued by the nightmares of his past and yearning for freedom, the Ghost of Sparta would do anything to be free of his debt to the gods. He is on the verge of losing all hope when the gods give him one last task to end his servitude.
He must destroy Ares, the god of war.
But what chance does a mere mortal have against a god? Armed with the deadly chained Blades of Chaos, guided by the goddess Athena, and driven by his own insatiable thirst for vengeance, Kratos seeks the only relic powerful enough to slay Ares . . . a quest that will take him deep into the mysterious temple borne by the Titan Cronos!
June 2010
Mass Effect Volume 1: Redemption
Author: Mac Walters, lead writer Mass Effect 2
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
ISBN: 978-1595824813
Released: June 2, 2010Mass Effect Volume 1: Redemption
The eagerly anticipated sequel to the blockbuster science-fiction epic IGN.com named the #1 Xbox 360 game of all time, Mass Effect 2 begins with the disappearance of Commander Shepard. The story of what happens next-exclusive to this graphic novel-will have the commander’s companion Dr. Liara T’Soni undertake a deadly mission of extraordinary importance in the Milky Way’s lawless Terminus Systems.
Mass Effect Volume 1 features essential developments in the Mass Effect gaming saga, plus a special behind-the-scenes section with sketches and more.
Gears of War: Book One
Author: Joshua Ortega and Liam Sharp
Publisher: WildStorm
ISBN: 978-1401225414
Released: June 15, 2010Gears of War: Book One
The best-selling video game franchise arrives with a blast! This story bridges the gap between the Lightmass Bombing at the end of the first Gears of War game and the start of the second game. Follow the brutal adventures of Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad in their battle against the Locust in this new softcover collection of GEARS OF WAR #1-6!
July 2010
Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance
Author: Sean Williams
Publisher: LucasBooks
ISBN: 978-0345511324
Released: July 20, 2010Star Wars: The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance
Tassaa Bareesh, a matriarch in the Hutt crime cartel, is holding an auction that’s drawing attention from across the galaxy. Representatives of both the Republic and the Sith Empire are present, along with a Jedi Padawan sent to investigate, a disenfranchised trooper drummed out of the Republic’s elite Blackstar Squad, and a mysterious Mandalorian with a private agenda. But the Republic’s envoy is not what he seems, the Empire’s delegate is a ruthless Sith apprentice, the Jedi Padawan is determined to do the right thing and terrified that he can’t, the trooper hopes to redeem her reputation, and the Mandalorian is somehow managing to keep one step ahead of everyone.
None of these guests—invited or uninvited—have any intention of participating in the auction. Instead they plan to steal the prize, which is locked inside an impregnable vault: two burned chunks of an exploded star cruiser, one of which may hold the key to the wealth of an entire world.
But the truth about the treasure is dangerous and deadly. And in the end, Sith and Jedi, Republic and Empire, must do something they’ve never done before, something that all the agents of good and evil could never make them do: join together to stop a powerful threat that could destroy the galaxy.
Dead Space: Martyr
Author: B. K. Evenson
Publisher: Tor Books
ISBN: 978-0765325037
Released: July 20, 2010Dead Space: Martyr
Tor is proud to launch the first novel in this amazingly imaginative and thought provoking video game universe that looks deep into the origins of humanity and of a vast onslaught of horrifying creatures known as necromorphs…”The Church of Unitology” begins with Michael Altman, a geophysicist who discovered a mysterious signal emitting from deep within the Chicxulub crater. He and his girlfriend Ada lead an excavation team to the underwater crater, determined to find the source of the baffling message. But what they discover possessed a mysterious power. Close proximity to the stone caused strange occurrences: visions of the dead, vivid dreams, and violent murders. When Michael secretly obtains a small piece of the marker, he brings these visions to the world above. One message from the Marker was clear: Prove yourself worthy of eternal life, or the slate will be wiped clean on Earth. This is how the “Dead Space” mythos all began – how one man’s discovery formed the foundations of an unfathomable future.
Mass Effect: Retribution
Author: Drew Karpyshyn
Publisher: Del Rey
ISBN: 978-0345520722
Released: July 27, 2010Mass Effect: Retribution
The Illusive Man, leader of the pro-human black ops group Cerberus, is one of the few who know the truth about the Reapers. To ensure humanity’s survival, he launches a desperate plan to uncover the enemy’s strengths—and weaknesses—by studying someone implanted with modified Reaper technology. He knows the perfect subject for his horrific experiments: former Cerberus operative Paul Grayson, who wrested his daughter from the cabal’s control with the help of Ascension project director Kahlee Sanders.
But when Kahlee learns that Grayson is missing, she turns to the only person she can trust: Alliance war hero Captain David Anderson. Together they set out to find the secret Cerberus facility where Grayson is being held. But they aren’t the only ones after him. And time is running out.
August 2010
Mogworld
Author: Yahtzee Croshaw
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
ISBN: 978-1595825292
Released: August 2, 2010Mogworld
In a world full to bursting with would-be heroes, Jim couldn’t be less interested in saving the day. His fireballs fizzle. He’s awfully grumpy. Plus, he’s been dead for about sixty years. When a renegade necromancer wrenches him from eternal slumber and into a world gone terribly, bizarrely wrong, all Jim wants is to find a way to die properly, once and for all.
On his side, he’s got a few shambling corpses, an inept thief, and a powerful death wish. But he’s up against tough odds: angry mobs of adventurers, a body falling apart at the seams and a team of programmers racing a deadline to hammer out the last few bugs in their AI.
Mogworld is the debut novel from video-game icon Yahtzee Croshaw (Zero Punctuation). Mogworld is a comic fantasy novel in the tradition of Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett, with a video-game twist: the main character is a minor character in a massively multiplayer online role-playing game.
Gears of War: Anvil Gate
Author: Karen Traviss
Publisher: Del Rey
ISBN: 978-0345499455
Released: August 31, 2010Gears of War: Anvil Gate
With the Locust Horde apparently destroyed, Jacinto’s survivors have begun to rebuild human society on their island stronghold. Raiding pirate gangs take a toll – but it’s nothing that Marcus Fenix and the Gears can’t handle. Then the terrifying life-forms they thought they’d left behind – the Lambent, creatures even the Locust feared – begin to advance across the planet. Gears and gangs must fight side by side to stop their deadliest enemy yet, falling back on the savage tactics of another bloody siege: Anvil Gate.