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A Guide to Video Game Novels coming in 2011

H

Hellshadow

Member
I know some people roll their eyes when 'novels' are mentioned. But other people, such as myself, enjoy a decent novel to go with a game.
So here's what's coming later this year. (alot more than I thought)

icarus-effect.jpg

Deus Ex: Icarus Effect
Release Date: Out Now
Amazon
IT’S NOT THE END OF THE WORLD. BUT YOU CAN SEE IT FROM HERE.
In the near future, with physical augmentation gaining ground and nano-cybernetics only years away, the dawn of limitless human evolution is just beyond the horizon, and a secret corporate cabal of ruthless men intends to make sure that humankind stays under its control. But two people on opposite sides of the world are starting to ask questions that could get them killed.
Secret Service agent Anna Kelso has been suspended for investigating the shooting that claimed her partner’s life. Anna suspects that the head of a bio-augmentation firm was the real target, and against orders she’s turned up a few leads concerning a covert paramilitary force and a cadre of underground hackers. But the cover-up runs deep, and now there’s a target on her back. Meanwhile, Ben Saxon, former SAS officer turned mercenary, joins a shadowy special ops outfit. They say they’re a force for good, but Saxon quickly learns that the truth is not so clear-cut. So begins a dangerous quest to uncover a deadly secret that will take him from Moscow to London, D.C. to Geneva, and to the dark truth—if he lives that long.
The year is 2027; in a world consumed by chaos and conspiracy, two people are set on a collision course with the most powerful and dangerous organization in history—and the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.
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Crysis: Legion
Release Date: Out Now
Amazon
MANHATTAN IS UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT.
THEY’RE NOT FROM AROUND HERE.
Welcome to the Big Apple, son. Welcome to the city that never sleeps: invaded by monstrous fusions of meat and machinery, defended by a private army that makes Blackwater look like the Red Cross, ravaged by a disfiguring plague that gifts its victims with religious rapture while it eats them alive. You’ve been thrown into this meat grinder without warning, without preparation, without a clue.
Your whole squad was mowed down the moment they stepped onto the battlefield. And the chorus of voices whispering in your head keeps saying that all of this is on you: that you and you alone might be able to turn the whole thing around if you only knew what the hell was going on.
You’d like to help. Really you would. But it’s not just the aliens that are gunning for you. Your own kind hunts you as a traitor, and your job might be a bit easier if you didn’t have the sneaking suspicion they could be right. . . .
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Homefront: The Voice of Freedom
Release Date: Out Now
Amazon
HOME IS WHERE THE WAR IS
America may be reeling from endless recessions and crippling oil wars, but hack reporter Ben Walker never expected to see his homeland invaded and occupied by a reunified Korea—now a formidable world power under Kim Jong-il’s dictator son.
The enemy’s massive cyberattack is followed by the detonation of an electromagnetic pulse that destroys technology across the United States. Communications, weapons, and defense systems are rendered useless; thousands perish as vehicles suddenly lose power and passenger jets plummet to the ground.
Fleeing the chaos of Los Angeles, Walker discovers that although America’s military has been scattered, its fighting spirit remains. Walker joins the soldiers as they head east across the desert, battling Korean patrols—and soon finds his own mission. Walker reinvents himself as the Voice of Freedom, broadcasting information and enemy positions to civilian Resistance cells via guerrilla radio.
But Walker’s broadcasts have also reached the ears of the enemy. Korea dispatches its deadliest warrior to hunt the Voice of Freedom and crush the ever-growing Resistance before it can mount a new war for American liberty.
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collections-thegirl.jpg

L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories
Release Date: Out Now
Rockstar site
In honor of L.A. Noire, we are proud to announce a special collaboration with Mulholland Books and eight of the thriller genre's best writers, L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories - a brand new anthology of original short fiction inspired by the world of the game itself.
L.A. Noire: The Collected Stories features eight short stories from renowned authors Megan Abbott, Lawrence Block, Joe Lansdale, Joyce Carol Oates, Francine Prose, Jonathan Santlofer, Duane Swierczynski and Andrew Vachss, many of which revisit the characters and cases in the game, providing a new spin to tell the tales of emotionally torn protagonists, depraved schemers and ill-fated victims - with new stories appearing on the L.A. Noire official site leading up to and through the May 17th release of L.A. Noire. The complete collection will be made available for digital download on June 6th through all major eBook retailers.
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Assassin's Creed: The Secret Crusade
Release Date: Out Now
Amazon
After his family was betrayed and disgraced by the most powerful families in Italy, young Erazo chose the path of vengeance-and entered a world of mysticism and murder beyond anything he could have imagined. But his quest is far form over...
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Bioshock: Rapture
Release Date: July 19th
Amazon
It's the end of World War II. FDR's New Deal has redefined American politics. Taxes are at an all-time high. The bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has brought a fear of total annihilation. The rise of secret government agencies and sanctions on business has many watching their backs. America's sense of freedom is diminishing . . . and many are desperate to take there freedom back.
Among them is a great dreamer, an immigrant who pulled himself from the depths of poverty to become one of the wealthiest and admired men in the world. That man is Andrew Ryan, and he believed that great men and women deserve better. And so he set out to create the impossible, a utopia free from government, censorship, and moral restrictions on science--where what you give is what you get. He created Rapture---the shining city below the sea.
But as we all know, this utopia suffered a great tragedy. This is the story of how it all came to be . . .and how it all ended.
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Gears of War: Coalition's End
Release Date: Aug 2nd
Amazon
Understand what a world had to do to survive.
When the Locust Horde burst from the ground fifteen years ago to slaughter the human population of Sera, mankind began a desperate war against extinction. Now after a decade and a half of bloody fighting, and with billions dead, the survivors—the Gears of the Coalition of Ordered Governments, along with a small band of civilians—have been forced to destroy their own cities and sacrifice their entire civilization to halt the Locust advance.
The last-ditch measures have succeeded, but at an enormous cost: the survivors have been reduced to a handful of refugees.
Escaping to a haven on the remote island of Vectes, they begin the heartbreaking task of rebuilding their devastated world. For a while, there’s hope . . . making peace with old enemies, and once again planning for the future.
But the short respite is shattered when Vectes comes under siege from an even deadlier force than the Locust—the Lambent, a hideous and constantly mutating life-form that destroys everything in its path. As the Lambent’s relentless assault spreads from the mainland to the island, the refugees finally understand what drove the Locust from their underground warrens and sparked the global war.
While Marcus Fenix and the Gears struggle to hold back the invasion, the Coalition faces a stark choice—fight this new enemy to the last human, or flee to the wastelands to take their chances and live like the human pariahs known as the Stranded . . . even as Coalition chairman Richard Prescott still guards one last, terrible secret about the Locust, the Lambent, and the future of mankind. . . .
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51rjDkTxRGL_SL500_AA300_.jpg

The Elder Scrolls: Lord of Souls
Release Date: Sept 27th
Amazon
Forty years after the Oblivion crisis, the empire of Tamriel is threatened by a mysterious floating city, Umbriel, whose shadow spawns a terrifying undead army.
Reeling from a devastating discovery, Prince Attrebus continues on his seemingly doomed quest to obtain a magic sword that holds the key to destroying the deadly invaders. Meanwhile, in the Imperial City, the spy Colin finds evidence of betrayal at the heart of the empire—if his own heart doesn’t betray him first. And Annaïg, trapped in Umbriel itself, has become a slave to its dark lord and his insatiable hunger for souls.
How can these three unlikely heroes save Tamriel when they cannot even save themselves?
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Mass_Effect_Deception.png

Mass Effect: Deception
Release Date: Jan 31st 2012
Amazon
The universe is under siege. Every fifty thousand years, a race of sentient machines invades our galaxy to harvest all organic life-forms. They are the Reapers.
Two people who know the truth are desperately searching for a way to stop the cycle: Navy admiral David Anderson and his partner, Kahlee Sanders. They have uncovered grisly evidence proving that the Reaper threat is real. But in so doing they have exposed the machinations of Cerberus, a secretive paramilitary organization, and its mysterious leader, the Illusive Man—putting David and Kahlee in mortal danger, for Cerberus will stop at nothing to protect its secrets.
But along the way, they find an unlikely ally in Gillian Grayson, a young woman with extraordinary powers. Once the subject of horrifying scientific experiments, Gillian is now free—and beginning to master her deadly abilities. But after learning that Cerberus was responsible for the death of her father, Gillian swears vengeance against the group and the Illusive Man—threatening to unravel everything Kahlee and David are fighting for.
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51kUk-ydLL_SL500_AA300_.jpg

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth
Release Date: Oct. 4th
Amazon
In the ancient world there was a myth about a king, a treasure, and a hellish labyrinth. Now the doors to that hell are open once again.
Nathan Drake, treasure hunter and risk taker, has been called to New York City by the man who taught him everything about the “antiquities acquisition business.” Victor Sullivan needs Drake’s help. Sully’s old friend, a world-famous archaeologist, has just been found murdered in Manhattan. Dodging assassins, Drake, Sully, and the dead man’s daughter, Jada Hzujak, race from New York to underground excavations in Egypt and Greece. Their goal: to unravel an ancient myth of alchemy, look for three long-lost labyrinths, and find the astonishing discovery that got Jada’s father killed. It appears that a fourth labyrinth was built in another land and another culture—and within it lies a key to unmatched wealth and power. An army of terrifying lost warriors guards this underground maze. So does a monster. And what lies beyond—if Drake can live long enough to reach it—is both a treasure and a poison, a paradise and a hell.
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halo_cryptum_cover.jpg

Halo: Cryptum
Release Date: Out Now
Amazon
100,000 years ago, the galaxy was populated by a great variety of beings.
But one species--eons beyond all others in both technology and knowledge--achieved dominance.
They ruled in peace but met opposition with quick and brutal effectiveness.
They were the Forerunners--the keepers of the Mantle, the next stage of life in the Universe’s Living Time.
And then they vanished.
This is their story.
Bornstellar Makes Eternal Lasting is a young rebellious Forerunner. He is a Manipular, untried--yet to become part of the adult Forerunner society, where vast knowledge and duty waits. He comes from a family of Builders, the Forerunners’ highest and most politically powerful rate. It is the Builders who create the grand technology that facilitates Forerunner dominance over the known universe. It is the Builders who believe they must shoulder the greatest burden of the Mantle--as shepherds and guardians of all life.
Bornstellar is marked to become a great Builder just like his father.
But this Manipular has other plans.
He is obsessed with lost treasures of the past. His reckless passion to seek out the marvelous artifacts left behind by the Precursors--long-vanished superbeings of unknowable power and intent---forces his father’s hand.
Bornstellar is sent to live among the Miners, where he must come to terms with where his duty truly lies.
But powerful forces are at play. Forerunner society is at a major crux. Past threats are once again proving relentless. Dire solutions--machines and strategies never before contemplated--are being called up, and fissures in Forerunner power are leading to chaos.
On a Lifeworker’s experimental planet, Bornstellar’s rebellious course crosses the paths of two humans, and the long lifeline of a great military leader, forever changing Bornstellar’s destiny …and the fate of the entire galaxy.
This is a tale of life, death, intergalactic horror, exile, and maturity. It is a story of overwhelming change--and of human origins. For the Mantle may not lie upon the shoulders of Forerunners forever.
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HaloTheFallofReach.jpg

Halo: The Fall of Reach
Release Date: Out Now
Amazon

halo-glag7lk.jpg

Halo: Glasslands
Release Date: Oct. 25th
Amazon

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Rage
Release Date: Aug. 30th
Amazon
The asteroid Apophis has annihilated Earth, and only a small percentage of humanity’s best and brightest have been saved. Buried deep below the ground in life-sustaining Arks, these chosen few are tasked with one vital mission—to restore civilization to a devastated planet hundreds of years after the impact.
When Lieutenant Nick Raine emerges from his Ark, he finds a future indistinguishable from nightmare. Humankind has not been entirely destroyed on the surface world, and a primitive new society has emerged in which life is nasty, brutish, and short. Mutants and bandits prey upon the weak, and a mysterious military group known as the Authority preys upon everyone. Worst of all, a would-be tyrant seeks to impose his will upon the shattered planet. Armed with nothing more than his combat training and survival instincts, Raine must rise to meet the challenges of the wasteland.
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Resistance: A Hole in the Sky
Release Date: Aug. 2nd
Amazon
The official prequel to the blockbuster videogame Resistance 3
America. July 1953.
In this official prequel to Resistance 3, prospects are not looking up for planet Earth or Lieutenant Joseph Capelli. With the Chimera invasion in full swing, America has crumbled under the fierce alien juggernaut, its defenses overrun, millions dead, the rest left to fend for themselves. Many try to avoid the alien virus that turns humans into Chimeran killing machines.
Capelli may be a pariah to the army for killing hero Nathan Hale, but he is still a patriot fighting to save the country and its citizens. However, some soldiers are ready to shoot him on sight—not to mention that Hale’s beautiful sister has every reason in the world to want him stone dead. But Capelli’s used to being in dangerous situations and taking crazy risks. And the next move he intends to make is pure suicide.
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StarCraft: Ghost - Spectres
Release Date: Sept. 27th
Amazon
On the release of the electrifying StarCraft II, Nova--the elite stealth operative of the Terran Dominion's Ghost Program--returns in a new adventure.
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Star Wars: The Old Republic: Revan
Release Date: Nov. 15th
Amazon


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World of Warcraft: Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects
Release Date: July 19th
Amazon
In this follow-up to her New York Times bestseller, ARTHAS, and the forthcoming hardcover THE SHATTERING, Christie Golden delivers a sensational tie-in to the newest World of Warcraft game expansion.
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World of Warcraft: Wolfheart
Release Date: Sept. 13th
Amazon
 
B

bryehn

Member
Ohh, Elder Scorolls, I know what I'm getting my buddy for his birthday.

This will be the 4th ME book right? I don't think I ever read the 3rd. Also, did they ever put out MGS 2/3?
 
Q

Qwomo

Junior Member
Lord of Souls is only one of those that looks like a real book.

Although that LA Noire stuff actually looks really interesting.
 
L

Levi

Banned
I'm not a fan of the Gears of War "lore", but I am a fan of Karen Traviss and her previous two Gears books were pretty good.

I'm looking forward to the Uncharted book, as I am a fan of the storytelling in that series of games.

OP forgot the God of War novel, which has another of my favorite authors attached.
 
I

Ivan A Nguyen

Member
A mass effect novel that takes place during the reaper siege? Do wants.

I read a little bit more of the description and guess what, 'Super powerful Cerberus experiment gone wrong #XX30' makes an appearance. Now I'm much less interested. Also I found out it doesn't happen during the invasion of earth.
 
Y

yankeehater

Member
The Gears books have all been great cant wait for the next one. I also loved the last Mass Effect book so I will get the next one of those as well. I liked the first Resistance book but I am sad the new one doesnt pick up where it left off. I want more of Hale's stories dammit!
 
C

Calcaneus

Member
I would have been all over this years ago. I used to read a lot of game/tv/movie novels back in middle school and part of high school. Looking back, a lot of them weren't great, but I enjoyed them.
 
S

Salsa

Member
I cant even imagine a gears of war novel, are they .. good ?

"FFUCK HIT THAT MOTHERFUCKER DOM! DAYUMMMM" x100
 
G

Grisby

Member
Good idea for a thread OP. I'm into the Gears and Mass Effect novels myself.

I'll be checking out that Deus Ex one too.

Honestly, these novels probably couldn't stand on their own with stable legs. However, in a lot of cases they supplements the games there based on, sometimes adding elements of immersion and atmosphere that might not be present in the digital counter-part.

They're just fun.
 
N

Neuromancer

Member
I'm currently reading Crysis Legion.

For all those who complained about the main character not talking in the game: once you see what an asshole/idiot he is in the novel, you'll be thanking your lucky stars.

Aside from that it's not been that bad, some dialogue was lifted directly from the game which is cool.

Also OP, Halo: Cryptum came out earlier this year.
 
T

thetrin

Hail, peons, for I have come as ambassador from the great and bountiful Blueberry Butt Explosion
Emonga said:
What is the first rule of judging books?
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I think his point was that it's the only one that looks like it's not based on an existing gaming property (even though it is).

Neuromancer said:
I'm currently reading Crysis Legion.

For all those who complained about the main character not talking in the game: once you see what an asshole/idiot he is in the novel, you'll be thanking your lucky stars.

Aside from that it's not been that bad, some dialogue was lifted directly from the game which is cool.

Also OP, Halo: Cryptum came out this year.
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So is Legion basically a retelling of Crysis 2, or is it set afterwards?

SalsaShark said:
I cant even imagine a gears of war novel, are they .. good ?

"FFUCK HIT THAT MOTHERFUCKER DOM! DAYUMMMM" x100
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Considering I constantly want to shoot myself in the head when Gears of War is doing something besides letting me kill gross looking aliens, I can't imagine it being reminiscent of Tolstoy or something.
 
T

thetrin

Hail, peons, for I have come as ambassador from the great and bountiful Blueberry Butt Explosion
Neuromancer said:
That's exactly what it is. The book is narrated by the main character, Alcatraz.
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I don't know why they feel a desire to do this. I enjoy books like First Strike and Fall of Reach far more than novel retellings of events I've already experienced.
 
N

Neuromancer

Member
thetrin said:
I don't know why they feel a desire to do this. I enjoy books like First Strike and Fall of Reach far more than novel retellings of events I've already experienced.
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Yeah I don't know. Like I said it's not bad but maybe it might have been interesting to go into the events between Crysis 1 and 2 and what Prophet was up to that whole time.
 
H

HamPster PamPster

Member
thetrin said:
I don't know why they feel a desire to do this. I enjoy books like First Strike and Fall of Reach far more than novel retellings of events I've already experienced.
Click to expand...

The Assassins Creed ones are even worse (IMO) because they just retell the game's story, but cut out all the future stuff which seems to be the most interesting part of the series. I might be wrong though since its been awhile since I looked into them

This new one looks like an original story though since there was already a Brotherhood book and its coming out too early for the new one.
 
D

Doodis

Member
Grisby said:
They're just fun.
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Agreed. Are these books literary classics? No, but it's fun to get more context into a universe you're already interested in because of the games.
 
S

ShaneB

Member
I misread the title as "A Guide To Video Game Novels" coming in 2011, ie, a book talking about video game novels, and story, lore, etc. Hell I'd read that.

Anyways, Maybe I'll pick up the Mass Effect book, have enjoyed the others.
 
N

Neuromancer

Member
ShaneB said:
I misread the title as "A Guide To Video Game Novels" coming in 2011, ie, a book talking about video game novels, and story, lore, etc. Hell I'd read that.

Anyways, Maybe I'll pick up the Mass Effect book, have enjoyed the others.
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I'm not going to lie, I did too.
 
K

Kyleripman

Member
Looking forward to the Uncharted book, but not really any of the others (though that's probably because I don't care for any of those other games).
 
S

SuperSonic1305

Member
I've read the first Halo novel, all three Mass Effect Novels, War of the Ancients trilogy, and am currently reading the first Dragon Age novel. I really enjoyed all of them so far.
 
G

Grisby

Member
SalsaShark said:
I cant even imagine a gears of war novel, are they .. good ?

"FFUCK HIT THAT MOTHERFUCKER DOM! DAYUMMMM" x100
Click to expand...

The novels really are not like that at all. Yeah, theres some 'broness' but thats just your average military bravado. All three books were written by Karen Traviss, which in itself is nice because you get a nice level of consistency with the characters.

Also, she did a nice job of filling out things in between the games, really moving things behind the scenes. Oh, and some characters that are introduced in the books are going to be in Gears 3, which is a cool touch (Traviss also wrote GOW 3's script).

I forgot to mention that the Halo books are also awesome. Outside of The Flood, which committed a cardinal sin in my opinion by basically just retelling the game.
 
X

Xena

Member
Wow, sweet! Thank you for compiling and sharing this! I have read all of ME's novels and I am looking forward to the new one.
 
S

shuyin_

Banned
NotTheGuyYouKill said:
Dead Space Martyr was damn good. Hoping for another Dead Space novel.
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Martyr was an absolute surprise. It's a very good and easy read, with a pretty good structure.

Also, it clarifies some things about the Dead Space universe. All in all, i'd recommend it to anyone, whether you're interested in the Dead Space franchise or not. One of the best video game novels ever written.
 
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