CRPG Book Project - Pre-Orders Available

Pre-orders are available for The CRPG Book with delivery in March.

About the book
Spread over more than 500 pages, CRPG Book: A Guide to Computer Role-Playing Games reviews over 400 seminal games from 1975 to 2015, covering the role-playing classics we all know and love such as Ultima, Wizardry, Fallout and Mass Effect - all brought to life with vibrant and engaging in-game images. Each entry also shares articles on the genre, mod suggestions and hints on how to run the games on modern hardware. The book is completely by written by fans, AAA developers, indies, journalists, modders and industry personalities such as Chris Avellone, Ian Frazier, Scorpia, Ferhegón, Richard Cobbett, Brian 'Psychochild' Green, Durante, George Weidman and Tim Cain, to name but a few.

CRPG Book: A Guide to Computer Role-Playing Games comes as a hardback as standard and uses thread sewn binding for extra durability. Each copy is then shrink wrapped. The cover features a specially created artwork by fantasy artist Jan Pospíšil.

In line with the project's non-profit nature, all of the author's profit will be donated to the Vocação charity in Brazil, where the books author, Felipe Pepe comes from. Vocação helps kids and teenagers from poor areas to get education and employment, who then go on to help others around them to do the same, changing the community for the better.

Book specifications
528 pages, 254mm x 203mm, Lithographic print, Hardback, Sewn binding, Gold foil blocked cover and spine, shrink wrapped.

Collector's Edition
The Collector's Edition of The CRPG Book: A Guide to Computer Role-Playing Games will be exclusive to the pre-order period and limited to just 1,000 units. The book will come within a heavy-duty board slipcase with metallic gold branding and include an A2 rolled poster, A4 Dungeon Map Pad, branded pencil and a pack of 5 postcards.

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More information.

Already pre-ordered the CE as soon as it became evailable.

While I don't read a lot of books, it might be fun to just flip through it, and it makes a great collectors item.

Ordered the Collector's Edition. Can't Wait!

Nice!

I plan to order at least one of these also, more likely two or three as gifts for some friends. I see this as a great way to relive some classic games without firing up a Commodore!!

Ordered the Collector's Edition as well.

I hope Brexit is not a problem.

Yay, finally! Also got an order in for the CE.
Now, can we postpone Brexit to April?

I think I will order normal edition…. the postal service in Australia is atrocious… it took freaking ~3 months for me to receive a gift from my cousin in Korea sigh - it arrived in Australia exactly a week after it left Korea, so basically took more than 10 weeks for AusPost to deliver it to my house…

Originally Posted by HiddenX
I hope Brexit is not a problem.

How could it be a problem? Genuinely curious as I'm a bit ignorant on the subject.

Currently I can avoid to pay customs, because Germany and GB are both members of the EU.
If GB votes for a hard Brexit I have to pay customs again.

Preordered the collector's, then realised some of my favourite titles are missing. Annoyedly double-checked with the .pdf, and now I wonder: why no Dragon Wars, Black Crypt, M&M 2?

Originally Posted by Moorkh
Preordered the collector's, then realised some of my favourite titles are missing. Annoyedly double-checked with the .pdf, and now I wonder: why no Dragon Wars, Black Crypt, M&M 2?

Probably because no-one reviewed those games. The game reviews in the book were generated by community.

Also their significance is probably questionable. I didn't play them myself, but wasn't Dragon Wars just another Bard's Tale Game and M&M2 just the same as M&M1? If I remember correctly M&M3 implemented a couple more changes like no random encounters anymore.

Regarding Black Crypt I hardly heared of. I remember I read an article about it in a magazine in the 90s though.

Dragon Wars has an enhanced Bard's Tale engine and the story is great.

MM2 worked with time travels and big enemy numbers.

Both are worth to be included in the book, but Silver is right - sometimes you just don't find a reviewer for very old games. I had no time to play these two again, so I didn't make an offer to review them.

On the Apple 2 M&M2 was also interesting because it was one of the very rare games that used the extended high-resolution graphics mode, which made it look a lot better than its peers on the platform.

Originally Posted by Kordanor
Also their significance is probably questionable. I didn't play them myself, but wasn't Dragon Wars just another Bard's Tale Game and M&M2 just the same as M&M1?

No you are wrong of course since you haven't played it.

Originally Posted by HiddenX
Dragon Wars has an enhanced Bard's Tale engine and the story is great.

MM2 worked with time travels and big enemy numbers.

Both are worth to be included in the book, but Silver is right - sometimes you just don't find a reviewer for very old games. I had no time to play these two again, so I didn't make an offer to review them.

Dragon Wars was ahead of its time in that a)mapping was not required since the tiny automap was enough really to navigate b) great story c)all problems could be solved with various ways and all in all it was much better really than any of the original Bard's Tales.

As for the book,I have the pdf back from when latest version was uped and while I respect the guy for the effort and for giving it freely, but personally I wouldn't want to write a review for someone else to monetise eventually…

I really though like the CE and especially the QFG screenshot - poster if I understood well is really an item I'd want .

Originally Posted by KeepitClean
I wouldn't want to write a review for someone else to monetise eventually…

I wouldn't say the book is "monetized", the project is still non-profit and all the earnings are going to a charity. I'm not making a single cent from this.

Also, Might & Magic II is included in the M&M I review.

Originally Posted by felipepepe
I wouldn't say the book is "monetized", the project is still non-profit and all the earnings are going to a charity. I'm not making a single cent from this.

Also, Might & Magic II is included in the M&M I review.

It's admirable you are donating the earnings to charity though it bothers me just a tiny bit… I think you personally should get some of the monetary pay off for this great book.

Originally Posted by Moorkh
Preordered the collector's, then realised some of my favourite titles are missing. Annoyedly double-checked with the .pdf, and now I wonder: why no Dragon Wars, Black Crypt, M&M 2?

Actually I volunteered for reviewing Black Crypt (possibly also Dragon Wars, can't remember), but real life caught up with me during that period, so didn't get to those. Now I regret it, of course

Black Crypt was a Dungeon Master/Eye of the Beholder type game on the Amiga (dunno if it got out on other platforms). I loved it back in the day, but that might have been nostalgia, haven't checked it since then.

But it's great to finally have the physical book come out, way to go Felipe Ordered one of course.

Was VERY glad to order this. Felipe and the community contributors have done some amazing work with this. I have the downloadable PDF - but reading this in print will be much more enjoyable (and better on the eyes - between work, teaching, and gaming I have enough screen time as is…).