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New Arcadia: Judgment Day: A LitRPG/Gamelit Adventure
IT’S TIME TO MORPH
In a grim, not-so-distant future, humanity is in crisis. A deadly pandemic has confined billions to their homes, leaving society completely isolated in their homes and utterly dependent on the mega-global Chum Corporation.
For some lucky beta testers, the only escape is to log into New Arcadia—a real-as-life role-playing game set in a gleaming 1990s-inspired city. There, they can enjoy the freedoms denied to them in the real world—like Prime Beta Tester John Chambers, who has reinvented himself in New Arcadia as street-fighting hero Blaze.
But John and his ragtag gang of friends have discovered that the virtual reality of New Arcadia was designed to be more than just entertainment. Secretly, the program is being used to test how effectively society can reintegrate once the pandemic restrictions are lifted. But a sinister Chum executive has plans to seize New Arcadia and shut everyone out forever.
John and his allies have found themselves abruptly kicked from the New Arcadia server. Now, this unlikely band of heroes must face their deadliest challenge yet—a perilous trek through the real-life dystopia of post-pandemic California, battling deadly drones and sinister Scummers in their desperate fight not just for freedom, but for the chance to rebuild society itself.
Then, back inside New Arcadia, they’ve got to climb the tallest tower and take out all of the bad guys. But first, they’ve got to put on a show. And maybe find love, too.
Starring
Eric Jason Martin (Heads Will Roll, StanLand)
Robert Patrick (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1923)
Matthew Mercer (Critical Role)
Erika Ishii (Ghost of Yotei)
Sam Riegel (Critical Role)
Dave Fennoy (Fortnite)
Marin Ireland (Materialists)
January LaVoy (Law and Order)
With
Emily Woo Zeller (Cyberpunk 2077)
James Urbaniak (Venture Brothers)
Dana Snyder (Aqua Teen Hunger Force)
And Jason Narvy and Paul Schrier (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers)
And a full cast
New Judgment Day is the witty and pulse-pounding conclusion of the New Arcadia LitRPG trilogy by Eric Jason Martin—which blends the dystopian allure and nostalgic charm of Ready Player One with the sharp humor and intricate world-building of He Who Fights with Monsters.
Theme by Lloyd Cole
Original Soundtrack by Casey Trela
Post Production by Jake Young and Jaymeson Catsouphes
2025 Eric Jason Martin, (P)2025 Sound Off Productions
In a grim, not-so-distant future, humanity is in crisis. A deadly pandemic has confined billions to their homes, leaving society completely isolated in their homes and utterly dependent on the mega-global Chum Corporation.
For some lucky beta testers, the only escape is to log into New Arcadia—a real-as-life role-playing game set in a gleaming 1990s-inspired city. There, they can enjoy the freedoms denied to them in the real world—like Prime Beta Tester John Chambers, who has reinvented himself in New Arcadia as street-fighting hero Blaze.
But John and his ragtag gang of friends have discovered that the virtual reality of New Arcadia was designed to be more than just entertainment. Secretly, the program is being used to test how effectively society can reintegrate once the pandemic restrictions are lifted. But a sinister Chum executive has plans to seize New Arcadia and shut everyone out forever.
John and his allies have found themselves abruptly kicked from the New Arcadia server. Now, this unlikely band of heroes must face their deadliest challenge yet—a perilous trek through the real-life dystopia of post-pandemic California, battling deadly drones and sinister Scummers in their desperate fight not just for freedom, but for the chance to rebuild society itself.
Then, back inside New Arcadia, they’ve got to climb the tallest tower and take out all of the bad guys. But first, they’ve got to put on a show. And maybe find love, too.
Starring
Eric Jason Martin (Heads Will Roll, StanLand)
Robert Patrick (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1923)
Matthew Mercer (Critical Role)
Erika Ishii (Ghost of Yotei)
Sam Riegel (Critical Role)
Dave Fennoy (Fortnite)
Marin Ireland (Materialists)
January LaVoy (Law and Order)
With
Emily Woo Zeller (Cyberpunk 2077)
James Urbaniak (Venture Brothers)
Dana Snyder (Aqua Teen Hunger Force)
And Jason Narvy and Paul Schrier (Mighty Morphin Power Rangers)
And a full cast
New Judgment Day is the witty and pulse-pounding conclusion of the New Arcadia LitRPG trilogy by Eric Jason Martin—which blends the dystopian allure and nostalgic charm of Ready Player One with the sharp humor and intricate world-building of He Who Fights with Monsters.
Theme by Lloyd Cole
Original Soundtrack by Casey Trela
Post Production by Jake Young and Jaymeson Catsouphes
2025 Eric Jason Martin, (P)2025 Sound Off Productions
Audible Audio
Published July 29, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 20, 2025
There’s a strange dissonance at the heart of New Arcadia: Judgement Day, a tension between nostalgic homage and narrative momentum, between genre fun and emotional depth. From the first moments, when the listener is thrown into a frenzied (yet oddly lukewarm) escape sequence, the book seems both overclocked and underwhelming simultaneously. I found myself constantly feeling as if I had overgrown the story and the characters that I genuinely had missed over the years between this novel and it's prequel.
Eric Jason Martin clearly still loves the neon-drenched world he’s built, but here the gears grind a bit too loudly. The 90s references, once a delightful nod, start to feel obligatory, even meme-like. Characters blur, new ones crowd in, and Blaze, our MC sort of fizzles a bit in the beginning, with no other real dimension to grow. The voice cast, however, brings undeniable energy. The production is crisp, immersive, and effortlessly entertaining, which often salvages scenes that might otherwise fall flat on the page. Still, as the first two acts unfold, the pacing falters and thematic clarity wavers. The book struggles to justify its stakes.
Then the final quarter arrives like a long-delayed power-up. Plot threads tighten. Emotional beats (somewhat faintly) resonate. There's something quietly affecting about the way EJM lets the core message of the story unfold. For a moment, it's not about saving the world, but recovering a memory of who you were before the world got this hard. Recovering something meaningful and striving forward regardless of how terrifying the future may be. It's imperfect, but sincere. You remember Streets of Rage and Street Fighter and Power Rangers. You remember being a kid. You remember wanting to be stronger. You remember the joy you felt whenever you made a new friend. You remember a time when hope came easy. That’s where this story shines.
Final Rating:
-Plot: 3
-Prose/Voice Acting: 5
-Pacing: 4
-Characters: 3
-Worldbuilding: 3
Total: 18/25 = 3.6 stars, rounded to 4.
In the end, I loved my time with New Arcadia. And while I am sad to see it go, I can say that I have grown a bit from it. I started the series when I was in the midst of COVID. I read book 2 through one of the darkest parts of my life. And I have finished the serious now as a young man, who, even though the world seems crazy, is more sure of himself than ever.
Thank you Mr. Martin, for a wonderful experience.
Eric Jason Martin clearly still loves the neon-drenched world he’s built, but here the gears grind a bit too loudly. The 90s references, once a delightful nod, start to feel obligatory, even meme-like. Characters blur, new ones crowd in, and Blaze, our MC sort of fizzles a bit in the beginning, with no other real dimension to grow. The voice cast, however, brings undeniable energy. The production is crisp, immersive, and effortlessly entertaining, which often salvages scenes that might otherwise fall flat on the page. Still, as the first two acts unfold, the pacing falters and thematic clarity wavers. The book struggles to justify its stakes.
Then the final quarter arrives like a long-delayed power-up. Plot threads tighten. Emotional beats (somewhat faintly) resonate. There's something quietly affecting about the way EJM lets the core message of the story unfold. For a moment, it's not about saving the world, but recovering a memory of who you were before the world got this hard. Recovering something meaningful and striving forward regardless of how terrifying the future may be. It's imperfect, but sincere. You remember Streets of Rage and Street Fighter and Power Rangers. You remember being a kid. You remember wanting to be stronger. You remember the joy you felt whenever you made a new friend. You remember a time when hope came easy. That’s where this story shines.
Final Rating:
-Plot: 3
-Prose/Voice Acting: 5
-Pacing: 4
-Characters: 3
-Worldbuilding: 3
Total: 18/25 = 3.6 stars, rounded to 4.
In the end, I loved my time with New Arcadia. And while I am sad to see it go, I can say that I have grown a bit from it. I started the series when I was in the midst of COVID. I read book 2 through one of the darkest parts of my life. And I have finished the serious now as a young man, who, even though the world seems crazy, is more sure of himself than ever.
Thank you Mr. Martin, for a wonderful experience.
November 7, 2025
I've got mixed feelings having listened to this. The cast as always has been fantastic and its very well done. Full with the usual pop culture references.
But it felt a bit safe and by the numbers in this one. I was expecting some kind of twist or double cross, but it became apparent early on that Blaze and his squad were going to win without any real difficulty and everything be wrapped up nice and neatly.
Still enjoyed it though and the trilogy as a whole was solid.
But it felt a bit safe and by the numbers in this one. I was expecting some kind of twist or double cross, but it became apparent early on that Blaze and his squad were going to win without any real difficulty and everything be wrapped up nice and neatly.
Still enjoyed it though and the trilogy as a whole was solid.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 30, 2025
Every joke is cringey, every twist and turn is more stupid than the last, and every climax builds to the objectively wrong payoff yet, somehow, Eric Jason Martin's "New Arcadia: Judgement Day" still manages to wildly entertain because the author seems to be more interested in just having a good time than being the next Chaucer - and there's nothing wrong with that.
July 17, 2025
Nothing spectacular but still fun. Giving it a bonus star for finishing the series in three books.
October 29, 2025
The '90s vibes are more than enough to make this trilogy worth a read.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews