Highway wars /Lost in the pages! why similar? Easter egg?

Right now I’m playing Lost in the pages… I’m in the story called “New Heaven Cops”
I’ve found similarities…

mc and his/her companion go to a city (firgot the name) to a drug dealer,weapon dealer & an art dealer (lost in the pages/prostitute dealer(highway wars) and after entering room some thugs attacked in both games

so much similarities
is this a some sort of easter egg??
thank you :blush:

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Maybe it’s because the author is same? I do recall @adrao also author of Lost In The Pages.

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Basically I re-used a large portion of the code from Highway Wars. At the time I wrote New Heaven Cop I was having a bit of a crisis with Highway Wars. I was not sure where the story was going, could not seem to move forward much (it was started much before Tokyo Wizard, but only recently got published!). That said, Highway Wars was finished, though my first WIP is still not finished (The Nebula, for any that may remember, before Dropbox went down for us…)

So, I decided to re-use part of the structure to make New Heaven Cop. I changed and re-wrote large sections (both dystopian futures, but one is more Mad Max and the other more Blade Runner/Robocop), and then Highway Wars also changed substantially. But, for those with a sharp eye the similarities in that section of the game are really big! :wink:

I am now thinking about whether to re-use the central theme of my other story (which in itself draw inspiration from a choose your own adventure I read as a kid, and which I still have) in future work (actually it is a strong thought I have at present, to possibly overcome some of the possible structural problems of one of my WIPs…)

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Thank you!! :blush::blush::blush::blush::blush::blush::blush::blush::blush::blush:

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Anyway, did you like the game? What did you think about the different stories?

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So is trying to physically beat the Vampire and instant game over even if you win because you’ll automatically have to try the serum?

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Sorry, no… this should have been rectified already… which platform are you using for the game?

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I like it… :blush::blush: specially from modern time to medieval time… That was cool!! :blush::blush: besides heaven cop & vampire story is good!! hope there is a sequel with more book & more action

I want to see some easter egg :smile: like the mc goes to the other HG universe

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That is an interesting thought! Actually, one of the stories by @Felicity_Banks transports the reader to a well-established universe by felicity, though I think it’s not in any of the HG. But, who knows, maybe we could team up with other HG authors and have little stories which transported the reader to stories within the HG universe… and intriguing concept! (Though it would be up to other authors to decide whether they wanted to do something like this… )

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ohhhhoo… :scream::heart_eyes: super excited!!! :heart_eyes::heart_eyes::heart_eyes::purple_heart::purple_heart:
that’d be super cool!!! :heart_eyes:

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Since “Lost in the Pages” was published, my first book set in Rahana has been published (which I wrote in the year 2000!) It’s a fantasy chapter book (for about age 10-14 although of course also the kind of kids’ book I like to read personally), the first of a trilogy that will all be released by mid 2010 (they’re already written and ready to go). The characters don’t overlap at all.

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Congratulations on that, @Felicity_Banks! :slight_smile:

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I confess to being somewhat chuffed. Shall attempt to use my powers for good (but no guarantees…)

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PMFJI with an unrelated topic, but… first, I really love Highway Wars; it give me the chance to act out as a “knight of the future.”

But I think you might have missed out on something: Radio.

Radio reception doesn’t necessarily need any outside power source at all (ever hear of crystal radio?), it’s only transmission that really needs external power. But any Free City able to supply power for air conditioning its hotels most certainly has plenty enough power for radio transmission. Nor is the technology very sophisticated – certainly less than would be needed to maintain an ID card reader/recorder. :slightly_smiling_face:

Radio would both simplify and complicate a number of things in this story; the Free Cities could more easily share their needs and expertise with one another, and they could also keep closer track of the various Highway Marshals floating about (by the bye, you misspell the word as “Marshall” very early on in the story, which always bugs me whenever I see it, but I digress) and the Marshals could more easily keep in touch, not only with the Free Cities, but also with one another. If power is at a premium, perhaps sending would be limited to emergencies only, or perhaps to certain specific times, etc. (Indeed, certain times of day would be better than others; I forget the exact details, but bouncing signals off of the ionosphere for long-distance transmission can only be done when the ionosphere is actually ionized, which it isn’t always.)

Radio would also alleviate the need to travel simply in order to convey information. For example, one reason the encounter with the man-eaters (I forget offhand what you call them) is such a dilemma is that notifying the militia of their existence would mean physically abandoning the mission in oder to tell them. With radio, the MC could simply notify the nearest Free City of the threat right on the spot, then continue his mission!

BUT: I would also envision the following complications. (1) The various warlords could use radio, too… or simply try to jam the communications between the Free Cities – and he Free Cities, of course, would reciprocate! (2) Cryptography! Advaced cryptography – the kind today used by computers – would be right out: forget AES or Twofish. But classical cryptography, of the pen-&-paper variety, would enjoy a resurgence… with cryptanalysis (“codebreaking”) following right along! In fact, this might present some opportunities – instead of an engineer, maybe the kidnapped schlub is a cryptographer with knowledge either of a more secure cipher, or the solution to a cipher used by some of the warlords. (3) Radio would allow for “silent” alarms. Instead of sentries or scouts ringing bells to notify their host cities (giving their presence away, and warning the warlords as well as the City), they could send a silent alert by radio, perhaps resulting in an invading warlord force walking into an ambush. (4) Cities (or caravans equipped with a transmitter and solar cells to power it) could send out an SOS when in trouble, bringing Highway Marshals to their aid. Etc. etc. etc.

Any thoughts?

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Sorry for the super-late reply, I left this comment on my list of things to do… in the next update of Highway Wars some of the characters will mention radio! :slight_smile: