LitRPG Podcast 075
LitRPG Podcast 075
October 27th, 2017
Hello everyone, welcome to episode 75 of the LitRPG podcast.
I’m Ramon Mejia. I’m here to bring you the latest LitRPG news, reviews, and author interviews. This week I have 10 new LitRPG reviews for you.
Before we begin I want to give a shout out to Matt Ryan who became a Patreon Supporter. He’s decided to give $6/month to help support the podcast. Also, Tanya Rochester is great, she has donated $1/month via PayPal. Which I didn’t know you could actually do. Still, both amazing supporters. Thank you!
New Releases and Reviews:
The Wizard (Dungeon Core Book 1) (08:27)
The Void: Alpha Source (10:12)
Nemesis: The Panguardia Online Saga Book 1 (48:18)
(Play Music 2)
LitRPG News
There's a countdown deal going for Unbound Deathlord: Challenge on both the US and UK stores! $1.99
The omnibus edition of the first 3 Omegaverse novels is available on Amazon via a count-down deal starting today! (10/26/17)
Gabriel Rathweg, the author of the Eyrth Online series, is having a sale on his the latest novel in his series this weekend. 50% of the proceeds are going to go to support hurricane relief efforts in Puerto Rico.
Eyrth Online: Episode 5: TMOLW: The Memoirs of Lawrence Wrath (5th Playlist)
Out Now!
Nascent (The Stork Tower Book 1)
Gamer Guy II-Going Rogue: A LitRPG Novel (Gamer Guy Series Book 2)
Redeemer of the Dead: A LitRPG Apocalypse (The System Apocalypse Book 2)
*Sequel to Life In the North
The Pantheon Moves (Emerilia Book 10)
Eyrth Online: Episode 5: TMOLW: The Memoirs of Lawrence Wrath (5th Playlist)
Witch Doctor: A LitRPG Short Story
The Builder's Wrath (The Legendary Builder Book 4)
Camelot Dungeon: An Arthurian LitRPG
New LitRPG Audiobooks
The Dungeon’s Child: Slime Dungeon Chronicles Series, Book 3
Escape from Hell: A LITRPG Adventure: Kingdom of Heaven, Book 2
The Land: Swarm: Chaos Seeds, Book 5
Upcoming LitRPG:
Liar King (Tower of Babel Book 2) (Oct. 28th, 2017)
*Sequel to Speedrunner*
Awaken Online: Retribution (Side Quest) (Oct. 31st, 2017)
Beginner's Luck (Character Development Book 1)
(Oct. 31st, 2017)
*Author Interview with Aaron, which will be available on 10/31 when the book comes out.
Underworld - Level up or Die! (Nov. 6th)
Desert Born (Puatera Online Book 2) (Nov. 8th, 2017)
Dungeon Calamity (The Divine Dungeon Book 3) (Nov. 15th, 2017)
Shattered Lands 3 Demon Wars: A LitRPG Series (Nov. 16th, 2017)
The Airship: A Futuristic Dungeon Core (The Laboratory Book 2) (Nov. 17th, 2017)
The Land: Predators (Chaos Seeds: Book 7) (Nov. 19th, 2017)
Eden's Gate: The Sands: A LitRPG Adventure (Nov. 22nd, 2017)
Infinite Assassins: Daggerland Online Novel 2 A LITRPG Adventure (Nov. 30th, 2017)
Emerilia Book 11 (Nov. ??, 2017)
The Twilight Obelisk (Mirror World Book #4) (Dec. 4th, 2017)
Desert Storm (Puatera Online Book 3) (Dec. 13th, 2017)
The Reapers (The Neuro Book #3) LitRPG Series (Jan. 24th, 2018)
Onto New Releases and Reviews
(Play Music 3)
New Releases and Reviews
(Picture 1)
I decided I’m just going to knock out all the stories that aren’t LitRPG at the beginning of the program this week.
The Wizard (Dungeon Core Book 1)
My Opinion: 246 pages, $4.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
Not LitRPG. It is a dungeon story, eventually. About 25% into it you get some dungeon master stuff. But the story is straight fantasy. No game mechanics or any kind of progression system. Instead everything done by the dungeon is just explained away by ‘magic’ with no explanation of how it works.
Only something like 30% is actually about a dungeon and even then it’s not a great dungeon master story. The Divine Dungeon, Slime Dungeon Chronicles, A Futuristic Dungeon Core. All much better dungeon master stories.
No review score since the novel doesn’t claim to be a LitRPG story, instead saying it was inspired by old school RPGs.
The Wizard (Dungeon Core Book 1)
My Opinion: 151 pages, $2.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
-Author of Soul Linked Origin and the World at War Online series
No game RPG mechanics, not LitRPG. Story set in a virtual sci fi universe where people have uploaded their minds for a kind of immortality. The only game mechanic is the respawn system. Everything else is straight cyberpunk sci fi.
You could have gotten to the same place with mind uploads and clones like Takeshi Kovac in Altered Carbon.
No bad score. Not advertising as LitRPG. Just showing up in LitRPG search results on amazon.
The LitRPG series that will make you scratch your head, then say “this is awesome!”
The year 2067: Obesity becomes the #1 killer of humanity. People are dying younger than ever, and doctors are powerless to stop the pandemic. The only salvation is an experimental treatment—a virtual RPG called Moderation Online, where patients live in a fantasy kingdom with vegetable NPCs that subconsciously teach humans how to make better choices in life.
Kendall Barnes is the newest entrant in this idyllic world. African-American, obese, diabetic, and a survivor of a heart attack, the game is his last chance at a normal life.
But as doctors download him into the game, hackers inject a virus into the world—an evil civilization of processed foods whose sole goal is to destroy everything in the game by brainwashing humans and slaughtering vegetables. Kendall falls under their spell.
When game developers introduce a patch to challenge the virus—a group of terrorist vegetables who fight back against the processed foods—Kendall finds himself in the middle of an epic food fight when the vegetables take him hostage. But he questions everything when he discovers that maybe the vegetables aren’t the bad guys after all.
Food City is the first book in Michael La Ronn’s Moderation Online LitRPG series, inspired by Final Fantasy and JRPGs. With a fast-paced story, fun characters, and lots of action, Moderation Online is mouthwateringly cool.
My Opinion: 225 pages, $2.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
The author is upfront about this novel not having RPG mechanics, or game mechanics in the front of the novel. Which means it’s not LitRPG, which is unfortunate because this could be a weird gem otherwise. There are plenty of places where levels, XP, and vegetable power ups could have made this a LitRPG. The author even says he was inspired by Final Fantasy and JRPGs which I could sort of see story wise but definitely not game mechanics wise, since there aren't any.
The story is neat and combines VR therapy with the fight against obesity and over lifestyle diseases related to bad food choices. I can certainly appreciate where this story came from in the authors life and he explains it at the end of the novel. Anthropomorphised Veggies versus Junk Food in a kind of food class warfare. Still not LitRPG though.
Score: 4 out of 10
Food City (Moderation Online Book 1)
--Actual LitRPG stories ---
Fantasy Online Polynya: A LitRPG Saga
The Mitherfickers are back and ready to bring the fight to the Shinigami.
But before they can do that, they need an audience with the Knights of Non Compos Mentis, the most powerful guild in Tritania. Luckily for them, Ryuk used to be a member of the famed guild, and to get to the guild headquarters, they’ll need to level up and figure out a way into a city heightened tight security.
Along their journey to Polynya, the second floating continent of Tritania, the Mitherfickers are joined by a high elf, whose village is being terrorized by a big bad wolf.
High jinks and violence ensues as they attempt to rid the village of this wolf, the results of which end up opening their guild to new members from a different Proxima world, something Hiccup the goblin isn’t too happy about.
Things heat up after the motley guild adventure through the catacombs beneath the city of Porthos, where they are framed for attempted murder and placed in the Empress’ dungeon. With no way out, one of the Mitherfickers reveals a secret the likes of which will change the guild’s standing in Tritania forever.
In Tokyo, evil Kodai gets a new android and plans his revenge against his younger brother, Ryuk. He also plots his revenge within the online world of Tritania, guiding the new members of the Shinigami as they wreak havoc on the city of Porthos.
Level up, recruit, loot and scoot. Fantasy Online Polynya has all the comedy, mayhem, intrigue, crazy fun characters, and epic world-building you've come to expect from this popular LitRPG series!
My Opinion: 422 pages, $5.98, Available on Kindle Unlimited
An easy review. This novel is as entertaining, funny, and action packed as the first. With the group reeling at sudden and unexpected betrayal at the end of book 1. Ryuk his team mates work to get to the next island Polynya and try to figure out what’s happening with the main character’s doppelganger. If you liked book 1, book 2 has more of the same crazy antics.
I will note that I really like the audiobook version of this series more than the e-book version. The narrator, Jeff Hays, adds another level of humor with his voice work.
Score: 7 out of 10
Fantasy Online Polynya: A LitRPG Saga
Accidental Warrior: A LitRPG Accidental Traveler Adventure
An Old Friend in Need, A Fantasy Game World, and a Reluctant Hero
Hal Dix had success at home after his initial outing into the world of Fantasma. He leveled up in both his job and at home. Everything was going fine in his life.
Then, the mage Tildi, the Elder showed up again with news from the other world. His friend was in trouble and only he could help. Hal didn’t want to be a hero, but he wasn’t the sort of fellow to leave a comrade behind.
Whisked away to the game world of Fantasma once again, Hal enters the role of the reluctant hero he thought he’d left behind.
My Opinion: 347 pages, $4.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
This is a streamlined version of book 1, The Accidental Thief. It hits most of the same plot points, just more efficiently. Instead of a long intro and setup the author has the main character in the fantasy world by the 7% mark and on the road to adventure by the 14% mark.
The main character is reset on both a personal level and game level. Once he’s summoned back to the fantasy world, he loses access to all the power he gained as a master thief and instead starts over as with the warrior class. I assume the same will happen with book 3 when he becomes an accidental mage.
It’s not a bad story or anything, it just hits a lot of the same notes as book 1. If you liked that book you’ll like this one and you might even like it more. I did.
Score: 7 out of 10
Accidental Warrior: A LitRPG Accidental Traveler Adventure
The Greystone Chronicles: Book One: Io Online
In the latter half of the 21st century, Alexander and his guild mates play Io Online for fun and to earn a living. It’s the largest VRMMORPG on the planet, and the source of income that supports families around the globe. While completing a rare “First Kill” dungeon in hopes of epic loot, they discover that demons, who have not been seen in the realm for ages, have once again invaded Io.
Given the chance to test a new experimental immersion system, the friends must give up their high level characters and begin again at level one. As they work through the noob zone quests, they discover that the new immersion system allows them to play in ways that hadn’t been possible before. Casting is faster. Movement more fluid. Even magic itself behaves differently.
They quickly run afoul of a party of player killers, and become the targets of an entire PK guild bent on spawn camping them until they leave the game. War has been declared.
The fight expands into populated areas, where innocent citizens are murdered, and player accounts are terminated. The guild works to help citizens rebuild what has been destroyed, but are repeatedly forced to stop and defend against enemy attacks.
After the gods of Io and a powerful being of darkness get involved, Alexander and his friends learn the hard way that their in-game actions have consequences, both in the game, and in the real world.
My Opinion: 650 pages, $2.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
*Full disclosure got advanced review copy, I bought the novel as soon as it became available.
Additionally, the author is a Patreon Supporter for the podcast. I’d honestly forgotten he was until I was posting an episode of the podcast. It’s one of those cases of a LitRPG fan becoming a LitRPG author. His Patreon support has no bearing on the review. If the novel sucked I’d still say so.
-As a matter of fact an author once tried to buy a good review from me by becoming a Patreon Supporter and I had to ban the guy.*
The authors debut novel is entertaining but has some issues that slow the story down sometimes.
The story starts off in an action scene with the main character (MC), Alexander, playing the world’s most popular VRMMO with his three friends. The author does a good job of introducing RPG mechanics from the very first pages of the novel. From there novel spends the first 25% of the novel developing real world backstory, world building, planting story threads, and justifying why the MC and his friends will be spending the rest of the novel in game, long term.
From the 25% on, the majority of the story takes place in-game with only occasional drops back into the real world. The MC and his friends go on adventures, use their new full immersion rigs to develop some great skills in game, and use intelligent tactics to beat foes both PK and NPC. In addition to dungeon diving, there’s a little crafting, town building, magical theory, and PVP action.
One of the true highlights of the novel are the combat scene. They’re particularly interesting, not because they’re visceral, but because the author describes some truly great tactics. The MC and his group take on opponents consistently higher level than themselves, but instead of using some ‘magic sword of unbeatableness’ they instead combine their skills in intelligent ways to create powerful combos. This intelligent exploitation of game mechanics reminds me of the magic and combat system of Divinity Original Sin, where combining different magical abilities creates effects more powerful than their individual parts.
There are also some very very funny scenes. I won’t spoil them but who knew rabbits could be so vicious and simultaneously funny. I’m also a huge fan of the funny character Fibble and only wish he’s been introduced sooner in the novel. Pew Pew.
However, not everything in the novel is perfect. Which is to be expected of a first novel. This is a monster of a story. Over 650 pages. When faced with a novel that big, it’s sheer size can be intimidating. There are also a number of scenes in the story that are quite simply unnecessary. I’m not saying they’re poorly written or uninteresting, they just don’t move the plot forward and instead slow the story down.
Two examples.
Midstory, the novel cuts away from the story to a historical recounting of making real world money from playing MMOs. The author describes gold farming, various ways players sell gear, power level other players characters, and a slew of other similar options. He then goes on to describe the way game companies have dealt with these practices and forced them into the black market and how this game company decided to allow players to make real world money apart of their game. There are even math models described. Really interesting stuff but it also takes up 3% of the novel or 18 pages of the story.
Another example of this are the many small scenes where there is character development for NPC character instead of the main characters. There’s an early scene with a head guard and his alchemist wife that is the earliest example of this. But a better example happens later in the story when the King, for no apparent reason, decides to visit a town the MC and his friends are helping to rebuild. It’s a cute scene that shows exactly how great a king he his and how much he cares about the wellbeing of his people. But it also takes up another 3% of the novel or 18 pages. There’s not that much story devoted to some of the main characters in the story, so why spend it on a side character?
There are more examples but in total I marked an easy 100 pages that could have been edited out to improve the pacing of the story and get to the great action or humor scenes.
Overall, this is a good story and even the things I mentioned aren’t complaints as much as they are things I thought could be improved. There are lots of things I enjoyed about the story. Some very funny scenes. Good intelligent fights. Good characters.
Score: 7 out of 10
The Greystone Chronicles: Book One: Io Online
Sphiel's Song (A LitRPG Virtual Fantasy Adventure)
Three years ago, a bright and vibrant Mandy Sutherland looked forward to life – ready to take on the world after graduating high school with top honors and gaining acceptance to a great college. However, on graduation night, the world went hazy and she passed out. After awakening in a hospital, doctors told her that she had a severe medical condition that would render her unable to function in social situations.
Now, she lives secluded in her room, looked after by her little sister, Natalie, and her father. Although working with her psychiatrist, Dr. Braun, to combat her severe anxiety, time has produced no breakthroughs. During one of their online sessions, Dr. Braun suggests an experimental type of therapy – using Virtual Reality to simulate social situations. Seeing no other options, Mandy agrees.
Mandy finds she can function in “Unexplored”, a fantasy VRMMORPG, where she takes on the role of Sphiel, a beautiful elf woman living in the Wilderwood. During her adventures, she makes friends, uncovers mystical secrets, and combats great enemies. However, even as she grows, she wonders if she can face her greatest enemy of all – herself.
Warning: This book contains erotic content. Reader discretion is advised.
My Opinion: 273 pages, $2.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
*This novel contains graphic sex scenes*
A stand alone story in the Unexplored universe.
Mandy has a phobia about leaving her house after a sudden panic attack when she graduated high school. Three years later she’s still visiting a psychologist, who tries to help her. Suggests using VR as a way to train her brain that going outside is ok.
--
Definitely my least favorite in the series. The idea of using VR as a type of therapy is neat. But that’s not what this ends up being.
There’s no therapy. Just a woman that logs into Unexplored, kills a bunch of goblins, and other monster. The sex really seems out of place in this one too. Especially if all this is supposed to be in the name of therapy.
The action in the story isn’t bad. It’s just that, aside from the premise, I feel like I’ve read this story from the author before. Person had issue, goes into game and issue is solved through adventuring and sex.
Additionally, part of my dissatisfaction with the story is likely due to comparison to another LitRPG story that has VR therapy in it too. Continue Online. That series is very different from this one but does the VR therapy thing a lot better.
Score: 5 out of 10
Sphiel's Song (A LitRPG Virtual Fantasy Adventure)
In the real world, it’s 2027 and disgruntled, lone-wolf data analyst Adam Harker works for a corporation he hates.
In this dystopian future many seek to lose themselves in virtual reality games, but Adam is dead set against playing Darkworlds, designed by mega-corporation Miskatonic Games, until he's tempted by two quite different people for two wholly different reasons.
In the game, it's 1927 and Adam Harker is in London battling against the minions of Cthulhu, but then come hints and suggestions that something else stirs, something wicked and secret, something new, rising up and replicating itself within the code and taking on the form of ageless evil.
Hidden knowledge leads Adam through a series of terrifying revelations as he searches from London to Glastonbury and into the Dreamlands.
Join Adam as he fights to save his friends, and maybe even the world itself, from the horrors that lurk in the game.
Download Darkworlds London for the first episode in this exciting LitRPG world.
My Opinion: 348 pages, $2.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
The cover art for this novel does not do it justice. I’ve read a few LitRG stories that attempt to combine a period piece setting and/or use a Lovecraft theme. This is the best one that I’ve read so far.
The game mechanics aren’t hidden, rather both the reader and player learn about them in the first few pages of the story. Specific stats like health and mana are there but so are Lovecraft game ones like sanity and reputation. Additionally, the story takes a note out of tabletop experiences and part of character creation involves creating a backstory for your character that determines the type of profession the character can have. Trainable skills provide a wide variety of character builds as the characters gain levels and skill points to spend. You can have a priest with healing powers and gun specialization or a Private Eye with a knowledge of ancient artifacts and german. The combos are endless.
Whenever you write in a specific time period your risk losing the interest of anyone not into that time period. Thankfully, there are more than enough supernatural elements in the story to make this feel like a 1920’s London urban fantasy vibe. The Lovecraft elements are there in spades and even bleed into the real life parts of the story.
The real life parts of the story are the least interesting part of the novel but that doesn’t mean they’re boring. That part is set in 2027 London and there are themes of dystopian corporate exploitation as what happens in the game effects real life, including death and loss of sanity.
Overall, a really good story that does a great job incorporating game mechanics into a creepy Lovecraft story.
Score: 7 out of 10
Darkworlds London: A Cthulhu LitRPG
Large chests are said to encompass all manner of hopes and dreams. Men covet them. Women envy them. But one fact holds true - everyone wants to get their hands on some big ones.
The same holds true for one intrepid adventurer - a strapping young lad by the name of Himmel. Armed with his grandfather’s trusty longsword and the dream of being the strongest, he sets out on the journey of a lifetime! It is sure to be a long and dangerous road, fraught with danger! And it all starts with a simple test - reach Level 5 in the dungeon called the ‘newbie zone’ and earn the right to become a full-fledged adventurer!
However, such things get hopelessly derailed when his adolescent mind beholds an exposed chest for the first time. A fateful meeting that would inevitably lead his life in a direction he never even dreamed of!
Content warning: Profanity, Gore, Sexual Themes
My Opinion: 251 pages, $3.99, Not Available on Kindle Unlimited
Full disclosure: The author sent me an advanced copy for review. I’ve already pre-ordered the published version.
Originally written on the Royal Road, this fan favorite is now available as a full e-book. The author notes that e-book version has the first 3 arcs of the series, cleaned up grammar and spelling errors, and the lewd scenes were toned down.
This one seems to be controversial. People either love this story or hate it. It’s a story told from the monster's perspective. The monster in this instance being a mimic imitating a treasure chest. Follow his adventures as he lives in his dungeon, kills adventurers, and levels up. There’s lots of sexual innuendo but little actual sexual content which can be found at the 46%, 58%, and 63% marks. In total it’s only really a handful of sentences and is easy to skip over.
For me, it was entertaining to read about a monster leveling up and gaining new skills/powers by munching on some adventurers.
Score: 7 out of 10
Morningwood: Everybody Loves Large Chests (Vol.1)
Nemesis: The Panguardia Online Saga Book 1
Nemesis: The Panguardia Online Saga Book 1
With a deadly asteroid about to implode into earth, Ruth has a chance to live forever in an online world.
Ruth Everett was a thirty-five-year-old high-school teacher living in a tiny apartment in Houston, Texas. On August 14, 2027, news leaked that an asteroid, large enough to destroy all forms of lie on Earth, was hurtling towards the planet. There would be few survivors— if any.
Ruth finds herself trapped in a brand-new epic fantasy based VRMMORPG, Panguardia Online, fighting the same evils she faced on Earth— Corrupt government leaders, vicious drug cartel members, the elite with more money than brains, along with new foes— cutthroat players, vile mobs, vicious dungeons, and unreal artificial intelligence. Ruth quickly uncovers a conspiracy theory, linking the CEO of Pangen technologies to shady, underhanded business— if she doesn’t stop him, who will?
My Opinion: 318 pages, $1.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
Full disclosure: The author sent me an advanced copy for review.
Before this novel even came out it already had a negative reputation because of the original novel description matched one for another LitRPG novel, Viridian Gate Online, to a startling degree. The author has since changed the description of both this novel and the next one in the series.
However, people had some concerns whether this novel is plagiarizing Viridian Gate Online: Cataclysm (VGO). So, I did something I don’t normally do. I asked the author for an advanced review copy. She sent it to me about a week before the novel was scheduled to be released.
I went into this review trying to be fair and I truly hoped the novel was only inspired by VGO. But from the first page you can see the similarities to that story.
Let me be clear, this is not word for word copy. The author carefully re-words each sentence, likely to avoid setting off automated plagiarism checkers. She changes everyone's name and often their gender. But all the plot points in the story are the same. Paragraph by paragraph the same ideas are conveyed. Even the jokes are copied.
There are a few places early in the story that are exceptions. The character creation section (6.62-8.27%) has race selections that bear only peripheral similarities to VGO and there are character sheets included for each race.
Another exception is a scene from 10.4-12.6% mark, which is instead a rip from Ascend Online (4% mark of that story). After character creation the main character (MC), is dropped in game and finds herself immediately fighting off a green monster. She’s then given a quest to defend a town from more green monsters. Shortly after she is knocked out and wakes up in a prison putting the story back on track with VGO where the MC escapes thanks to a thief character that becomes her NPC companion.
From there on the story is a paragraph by paragraph re-worded copy of Viridian Gate Online: Cataclysm. Here are a few examples of how the author changed proper names, re-worded sentences but kept the same ideas and plot points. These are just samples but just about every paragraph of the entire novel is like this.
---
VGO 14% --Awakens the Shadow Spark
“My time is short,” the old woman rasped, blinking her eyes open, complete exhaustion evident in every line of her frail body. “But let me offer you one more parting gift—a final thanks for your mercy. Within you, boy, is the Shadow-Spark.”
Her hand lashed out, uncannily quick, and latched onto my arm. “I’ll awaken it inside of you.” Her fingers pressed down into my skin like drill bits, her flesh growing cool, then downright cold. Arctic, even. Icy power soaked through my skin, into my bones, and spread through my body like wildfire. Running along my nerve endings, my body shivering, my teeth clattering in response.
Nemesis 20.4% -- Awakens her Flow
“My time has come,” the Feralmancer gasped, opening her eyes. “Let me leave you with one more thing, you will need it to reach Septemvittata. A final gift for your aid, inside of you is a touch of the Flow.” She jolted to the side.
She reached out firmly grasped both of my wrists. “I will awaken the Flow inside of you.” She raked her nails across the skin on my left wrist. The wound was immediately filled with heat, fire that seeping through my skin into my veins, into my bones, and spreading rampant through my body.
---
VGO 29% A talking Tree
The tree, labeled as a [Hamadryad], had a face on it. And not just some crude picture carved into the bark. No, an actual face protruded from the white bark: a bulbous nose of knotted wood, deep-set chestnut-brown eyes, a thin gash of a mouth framed by mossy facial hair. “You make me sick, all of you,” the tree bellowed in an earthy voice. “Why can’t you leave my forest in peace!” His mossy beard fluttered as he hollered. “You come in here and spread your rot around, corrupt my brothers with your presence. A pox on you, on all of you.”
Nemesis 38.47% A talking Cactus
The cactus, labeled as [Ancient Arbola], had a face. It was a real face like mine, protruding from its smooth green surface. It had bright yellow eyes, and a nose comprised from needles and large bright red lips. “You all make me sick,” the cactus bellowed in a low voice. “Leave my desert, leave me alone!” the Ancient Arbola yelled. “You come into my desert, spreading your disease to my brethren. Take your corrupt presence elsewhere! Go away you nasty vermin!”
---
VGO: 94% A god’s interest
“So how do I fit in?”
“You are a loophole. All players are. You can do what you want, shape and reshape the world according to the designs of your hearts, and Enyo is exploiting this loophole—she is using Robert Osmark and his pawns. They will be her weapon. And you and your friends? You will be mine. Initially, I planned for Abby to lead my forces. She was supposed to get the seal and use it to conquer Rowanheath, but things worked out differently than I imagined. Such is the reality of dealing with your kind. You ended up with the seal, and now you have an opportunity to use it.”
Nemesis 99% A different named god’s interest
“So, what do you think I can do?”
“You are the tipping point. All humans are. You do not have limits like we do, you can follow your hearts. Anya is exploiting Albert Pangen, using him and his supporters as weapons wielded against me. You, and your friends will be mine. Originally, I thought with Ryan’s knowledge of Panguardia that he would be the driving force behind my weapon, but things have taken a turn of their own. That is the nature of your being, and you have the Spirit Soul. You alone can seize the opportunity.”
---
Truly, if you’ve read Viridian Gate Online, you’ve read this novel. It astounds me how someone could do something like this. It took so much time and effort to reword things, it would have been easier to write another novel.
Score: 1 out of 10
Nemesis: The Panguardia Online Saga Book 1
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Music Credits
"Blip Stream" "Mighty Like Us" "Big Shift" "Vivacity"
Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/