Trial + Error

by Matt Emmons

Part book, part game, TRIAL + ERROR is a choose-your-own-path comic where you are a newborn artificial creature (known as E.L.M.s - Ethical Lab Mammals)

42 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2025

About the author

Matt Emmons is a cartoonist currently living in Philadelphia. Born in the Greater Boston Area and raised on a healthy diet of 80's monster movies and fantasy novels, he now dedicates his time to drawing monsters, machines, and animals for his own books.

His work is available directly from his own website:
www.secondatbestpress.com

Reviews

[E. Schields · Rating 4.25 out of 5]

I picked this book up at FanX in Salt Lake City this year. It's very slim and not at all what I normally read, but I loved the "Choose Your Own Adventure" vibe of it. The notes stuck between the pages were a creative way to give much needed background as you wander out of your 'birth' room. The art was interesting and it was a fun (and very quick) read.

[Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A choose your own adventure comic, now that's something you don't see very often ! Matt Emmons is someone I've been wanting to read for a while now but whose stuff is kinda hard to get where I'm at. I think this was a good place to start. It's creative and his art is gorgeous. It follows a monkey-adjacent creature who wakes up in a pod in a lab, and explores the facility. It's pretty short, you can explore all the narrative pathways fairly quickly, though it doesn't feel sparse either

[Hayden DeRouen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Neat little choose-your-own adventure book. Nicely crafted, great worldbuilding, and pertinent theme. Also, the art? Absolutely fantastic. Worth experiencing every ending.