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Words about books, boardgames, music, film and videogames by Andy Johnson.
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This latest roundup of the games I've played covers May 2023, and features two new and two older releases:Miasma Chronicles (2023)Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun (2023)Mafia III: Definitive Edition (2016/2020)Dishonored (2012) Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
In 1966, New Worlds magazine published the story "Behold the Man", by its editor Michael Moorcock. This sacrilegious tale of a man who travels back in time to replace Jesus won Moorcock the Nebula Award for Best Novella. This episode covers the extended 1969 novel version of what may be one of the boldest time travel stories of all. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
![#95 Crystal methods: Sentenced to Prism (1985) by Alan Dean Foster [Review]](https://s3.castbox.fm/d3/7d/14/e7ca5179a748044e712e3913da7b9a948d_scaled_v1_400.jpg "#95 Crystal methods: Sentenced to Prism (1985) by Alan Dean Foster [Review]")
Continuing our look at Alan Dean Foster's Humanx Commonwealth series, this episode covers the fifth standalone novel: Sentenced to Prism (1985). Corporate troubleshooter Evan Orgell finds himself on a distant planet where silicon-based life is abundant. As Orgell struggles to survive, Foster gets to explore some of his favourite themes in the context of an SF adventure. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
The 2020 "definitive editions" of Mafia and Mafia II are the stars of the show in this latest overview of the games I've played recently. This bumper instalment features:Supplice [Early Access] (2023)Gun Jam (2023)Oni (2001)Urban Chaos (1999)War Mongrels (2021)Mafia: Definitive Edition (2020)Mafia II: Definitive Edition (2020)Deus Ex: Human Revolution (2011) Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
This second episode in a series on Iain M. Banks' Culture series of science fiction books covers the first novel, Consider Phlebas (1987). In this subversive take on the space opera, Banks introduces the Culture from the outside - by using as his protagonist the ruthless, shape-changing agent Bora Horza Gobuchul. Expect space pirates, cannibals, a fugitive AI, and a deadly game of "Damage" in the book that helped shape the rest of Banks' career. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
An expansion of her 1974 novella, Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang is Kate Wilhelm's best-known work in the science fiction genre. Winner of three major awards for Best Novel in 1977, it is often called one of the most important SF novels to deal with the issue of cloning. This episode looks at how Wilhelm's scientific shortcomings are compensated for by her philosophical thoughtfulness. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
The anime-inspired third-person action game Oni is often thought of mainly as "Bungie's forgotten game". But in fact, this classic deserves to be recognised as something much more than just a footnote in the history of the studio that made Halo. This review does a dream dive into what makes Oni special, and makes the case that it should be a cult classic. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
The 1991 collection The State of the Art serves an important function in the bibliography of revered Scottish author Iain M. Banks (1954 - 2013). It collects his short fiction from 1987 to 1989, crucially including the stories "A Gift From the Culture", "Descendant", and the title story. These are entries in Banks' Culture series, and good entry points into that sprawling, post-scarcity SF setting.This episode is a whistlestop tour of The State of the Art, taking in skulls, alien waste disposal, a lovesick plant creature, and nuclear war. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
Can 2023 live up to the lofty hopes of a revival of real-time strategy games? We had the first major test of that thesis in February, with the releases of The Settlers: New Allies and Company of Heroes 3. I reviewed both of those games for Entertainium this month, and share some brief thoughts in this episode. The games covered this month are:The Settlers: New Allies (2023)Company of Heroes 3 (2023)Wanted: Dead (2023)Train Valley 2 (2019)The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay (2004) Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
The exploration and colonisation of Mars is a perennial subject in science fiction. Arthur C. Clarke's 1951 novel The Sands of Mars is a significant entry in that history, especially because it takes a realistic approach before the Mariner 4 flyby in 1965 - at least until the alien kangaroos show up.This episode takes a look at the book, and how it fits in with the history of Mars-themed fiction and Clarke's wider career. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
Before The Handmaid's Tale (1985), there was Native Tongue (1984). Suzette Haden Elgin's feminist dystopia is an early precedent for this increasingly popular genre. Combining a powerful feminist message with a detailed exploration of the science of linguistics, this is an interesting curio of 1980s social SF. But why has Klingon proven to be so much more successful than Láadan, Elgin's own constructed language for women? Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
American author Roger Zelazny won the Hugo and Locus awards for Best Novella for his story "Home is the Hangman". The 1976 book My Name is Legion collects this science fiction tale and its two prequels. Featuring nuclear engineering projects, assumed identities, dolphins, and a killer robot, how does this collection stack up? Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
This bumper edition of "what I played" covers not one but two months! Featured in this instalment:Need for Speed Unbound (2022)Metro Exodus (2019)Company of Heroes 2 (2013)A Plague Tale: Innocence (2019) Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
This episode continues our look at the Humanx Commonwealth sci-fi series by Alan Dean Foster. The fourth standalone book, Voyage to the City of the Dead, is set on the diverse Commonwealth world of Horseye. Married human scientists Etienne and Lyra Redowl travel up the massive Skar river and could make an incredible discovery - if they can survive the planet's dangers.To catch up with the series, listen to episodes #62 (Midworld), #65 (Cachalot) and #81 (Nor Crystal Tears). Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
If humans mastered the stars and met other alien species, what would they do in order to stay on top? This short episode covers The Long Result, a 1965 sci-fi novel by British author John Brunner which is part of a transitional period in his fascinating career. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
The latest monthly roundup of the games I've played lately, new and old. Featured in November 2022: Evil West (2022)Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 (2022)Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory (2005)Rise of Nations: Rise of Legends (2006)Sniper Elite 4 (2017)Star Trek: Away Team (2001) Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
My coverage of Alan Dean Foster's Humanx Commonwealth series continues with Nor Crystal Tears (1982). This third novel focuses on the early history of the setting, and the first encounter between humans and the insect-like Thranx. Can the plucky agronomist Ryozenzuzex bridge the cultural barriers with a freakish species who wear their skeletons on the inside? Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
Aliens, generation ships, dated social attitudes, and the horror of infinite nothingness. This episode is an overview of the book Spaceworlds: Stories of Life in the Void. Published by the British Library in 2021, this anthology of classic science fiction stories set in space features short fiction by John Brunner, Jack Vance, Judith Merril, Richard C. Meredith, and more. Which are the essential tales, and which should be tossed out of the nearest airlock? Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
This month's bumper roundup of the games I played features seven entries:Asterigos: Curse of the Stars (2022)Dome Keeper (2022)Gotham Knights (2022)Titanfall 2 (2016)Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance (2013)Cultic (2022)Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (2022) Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
Another month bites the dust, and it was a busy one for me. Writing for Entertainium, I reviewed three games in September - a record. First up was Circus Electrique, an interesting mix of management and turn-based battles in steampunk London. I was much less impressed by No Place for Bravery, a Brazilian indie Soulslike which I found to be way wide of the mark. Conversely, I liked Sunday Gold far more than I expected to. My hatred of point-and-click adventure games is on the record, but this one won me over with its logical puzzles and the addition of its own turn-based combat.This month’s update also features two older games. I caught up with Iron Harvest (2020), a noble effort to revitalise the ailing real-time strategy genre which meets with mixed results. And lastly for September, I finally played BioShock Infinite (2013), a full nine years after it came out. Irrational’s sequel is showing its age a bit, but it’s still easy to see why it received such a rapturous reception at the time. Support the showFor lots more writing on classic science fiction, other books, video games, and more check our my site andyjohnson.xyz and follow me on Twitter: @andyjohnsonuk
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