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Awakening Fractured Memories #0.7
The Game: Beta Testing
The Game: Beta Testing is an 8,000 word short story.
Once a year, the Council frees up the media broadcast to feature government approved entertainment that is put on by various schools in an effort to draw in additional funds for educational purposes. However, not all students are fighting for a piece of the limelight.
A reluctant Seth Wright is thrust into the hero’s role as a consequence of bailing out a friend. All seems well the day of the play, but he soon discovers a sinister plot that could jeopardize the lives of his friends. Throwing the rules out the window, he sets out to befriend a thief, rescue a dragon, ridicule a wizard, and avoid a princess' advances.
Once a year, the Council frees up the media broadcast to feature government approved entertainment that is put on by various schools in an effort to draw in additional funds for educational purposes. However, not all students are fighting for a piece of the limelight.
A reluctant Seth Wright is thrust into the hero’s role as a consequence of bailing out a friend. All seems well the day of the play, but he soon discovers a sinister plot that could jeopardize the lives of his friends. Throwing the rules out the window, he sets out to befriend a thief, rescue a dragon, ridicule a wizard, and avoid a princess' advances.
28 pages, ebook
First published May 1, 2013
2 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
A.V. Dalcourt
6 books27 followersAmber V. Dalcourt is an author of non-romantic dark fantasy with Lovecraftian undertones. She is the author of the AWAKENING FRACTURED MEMORIES SERIES and is currently working on AWAKENING: PRODIGY. She has recently released AWAKENING FRACTURED MEMORIES VOLUME 1.
Amber was convinced that her childhood home was haunted. Distorted visages made their presence known to those who dared stare into the hallway. In the basement, the voice of an elderly man sowed confusion and discord. These experiences and more left a lasting impression and affected how she crafts the unsettling elements of her stories.
Drawing on her occult heritage to combat her fears, it was only natural that she'd fall in love with fantasy stories that focused on magic and all-powerful beings to thwart the darkest of evils. But magic solutions don't solve worldly problems…
Using the subtleties of human behavior to craft her demons, rituals, and magic systems, Amber is a lover of modern sorcery, psychological character portrayals, epic battles between good and evil and the huge grey area that separates them.
Sign up for the mailing list and receive two FREE ebooks and a series of character profiles with professionally drawn illustrations: http://bit.ly/2ZPdaoT
Stay connected with Amber:
Her website: www.awakeninganthology.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/awakeninganthology/
Discord: discordapp.com/invite/7zsemQv
Twitter: twitter.com/amberdalcourt @amberdalcourt
Pinterest: www.pinterest.ca/avdalcourt/
Amber was convinced that her childhood home was haunted. Distorted visages made their presence known to those who dared stare into the hallway. In the basement, the voice of an elderly man sowed confusion and discord. These experiences and more left a lasting impression and affected how she crafts the unsettling elements of her stories.
Drawing on her occult heritage to combat her fears, it was only natural that she'd fall in love with fantasy stories that focused on magic and all-powerful beings to thwart the darkest of evils. But magic solutions don't solve worldly problems…
Using the subtleties of human behavior to craft her demons, rituals, and magic systems, Amber is a lover of modern sorcery, psychological character portrayals, epic battles between good and evil and the huge grey area that separates them.
Sign up for the mailing list and receive two FREE ebooks and a series of character profiles with professionally drawn illustrations: http://bit.ly/2ZPdaoT
Stay connected with Amber:
Her website: www.awakeninganthology.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/awakeninganthology/
Discord: discordapp.com/invite/7zsemQv
Twitter: twitter.com/amberdalcourt @amberdalcourt
Pinterest: www.pinterest.ca/avdalcourt/
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 18, 2020
This was a fun read!! I was so confused at first by towards the.middle, my mind said it was a game lol. Now I understood and had fun reading it. As a gamer myself, there were times I wished I was IN the game. This book had its funny parts. Also had parts where your emotions were in turmoil. It was well written and would like to see more books with a gaming story.
April 28, 2018
When we think about education and high school, our minds often picture studying and sitting through classroom lectures. However, perhaps the most exciting things which happen for most students in high school occur outside of the classroom. Indeed, the many clubs and teams which are offered in schools are frequently the memories which people will recall the best and the most fondly. One such activity which garners a lot of interest and keen excitement in most schools is the Drama Club. In her novel, The Game: Beta Testing, A. Dalcourt captures the buzz and thrill which typically surrounds dramatic productions in the school setting. However, in this short story, things are not always as they seem. If you enjoy tales which alternate between theatrical reality and vivid imagination, then this story may be precisely what you are looking for!
Essentially, the tale begins with a room full of people nervously preparing to broadcast their school play across the country. The stakes are high as the performances are government sponsored and a method of fundraising for cash starved schools. A great performance will mean a large sum of money for lucky schools, while a poor or lacklustre play will lead to the opposite. To make this production even more interesting, it is a Virtual Reality performance and real people are thrust into the limelight in a digital world. At the center of this setup is Seth Wright who is the reluctant hero of the story. He will be forced to “perform” in this Virtual Reality play which has many more elements of “reality” than “virtual”! He will soon see himself and his other cast members struggle for their very survival in a world of dragons, savage dogs and wizards. Will Seth and his crew survive to perform another day? Or will this virtually be “game over’?
The Game: Beta Testing is actually a short story which is part of the author’s Awakening: Fractured Memories Series. There can be little doubt that it was written for a young audience and relies heavily upon themes of fantasy, technology and the pursuit of quests. In many ways the plot of the story resembles a life-like video game. It is a great tale for the intended audience. However, for those who are not as well versed in Role Playing video games, the plot can be difficult to follow at times. Although I am quite familiar with Role Playing Games (RPG) myself, I still found the storyline hard to follow as it was difficult to distinguish the reality from the performance. That could very well have been the author’s intention, but I do feel it obstructed the flow of the story.
In regards to character development, it was a rather short tale so the characters were not developed in excessive detail. Seth Wright does make a convincing, yet reluctant, hero however. He is someone who is put into a situation against his will or better judgement. Despite this, he manages to fight and survive and develops into a much stronger character by the end of the story. Also, the character of William is cleverly presented effectively in juxtaposition to Seth. He is believable as a selfish, cowardly and somewhat despicable character who helps to project Seth into an even brighter role.
Overall I would recommend this story for a young audience. There is nothing overtly sexual in the tale, nor is there anything different from what you would see in a typical P.G. rated video game. Older readers may enjoy it as well if they are familiar with the technology and quest-like theme. It is heavily entrenched in fantasy, and for that reason alone it may be a good read for lovers of that genre. I personally struggled with it at times and for that reasons give it 3 out of 5 stars.
3 Role Playing Stars for this one! ***
Essentially, the tale begins with a room full of people nervously preparing to broadcast their school play across the country. The stakes are high as the performances are government sponsored and a method of fundraising for cash starved schools. A great performance will mean a large sum of money for lucky schools, while a poor or lacklustre play will lead to the opposite. To make this production even more interesting, it is a Virtual Reality performance and real people are thrust into the limelight in a digital world. At the center of this setup is Seth Wright who is the reluctant hero of the story. He will be forced to “perform” in this Virtual Reality play which has many more elements of “reality” than “virtual”! He will soon see himself and his other cast members struggle for their very survival in a world of dragons, savage dogs and wizards. Will Seth and his crew survive to perform another day? Or will this virtually be “game over’?
The Game: Beta Testing is actually a short story which is part of the author’s Awakening: Fractured Memories Series. There can be little doubt that it was written for a young audience and relies heavily upon themes of fantasy, technology and the pursuit of quests. In many ways the plot of the story resembles a life-like video game. It is a great tale for the intended audience. However, for those who are not as well versed in Role Playing video games, the plot can be difficult to follow at times. Although I am quite familiar with Role Playing Games (RPG) myself, I still found the storyline hard to follow as it was difficult to distinguish the reality from the performance. That could very well have been the author’s intention, but I do feel it obstructed the flow of the story.
In regards to character development, it was a rather short tale so the characters were not developed in excessive detail. Seth Wright does make a convincing, yet reluctant, hero however. He is someone who is put into a situation against his will or better judgement. Despite this, he manages to fight and survive and develops into a much stronger character by the end of the story. Also, the character of William is cleverly presented effectively in juxtaposition to Seth. He is believable as a selfish, cowardly and somewhat despicable character who helps to project Seth into an even brighter role.
Overall I would recommend this story for a young audience. There is nothing overtly sexual in the tale, nor is there anything different from what you would see in a typical P.G. rated video game. Older readers may enjoy it as well if they are familiar with the technology and quest-like theme. It is heavily entrenched in fantasy, and for that reason alone it may be a good read for lovers of that genre. I personally struggled with it at times and for that reasons give it 3 out of 5 stars.
3 Role Playing Stars for this one! ***
January 25, 2020
Sam Wright is chosen to be the hero in his school play that will be pod cast in VR. He had to go off script because he found himself in real danger. Improvising was his only option.
This is a short fantasy build around a VR podcast. The main character was full of personality and heroic characteristics. He pulls you into the story. The storyline itself is creative, chalked full of action, surprising twists and unexpected obstacles that keep you interested In until the very end. Being a hero can take many forms, I enjoyed this take on what a hero truly is. This story is creative, unique and well crafted. I was pleasantly surprised at just how much I liked it.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
This is a short fantasy build around a VR podcast. The main character was full of personality and heroic characteristics. He pulls you into the story. The storyline itself is creative, chalked full of action, surprising twists and unexpected obstacles that keep you interested In until the very end. Being a hero can take many forms, I enjoyed this take on what a hero truly is. This story is creative, unique and well crafted. I was pleasantly surprised at just how much I liked it.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
February 1, 2021
This book was a bit short for me to get a good understanting of all plot subtilities , but it was nice.
We have a school play depicting a fairy tale about a brave knight, a dragon and a princess that needs to be saved. The funny twist was that everything turns out completly wrong, from the confused knight to the dragon that doesn't wants to be bad.
We have a school play depicting a fairy tale about a brave knight, a dragon and a princess that needs to be saved. The funny twist was that everything turns out completly wrong, from the confused knight to the dragon that doesn't wants to be bad.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 30, 2019
It was okay. Not great, but not bad either.
January 31, 2020
Received as a review copy, this is an honest review. This quick read was an okay story but it has an interesting concept with being set in a place where the government decides what kinds of entertainment people can enjoy. The play at the focus of the book has a weird twist of both being used to raise funds for education and something everyone in the schools takes part in. If it were longer, a better story could have been done with more development to the characters but still worth the read over all.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews