Heart of Ice

Virtual Reality #5

by Dave Morris, Jon Hodgson (Illustrator), Russ Nicholson (Illustrator)

The end of the 23rd century... Earth lies in the grip of a new Ice Age. Famine, cold and fanatical cults threaten what is left of civilization. Humanity is on the brink of extinction.

Nine of the strongest heroes of the age come seeking the ultimate prize: the Heart of Volent, an object with the power to reshape reality. All are ruthless, powerful, determined. To succeed they must work together. But only one can have the Heart.

Choose your alliances with care. Weigh up who to trust. Be ready for betrayal. When the moment comes, the future of mankind will rest on your judgement.

* * *

Critical IF books are interactive adventures with a difference. You can be a mutant with the power to warp reality. A buccaneer whose sword and pistol are a match for any foe. A daring rogue leaping between rooftops. A wizard who can command the elements. Be anyone you can imagine. Choose from almost five hundred different character types, each with their own unique skills.

Strong stories, vivid settings and compelling characters make Critical IF the game-changers of the interactive fiction genre. Put yourself at the heart of the story.

Genres: Gamebooks, Science Fiction, Choose Your Own Adventure, Fiction, Games, Fantasy, Dystopia

254 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1995

Reviews

[Dave Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

What, I can't recommend one of my own books? :)

Just to be clear, the 5 stars means it's my own favorite of the books I've written. I'm not actually claiming it's on a par with Tolstoy! (On the other hand, I bet if Tolstoy had tried his hand at "interactive" fiction then he wouldn't have been such great shakes.)

[Tazio Bettin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is by far the most amazing gamebook I have ever read.
Every choice you make is meaningful and takes you through a different path. Each path is valid and interesting. There are dead ends, but not too many. The diceless rules are immensely elegant. Action scenes are based on (roughly) the following criterion: "if you have the skill, you make it; if you have a suitable equipment, you still make it but with some scrathces; if you have neither, you shouldn't have chosen this course of action and now you'll suffer the consequence". Which is something absolutely revolutionary in the gamebook milieu of the nineties.
And apart from that, it's a great story, with a kickass setting and multiple endings, all of which are simply awesome.
Do you like adventure gamebooks where you're the hero? Then you MUST have Heart of Ice.

[Andreas · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best gamebooks I have read/played. It takes place in the near future, most of earth is under ice and not many people are alive. YOU, the player, learn about a message from Gaia that could change everything.

At the beginning the player can chose a pre-defined character or pick any 4 skills. Unlike the Fighting Fantasy books there is no dice rolling. Instead you select a skill to solve a situation. It is possible to lose all life but this can usually be avoided. I really liked this mechanic with a focus on adventure. The sceneries are described with a lot of flavor and characters are fleshed out surprisingly well. They have their own interesting backstories and intentions. Codewords are used to refer to past events and allow for a richer experience.

I was lucky and already had a good ending during my first run with an Explorer. There is a lot of content in the book and replayability is high. Some of the paths are obvious (e.g. with a "piloting" skill there should be a flying object somewhere), others are hidden and I challenge everyone to find an ID card and make use of it in Kahira.

A fantastic gamebook that gets well deserved 5 out of 5 stars.

P.S. I have looked a bit deeper at all the links between the passages and I have even created a large map. It must be a big effort to come up with a smart gamebook that balances the different skills like that, not to forget the testing. The decisions feel real and don't leave you with the feeling that things will happen anyway. A great piece of work.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

More than Choose Your Own Adventure, an expansion of the form with a character sheet to track health, money, items, and skills – all of which have applicable and meaningful consequence upon the gameplay, the reading, the unraveling of the story.

I have read/played this 6 times thus far, surviving only once. Each read I have explored different avenues, the post-apocalptic world being fleshed out a little more each time, yet not in a manner which has altered or changed other paths, information bleeds, but really it is the reader / player becoming more comfortable with the constructs of the broken and harsh place they are trying to survive in.

So the setting is key, of which Morris abundently delivers. The story / game is excellently paced, and again, you genuienly feel that your character decisions have lasting and meaningful consequences.

[Alexander Curran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a busy day at the office, thought I'd relax and have a go at "Heart of Ice" by Dave Morris now... Had it a long time and only one I never played was the "necklace of skulls" but going to get hold of it soon. "Heart of Ice" is the best sci-fi gamebook I've ever played! Me and my mate used to talk about what was the best ending, one ends in godhood, without giving away too many spoilers... I think when you grow up and investigate it deeply the ramifications of clearing away existence kicks in! Amazing book. 😍👌💎💙❄
219 ending martyr 💎

[Bobbie Bomber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so much fun, the writing definitely isn't the best and could use a little more depth but this was such a good time..... and yeah I did die before reaching the end.

[Who · Rating 4 out of 5]

People seem to think this is one of his best gamebooks. I enjoyed it but found the setting ridiculously implausible

Typical VR adventure formula for much of it, travel across the continent buying items and exploring ruins. By the second half turns into a slower dungeon crawl with intrigue and returning characters. All of this is good, but there weren't many memorable setpieces and the overworld travel is not nearly bloody enough. So really, my problem with this book is it was too easy and had a goofy world

[Katherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This adventure/game book was so cool, I loved the world building!

My first time playing and I believed I'd die on my first run, but instead I lived and became a god... huh, who knew.

I'm defiantly going to play again! :D

[Urabe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this gamebook.
It had a very intresting plot and good combats.
However I was often confused with the storyline but overall I enjoyed it very much!

[Alexander Draganov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Само добри думи мога да кажа за книгата на Дейв Морис, която е може би най-добра от всичките пет, излизали на български от тази поредица. Авторът е създал изключително оригинален и вълнуващ свят, схемата на играта е интересна, разнообразна и предлага различни пътища, трудността е изпипана така, че да бъде предизвикателна, но все пак възможна за превъртане, чисто литературният стил е вкусен и увлекателен. Бях забравил колко добър е Морис, тъй като нищо негово не бе излизало скоро на български език, затова четенето на “Сърце от лед” бе като среща със стар приятел, който не си виждал от детството. Похвала заслужава и екипът, събран от Георги Чунев в издателство Geny-G. Книгата е преведена отлично, като впечатление прави, че е избран колега да се занимава специално със стиховете, ниво на професионализъм, което рядко се среща дори сред големи издатели. Илюстрациите вътре са великолепни. Отвън книгата също изглежда атрактивно и те подмамва да я прочетеш.
Цялото ми ревю прочетете в Цитаделата:
https://citadelata.com/%d1%81%d1%8a%d...

[Colby Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a “choose you own adventure” book with a cool science fiction/future dystopia premise. It was fun! It was also my first ever try at a “do it yourself” kind of thing, so there was a learning curve there for me. My only complaint was that my brain had a hard time keeping things straight as I got farther along in the story with all the jumping around based on which path I took. That might not be a complaint for a lot of people, but with the way my brain functions it got confusing at times. Overall though, a fun read and cool story!

[Lane Metcalf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun!!

[Christopher Rush · Rating 4 out of 5]

I probably shouldn't have started with what most people call the best in this series, but I couldn't help myself. When I found this things existed, I ordered and requested gobs of them, without reading or playing any of them, simply based on my keen self-awareness. I knew I would enjoy them, and by jingo, I enjoyed this one. One of the clever things about this I found challenging was the codeword system: it's not just about rolling dice and hoping you picked the right attributes at the beginning (though those do seem to be a decent part of it, as some paths clearly are better suited to different skills/traits than others, which adds some verisimilitude, I suppose). These codewords help the game know what you've done and haven't done, which is really neat.

I admit I haven't read every single selection in this book, having only navigated it a couple of times, but that was enough. Considering the setting of the story, and the bleakness of the world, the various "successful" endings are not your typical "successful" endings, which may or may not sit well with you, but if you are the kind of person who enjoys these sorts of adventures anyway, you'll probably just be glad to be along for the ride (a ride you have a decent amount of input in directing). Any more specific info about this adventure would likely spoil some of the adventure, and I don't want to do that. Suffice it to say, this was a fun experience you can enjoy multiple times in multiple ways.

[Dane Barrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heart of Ice is an interactive fiction gamebook and part of a (non-connected) series by Dave Morris called 'Critical IF'. The setting for the book is Earth in the 24th Century which is in the grip of an ice age. A special computer satellite array which was created to help combat the effects of global warning has instead lost its nut, leaving humankind at the mercy of the increasingly-aggressive elements. Unexpectedly, however, the satellite array then sends a message out on a public broadcast telling of a meteorite which, if found and claimed, has the power to reshape the universe. You play the part of one of the adventurers or treasure hunters responding to this broadcast, hoping to claim the power for yourself!
The story is well-written, which is to be expected of a writer the calibre of Dave Morris, and builds upon the lore and background of this fictional version of Earth with what limited space is afforded in the less than 460 reading sections. Expect to feel a cram of information at first, as you need to learn much of what has led the planet to this point to understand the ramifications of what you are trying to accomplish. You will take part in a veritable road trip across a stretch of landscape which includes the frozen Sahara as well as Giza, and along the way you may encounter several characters whom you will meet (and potentially clash with) closer to your goal. I found the gathering of these characters near the end of the story to be the most interesting part of the book, and believe an entire story in itself could have been written about the group and its tentative allegiences. Note that the book doesn't always feel as post-apocalyptic as it could have, as there are still several cities functioning and living their lives in a relatively normal state, and these populated areas make the world seem less desolate than what it is.
The game system (it is a gamebook after all) does not use dice rolls to resolve situations but it does require the reader to keep a record of their inventory, skills and some codewords which keep track of certain changing elements of the plot. Your character, available to choose from a preset group or you can make your own, has four skills at your disposal which will come into play during your adventures. These can range from such things as close combat, shooting, cybernetics and even extrasensory perception.
This is where I may have to level a couple of criticisms at the book, though they are mostly nitpicks of an otherwise entertaining and exciting adventure. Firstly, as you face various encounters through the book, you will be asked whether you have specific skills which you can then choose to employ to try and overcome those challenges. While this makes for good replayability for repeated readings, it does feel a bit like the board game Tales of the Arabian Nights, where skills are used to overcome difficulties. Both that game and this book suffer from auto-steering, in that they don't always let you feel like you are in control of your destiny, instead guiding you along a rail of predetermined outcomes based on the skills you picked when making your character. There are often times when you won't have a skill needed to get past something, and if you're unlucky this can lead to immediate death and end of that reading through no fault of your own. There are sometimes items that can save you if you don't have the required skill, but it will take several playthroughs before you know which of those are useful.
Secondly, due to the need to keep the book down to a certain size, the promise of tense and interesting interactions with some of the other characters you encounter near the end don't necessarily come to fruition because the final conflicts are wrapped up so quickly. It would have been nice to spend some more time with the psychic Baron, the shady Boche, the militaristic Gargan twins or the noble Singh. Also, your character ends up being fairly unlikeable by the end, with only a slim chance to steer yourself to a much nobler course than siply killing everybody else to claim ultimate power.
Again, these are nitpicks and only detract slightly from what is otherwise a five star gamebook experience (especially if the criticisms above don't bother you) written by one of the masters of this classic genre. I really enjoyed Heart of Ice, and despite not always feeling in control of my character I still had fun replaying it to try out some of the other skills I didn't get to use during earlier attempts. I should note, too, for those who appreciate good gamebook art, that the illustrations here are drawn by the great Russ Nicholson of Fighting Fantasy fame. Seeing him draw something more akin to science fiction than his traditional fantasy setting was a breath of fresh air, and it is interesting to see his take on the various creatures and people met while reading the story.
I highly recommend Heart of Ice, a gamebook that deserves shelf space on any gamebook fan's shelf!

[Guillermo · Rating 5 out of 5]

El único problema que le veo a Heart of Ice es que deja el listón tan alto que casi da vértigo. ¿Exagero? Puedes ser, pero llevo jugando librojuegos más de 30 años y éste me ha impresionado. Sé que existen librojuegos de mundo abierto más amplios (Legendary Kingdoms, Fabled Lands, Vulcanverse...) y he jugado a ellos. Y son también increíbles, no me entendáis mal, pero para mí la virtud de Heart of Ice es que sin ser de mundo abierto y con una historia tan concreta, pueda dar una libertad tan amplia.

¿Cuál es la historia de Heart of Ice? El mundo ha colapsado cuando una IA que controlaba el clima se volvió loca por una infección y ahora todo está bajo el hielo. La humanidad malvive mientras el fin parece inevitable. Pero por un motivo desconocido nosotros somos escogidos para buscar un artefacto que podría salvar el mundo. Bastante sencillo a nivel argumento pero es el desarrollo lo que hace sobresaliente a este librojuego.

La parte narrativa me parece muy bien llevada. Tendrás que manejarte en el inglés pero recuerda que en su versión Kindle puedes usar la opción de marcar texto y traducir, así que todo es mucho más fácil. Y aunque lo hagas en papel con un diccionario (o el móvil) a mano vale la pena el esfuerzo.

Como digo la narrativa es sobresaliente pero donde Morris hace un trabajo de ingeniería brutal es en el trazado de las elecciones. Hay una sensación de libertad brutal en el juego y, sobre todo, una sorprendente cantidad de rutas distintas para llegar al objetivo final. He muerto cuatro veces y cada vez que ha sucedido he recomenzado el libro empezando por el principio, usando una clase de personaje distinta y tomando una ruta totalmente alternativa. Y en las cinco (incluyendo la que llegué al final) he jugado una historia distinta, con pocas repeticiones de lugares comunes hasta llegar al capítulo final.

Lo que también me ha llamado poderosamente la atención es que sin ser un juego con mecánica de azar (no se tiran dados ni se usan cartas) logras una sensación de variación gracias al uso de palabras clave, equipo y habilidades de tu personaje. Hay una buena cantidad de configuraciones de personaje y cada una te van a permitir completar el librojuego de maneras distintas.

La inmersión en el mundo de juego, un lugar postapocalíptico donde el invierno es continuo, es sobresaliente. Las secciones son largas y bien elaboradas, dando la sensación de estar leyendo a veces una novela, pero a la vez están medidas de forma tan exacta que no pierdes el hilo de las decisiones. Como ya dije: una verdadera obra de ingeniería ficcional.

[Andy Fletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did once own the Virtual Reality series that these books originally belonged to in the 90s, as the authors were two of my favourites of the era. However, I culled my gamebook collection some years back and this book and series was a casualty. Not a very wise move in retrospect given the price that some of these gamebooks now demand. I remember being put off a little bit by the somewhat gimmicky series name and think I only brought them out of loyalty to the authors. They were also written at the back end of the era and I'd possibly lost a bit of interest by then. I only therefore ever skim read the books and didn't give them the respect they probably warranted.

Having recently revisited the gamebook genre, I discovered this book is considered by many gamebook enthusiasts to be one of, if not the best, gamebooks ever written. High praise indeed. Having read some of the author's non gamebook work, which was very good, I recently purchased all of the Virtual Reality books that have been re-released over the last few years, now under the new series name of Critical IF.

So, does Heart Of Ice live up to it's high profile billing? In a word, yes. In more than a word, it is intelligently written and not too linear. It avoids for the most part, the, do you want to turn left or right boring decision making that plagues some series. The rules are very simple which I like, as for the most part I always used to treat gamebooks more as books than games, so didn't pay any attention to the rules anyway. The books also have multiple endings, all of which are short and relatively downbeat. This is very refreshing and they don't make any attempt to give cosy and unlikely closure. One of the endings also gives a nice little nod to another classic piece of Sci-Fi.

Is it the best gamebook ever? Possibly.

[Ja · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first Interactive Fiction book that I've read. Interactive Fiction allows for me to choose a character at the start of the story with traits, items, and abilities. And throughout the book, I'm making choices, some of which I can only do should I have the necessary skills or equipment in my inventory. It's a step further than a choose your own adventure type story, which I always love. So this was an interesting step further in the genre.

Heart of Ice is a world in the 24th century where the Earth is dying, and a mysterious satellite sends a cryptic message to select people on Earth to search for the Heart of Volent. With that dire warning, you set out on a journey to find this supposed Heart before anyone else. But is it truly the salvation that humanity needs? Or is it perhaps another scion of evil? You get to decide.

I enjoyed trekking through the ice and exploring pyramids, earning codewords, allies, and still managing to survive despite some of the bad choices I made along the way. I took a peek at some of the other choices, mainly because I didn't feel like starting from the very beginning, and got a better idea of what some of the other journeys could have been. The narrative is fairly forgiving, assuming you make good choices to at least try to stay alive. The writing itself was a bit simple, so don't expect anything moving. Rather, focus on the journey and try to stay ahead of your adversaries.

If you read this, what journey did you take, and what was your ending?

[Книжни Криле · Rating 5 out of 5]

Нима това, което виждам е истина?! ДА ВЯРВАМ ЛИ НА ОЧИТЕ СИ??? Това беше първоначалната ми реакция, щом научих, че благодарение на Георги Чунев и изд. GENY-G („ГЕНИ-ДЖИ“) поредицата „Ново поколение книги-игри“ се завръща на сцената! Съставена от напълно самостоятелни приключения в различни жанрове, но използваща сходни правила и система, серията на Дейв Морис и Марк Смит беше единственото, с което изд. „Сова“ се „разписа“ на родния книжен пазар през 90-те, но… и до днес това си остават едни от най-паметните преводни книги-игри, появявали се у нас. Но знаехте ли, че след „В бездната сред мъртъвците“, „ Зелена кръв“, „Кълбото на омразата“ и „ Огърлица от черепи“, в западната поредица „Virtual Reality“ следват още две заглавия? Петият том на серията се нарича „Сърце от лед“ и ето че сега, 30 години след своята първа поява, книгата-игра на Дейв Морис най-накрая се появява и на български език! Радостта от това истинско събитие за жанра у нас е още по-голяма, тъй като тази неочаквана изненада идва с прекрасен превод, перфектно художествено оформление и… обещание за последния шести том, „Имало едно време в Арабия“? Прочетете ревюто на „Книжни Криле“: https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/202...

[Matt Brookbank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heart Of Ice was an interesting read. It was the first "game book" I've read, but I thought the concept sounded very interesting for a while.

Before you start reading you make a character, choosing skills to start with (like Cunning, or Survival, or Street-Smart). Your character also has an inventory, and as you read you can pick up things.

Then, as you read the book it will say something like, if you have a knife, turn to 25. If you have the Survival skill, turn to 240. If you want to run away, turn to 11 or to stand and fight unarmed, turn to 120.

As you make decisions, you'll mark keywords on your sheet as a way to remember decisions, then the book may say something like, if you have the keywords "Diamond", turn to 46, otherwise turn to 102.

It was pretty fun to have an interactive story like this, it also seems like there is some value to reading it again as there were paths I didn't take.

I think I may seek out more game books in the future after reading this one.

[Peter Fox · Rating 2 out of 5]

Heart of Ice Dave Morris

Mechanically, this book is pretty decent, with various skill sets that you can utilise. None of these are of the make the wrong choice and you automatically lose variety. Instead, they ensure that in most circumstances you either have a bit of kit that you can use, or the right skill and that you'd be very unlucky not to have.

This is good. The writing is also pretty good and whilst Russ Nicholson is on art duties, the pictures didn't really draw me in.

However, the rest of the book isn't that great. It is very bleak. It is set on a devastated earth where there is no hope for the future. Spoiler alert if you've not read a 30 year old book, but whatever ending you find, there's no hope either. Everything feels unremittingly grim. If you're full of the joys of Spring and want to depress yourself, then this is the book for you.

[NoeLindemann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Il primo libro game che affronto! Che dire, mi è piaciuto un sacco! A parte essere morta dopo 5 minuti di gioco, è un libro in cui davvero ogni scelta che prendi cambia tutto, le meccaniche sono semplici e ti portano a ricominciare (si, impossibile giocarlo solo una volta) riuscendo ad intuire quale build costruire per aiutarti a raggiungere il finale desiderato!
Non so se è a causa della struttura stessa di un libro game, ma mi sembra, dopo averlo finito più volte, di essermi persa comunque qualcosina...come se mi mancasse qualche pezzo di trama. Probabilmente dovrei ricominciarlo ancora, ma ho troppi libri nella TBR!

Super consigliato!

[R. Moores · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great gamebook that doesn't require a dice. It has a fantastic setting and an interesting plot. There are multiple different characters you can select (or you can create your own) and a variety of different paths. I've managed to find most of the items and code words and read a few of the different endings. There are some options I still can't find/figure out which is great for replayability.

The kindle format works well for these types of books. A good tip is to make a note when you highlight your character choice and keep track of your stats here.

In short, a well written and fun way to pass the time in an old-school kind of way!

[Стефан Стефанов · Rating 4 out of 5]

Силна вълна на носталгия ме заля, когато взех за пръв път "Сърце от лед" в ръцете си. Корицата, избора на герой, оформлението на книгата - все едно отново бях дете. Вече с разгръщането на действието започнаха да ми се набиват на очи детайли, които леко повлияха негативно на цялото изживяване, но въпреки това, потапянето в "Сърце от лед" си струваше. Какво не ми хареса? Прекалено много съдържание, което не може да се оползотвори пълноценно - персонажи, локации, предмети, история - кой какъв е защо... Другото, беше краят - прекалено претупан, не ми донесе никакво удовлетворение.

[Emma Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a choose your own adventure game book in the style of the old Fighting Fantasy series minus the battles and dice. Pretty good system of having skills and codewords except the first read-through left me baffled as I didn't get any codewords at all. Mid-way through the game I thought I'd turned to the wrong page when asked if I wanted to investigate any of a list of names not mentioned previously. Confusing! Apart from these two sticking points, I found the book fun and the story compelling.

[Jon Huff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun gamebook. There seem to be some issues with the scratch-off map, and it seemed kind of punishing. I think, perhaps, I was too careful in my choices, because my character felt very passive and I didn't have the opportunity to gain much in the way of resources. In fact, one of the few things I did gain I never got to use. But, that could have just been my choices. I'd like to give it another try. The illustrations and presentation are very nice over-all.

[H · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yeah, it confirms I dislike CYOA for me. I dislike choices because I often want to pick a third choice or would want to check for more information or play it safe somehow and it's not available as an option. For this one, I also just dislike this one's setting and wordiness with Gaia and the earth and the different sections felt choppy, losing the companion who was with me in some.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This perfect storm of theme, mechanics, player freedom and consequences makes the spacetime continuum or more compelling place to exist. Vividly drawn characters and settings lead to a powerful and unpredictable conclusion.

[Gulnar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great gamebook. Not too difficult, rewards curiosity and punishes stupidity, which is always great. No randomness either which makes it pretty great. And the plot is really good, especially since being a multiple-ending book you can veer toward the one you feel yourself aligned most with.

[Amber Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much fun! I have already done the game twice, will be playing more.

[Andreas · Rating 2 out of 5]

The ending was extremely underwhelming. Not worth it.