Here’s a dose of nostalgia: four classic Fighting Fantasy gamebooks are now available in digital form on Switch, with more to come in future. Fighting Fantasy Classics Volume 1 collects The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, Citadel of Chaos, The Forest of Doom, and Starship Traveller, courtesy of Tin Man Games.
All four books have been adapted for Switch in the form of digital gamebooks – illustrated text-based adventures, with illustrations from the original books included and mechanisms for dice rolling, stat keeping, and mapping. In other words, these aren’t full-fledged adaptations like Tin Man Games’ excellent 2018 take on The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, but a digital reproduction of the original books.
To that end, you can read them “like an old-school cheater” in free read mode, save bookmarks to revisit sections, and enjoy classic, original artwork from Iain McCaig, Russ Nicholson, Malcolm Barter, Ian Miller and more. Digital benefits come in the form of an automated adventure sheet to keep track of stats and inventory, a map to keep track of where you’ve been across multiple playthroughs, and an atmospheric soundtrack. There’s also an art gallery, a History of Fighting Fantasy, and the Fighting Fantasy Rulebook included.
Fighting Fantasy Classics is already available on Steam and mobile platforms as a free app with books sold individually. For the Switch release, Tin Man Games are bundling them into volumes instead, with plans for future volumes to be announced at a later date. Here’s hoping future releases are DLC so you can have your whole collection on one digital bookshelf (as is the case with the Steam and mobile versions), and not a Capcom Arcade Stadium situation.
As for the four titles in the first collection, here’s an overview from Tin Man Games:
Book 1: Warlock of Firetop Mountain.
Part story, part game, in these adventures YOU ARE THE HEROYour 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?
Fighting Fantasy Classics Volume 1 is available now from the Switch eShop for NZD $24.95.
