Living Without F.E.A.R.

A month later and I am finally done with Appointment With F.E.A.R. It was really quite involved, perhaps the most complex Fighting Fantasy book I’ve known. And somehow that complexity was also why I didn’t enjoy it as much as I could have?

The good:

• Four different super heroes, means four different win conditions. That meeting you need to foil, is not the same meeting for the four heroes.
• A lot of silliness in the writing, from comic book references to pop culture references to buying a copy of Warlock of Firetop Mountain within the book.
• A lot of complex connectivity, and a lot of paths resulting in Page 311 where your time runs out.

The bad:

• The clues are hidden so deeply that it’s near impossible to find them without cheating. Even if you have the right super power, you have to chase the right guy after attacking only the first guy, pick up the right piece of tat from three choices, notice that one newspaper clipping and also go to the right emergency call, … Ultimately, I had to give up and just search the book looking for how to get that piece of paper.
• Not enough healing. Combats are reasonably well balanced, except for the ones that aren’t, and Energy Blast costs stamina to use. However, there are only a couple of spots in the book where you restore 6 stamina for staying home and watching TV. So good luck surviving anyway without a 12 skill and some good luck.

I really loved the idea of it, and I liked most of its execution. But in the end, I’m glad to have it behind me so I can move on to the next one.