ChoiceBeat 12 is here!

The new issue of ChoiceBeat is out, and this is our best issue yet if you’re a fan of ChoiceScript games.

This summer, I finally got around to playing Fallen Hero, and on the off chance you haven’t yet, I’m here with a review to let you know why you should, too, as well as a couple of coupons to make it easier to get started. If you’re already a fan, you’ll surely want to read my interview with author Malin Rydén, in which he opens up about his writing routine, the appeal of non-traditional storytelling methods, and what’s next for Sidestep.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse - The Book of Hungry Names, the first of ten promised World of Darkness games from a new partnership with Paradox Interactive, came out this spring, and Matt Griffin (aka @Mifga) has reviewed it for us, and sat down for a lengthy interview with author Kyle Marquis. There’s a generous coupon included for the game and both DLCs, so this is the perfect time to dive in!

Matt also contributed a review of The Ghost and the Golem and an interview with author Benjamin Rosenbaum, in which he discusses his efforts to create a distinctly Jewish fantasy and how reader feedback helped him create a game that’s both historically accurate and inclusive. Oh, and there’s another coupon for you!

Also included is a conversation I had with Brian Rushton, author of In the Service of Mrs. Claus, about his new book, Learning from the Best of Text, which includes a whole chapter about what he learned from playing every CoG game.

Other highlights of this issue include a quiz (with a couple of CoG questions!), a flowchart (flowcharts are cool), and a feature on games created by ChoiceBeat writers, including a literally perfect game none of you poor souls will ever have the privilege of playing.

You can read or download it here:

Special thanks to @Moochava, @plausible.fabulist, @Brian_Rushton, and @malinryden for helping make this our greatest issue yet!

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This is so awesome! Thanks for sharing the link.

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Spending time with these two authors was immensely rewarding. And both are approaching how they design their games, tell their stories, and use ChoiceScript in very different ways, each of which are valid!

That is a large part of the fun interviewing ChoiceScript authors like @jojo for his amazing Lies Under Ice back in ChoiceBeat 10. I talked with each of these authors at depth about their other work and writing, and am looking to build longform chapter length interviews. Heck, Kyle and I talked for 6hrs over 2 days. There are so many stories!!

Anyhow, more interviews to come!

Speaking of which, I accidentally submitted 7k word count versions before ChoiceBeat reminded me appropriately that the max is 2k! :joy: The trimmed versions will likely be read to completion by 10x the readers (unlike choicescript wordcounts were the word-Everests can win!), so I feel a little (helpfully) chastened.

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This was delightful to read! And I’m going to take a proper look at @plausible.fabulist’s ChoiceScript tools sometime soon - they look great!

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Benjamin has a bunch that haven’t hit the repo yet, and now has been shared the link to cslib as well!

It would be amazing to see each of you who contribute amazing tools to the community to discuss them, and strategies explored.

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