Gamified - Book Two: Player vs Player

Gamified #2

by Brook Aspden

Felix thought the game was over - turns out it was just beginning...When the game makes its first appearance in weeks, Felix can barely believe it. However, a quest relating to his father’s whereabouts is something he just can't ignore. He soon finds himself on a class field trip to Cityburg where he hopes to find the elusive professor Stein and learn the truth.Then the fuzzing begins. But feral pigeons, slime monsters and big city thieves are the least of his worries. Felix and his friends realize they are not the only players in the game. They have walked into a PvP battleground for which they are underleveled and unprepared for. To make matters worse, the game no longer works as it did before, and now even the NPCs are in danger.Looks like a house-cat summoning Beastmaster, a nerdy Necromancer and an ex-cheerleader Barbarian are going to need to save the world... again.

Genres: Fantasy

716 pages, Paperback

Published May 18, 2021

About the author

I am Brook!

The most important thing about me is that I have always loved a good story. Whether it be books, films, cartoons, comics, video games or any other form of storytelling – I can’t get enough awesome stories in my life. I am enthralled by tales of good vs evil, fantastical places and awesome powers (if I see an ornate closet I’ll be checking for an entrance to Narnia, every time).

As a Kiwi, perhaps it is fitting that one of my favourite childhood memories was my dad reading my brother and I pages from The Hobbit as bedtime stories. I grew up in New Zealand (sorry but no, I cannot introduce you to Gandalf) but am currently living in the UK. Ever since being inspired by those early childhood stories I have been an avid reader and writer.

After co-founding the indie publisher Portal Books and editing a number of cool stories from Oliver Mayes’ Occultist to Jonathan Smidt’s Bone Dungeon I finally ventured into publishing stories of my own.

My core belief when writing is that my stories should be fun. Stories for me have always been a safe place, where happy endings are not only possible but highly probable. When you are wrapped up in a good story the rest of the world falls away, it’s a kind of meditation, its good for the soul. Stories are my happy place and that’s something I want to recreate for my readers, whatever their age.

I hope that my stories, both those already written and those to come, can bring a little bit of excitement, laughter and joy into your life. That’s why I write, to pass on the awesome experiences that so many story tellers have given me over the course of my life, to others.

I also write because of my nana – she was awesome.

Reviews

[XR · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was just more of the same, so it was okay. I gave it the third star only because of the baby pigeon Patches. Birds are cool.

[Justin Monroe · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great follow up for book one. It only got better! Well done.

[David Ketelsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a free advance copy of this book from the publisher, Portal Books.

The first Gamified book was great. I loved it. Started with an overused stereotype of the shrimpy gamer kid that uses videogames to compensate for his crappy life--but then turns abruptly by making the real world adopt videogame characteristics instead of using some mechanism to put the kid into the game. Creative and highly entertaining.

Aspden's second Gamified book changes the formula a little. Instead of the real world becoming fully gamified, it only changes a little in what the characters call "fuzzing." This leads to all sorts of problems which our main characters, Felix, Kira, and Larry have to sort out along with a couple of new members to the gang.

Gamified 2 is very entertaining and well worth reading but I'm taking off a star due to the incessant airing out of daddy issues. The line "Luke, I am your Father" is a classic in part because it wasn't overused in the films. In this book it's everpresent, even the new character gets into the spirit of things by brawling with his father. Fortunately there's a lot to like here as the gang is pushed further than before and forge deeper bonds to one another. It's quite heartening to read this adventure and witness their travails and how they overcome them--and save the world--by depending on each other. Another good thing is that there's definitely going to be a third book to look forward to.

[Cmoore · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually read Gamified a couple of years ago and opted to not read Player vs Player as I wasn't sure how I'd like reading something like that. But I had really enjoyed Brook Aspden's storyline and knew that I'd prolly enjoy this one too, and wow I found that now the price was just too good to pass up. Plus Pavi Proczko has a awesome narrative persona. In this story Felix along with his companions and with his Beast friend Mr Biggles and they all realize that the computer generated game isn't done playing with them. Despite shutting down the system and subsequently destroying the computer itself. There's still plenty of game left and answers to find, answers that burned in Felix's soul!!! Felix even found Patches a new Beast friend to bond with, adding to their pack...
So yeah you'll wanna grab Gamified: Player vs Player... and then hope that Brook Aspden's imaginary friends insist on telling their story one more time! That B.A. will take the time from his day job to release that story into the wild... well at least on podium books. 😆

Here's a couple of quotes that amused me:

"Larry looked over at Felix. “It’s like finding out a killer shark also does crochet on the weekends…” Felix just laughed. His girlfriend was awesome."

"Description: Is it getting hot in here? Lava is the molten anger of the bowels of the earth, it consumes everything in its path."

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first book better than this one. In this book, there were several places where the story could have ended with no impact on the overall story, since there's more books to continue the tale. Where it did end seemed like a contrived ending, for the express purpose of continuing the storyline. (really felt one of the previous ending points would have been better for that, and wouldn't have felt contrived). Not sure I'll read the next one, though I probably will, since I dislike leaving series unfinished. I'm just not looking forward to it, it appears (to me at least) like the third book is going to be conjured extensions to keep the story going, rather than any actual planned storyline from the get go.

[Ty Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fuzz-tastic!

Read the first book last year and was counting the months to find out what happened to Felix and the Pack - amazing addition and such an easy read: could pick up the book and not need to re-read multiple chapters to remember where I was. Vivid descriptions and compelling characters. A MUST READ for fantasy/sci-fi lovers. Can’t wait to see where the story heads to next! :)

[L M Ralph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another Exciting Instalment

In this novel once again the real world becomes the game. If our heroes fail, there is no real world to go back to. The rules have changed and is increasingly taken over by the game, now featuring players each trying to turn the game into their own dream regardless of the consequences.

A good spin on the Litrpg genre. It is a long book but worth the trouble. Suitable for all ages. The story is complete in itself but the series has not ended.

[Danny Moody · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun sequel! This falls into the middle grade category of books for me. It has nice clean language, school-aged characters and high school drama. Overall the plot was fun with plenty of adventure. The main characters make good “game” progress through leveling and new skills. There is even a surprise ending which was an unexpected treat.

[Aaron Eichler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The game is back with more players. It was an interesting tale, with many questions and who the players are. The pop star gave me a big question: How old is she? By how she talks, I would say under 8 years old. There was an interesting twist at the end with a lot of loss. My favorite character has to be Patches. He is funny.

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really Entertaining And Fun, Kept My Attention Throughout

Geez, really upped the game this time, “literally” and figuratively. It was extremely fun and kept me wanting more. Really struck a good balance between the RL and “Game” aspects. I can’t wait for the next one.

[Pat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well done sequel

Great way to bring back the characters and also introduce some new mechanics and problems. Intrigued as to how it will end

[Adam Davis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable, as always

I really like this series, and the game systems, characters, etc.
There are a few proofreading errors but overall highly enjoyable.

[Johnie C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

I enjoyed reading this book and I recommend it to anyone who likes LitRPG and game lit type of books.

[Anthony Gainey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun Read

I really enjoyed this second installment in the series. It’s a fun read with new characters coming along with our favorites from the first. Read now.

[Logan]

Awesome

This was one one of the best books I ever read I am really looking forward to the next book