Plot:
Earth (in the recent past) was contacted by intergalactic forces and didn’t respond in time to claim self-governance and ownership. In accordance with intergalactic law, the planet has been claimed and, with the flip of a switch, was repurposed into an RPG dungeon. The inhabitants of Earth are the competitors.
Earth is set to be featured on the newest season of the galaxy’s most popular TV show. There are 18 levels to the dungeon and if anyone escapes the final level then Earth will regain self-governance.
High Level Review:
The tone is sarcastic, the action is bombastic, the violence is ever-present and it does a pretty good job of spoofing RPGs. Characters (referred to as Crawlers) are pitted against one another but also band together to tell tales of perseverance and the power of community in the human experience. As you learn more about the dungeon, you’re also introduced to intergalactic politics and a wider plot emerges. The interplay of in-dungeon events and show-running mechanics offer a lot of intrigue.
Loot boxes and level ups are a mainstay but each book (each dungeon level) feels unique and drives the action in a new way. The twistings of plot offer surprises, even as the narrative moves in overall expected directions.
The system AI and a cat named Princess Donut often steal the show (for me, it’s the AI more than Donut).
I had a surprisingly fun time and devoured all available (audio)books over the span of a few weeks. The audiobooks themselves are high end productions and add value to the story (imo). The Narrator (Jeff Hayes) does a great job and I actually thought some of the characters were voiced by others until I looked it up. Fair warning, however … the narrator is doing a Patrick Warburton impression and some people (my wife included) couldn’t enjoy the books.
“It sounds like Kronk from The Emperor’s New Groove. Turn it off,” she said as I put on my headphones and enjoyed the crap out of it.