The UK Games Exp 2023

A week ago, I was in the thick of things at Day 2 of the UK Games Expo. It's an event that I look forward to all year and now that it's over for another year, I can't believe it's already been a week since I was at the NEC with my ACE Gamebooks.

ACE Gamebooks at the UK Games Expo.

Talking of which, the books were very well received. RONIN 47 proved popular, although some of my regular readers chose not to pick up a copy because it's science fiction rather than fantasy, and Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland did well, as it always does. On top of that, I sold out of NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!, Beowulf Beastslayer, and Dracula: Curse of the Vampire (again).

A shield-maiden showing off her 'Hwaet' tattoo.

One of the things I love about the UK Games Expo is the number of friends I catch up with from all over the country, and all areas of my life. A couple of my university friends still live nearby and stopped by my stand to say hello, as did Twitch streamers Ken Boyter and Julian Sparrow. 

Richard, one of my best friends from university and a huge fan of board games.

Ken Boyter (EdraTales) and Julian Sparrow (Babel_17).

And then there are the usual suspects, such as Rene Batsford, Ed Fortune, Kev Abbotts, PJ Montgomery, Neil Roberts, Jamie Fry, George Mann, James Wallis, Justin-Lee Morrison, Jonathan Hicks, and all the Kickstarter backers who stop by and say hello. I also talked business with Holmgard Press and Aconyte Books, which was nice.

Olly Mc, a.k.a. the Storymaster, of The Storymaster's Tales.

Hanging out with a Terminator Space Marine, as you do.

The Aconyte Books stand, promoting the Marvel Multiverse Missions gamebooks.

A very impressive piece of Necron cosplay.

PJ Montgomery with an original copy of Spellbreaker, my first book, published 30 years ago this month.

The Lone Wolf Miniatures Game at the Holmgard Press stand.

Dr Peter Wright and the gang from Edge Hill University, where my ACE Gamebooks are on the game design course reading list.

On the Saturday night I went to the live readthrough of Sir Ian Livingstone's City of Thieves, during which Olly Mc guided John Robertson through Port Blacksand until he met a grisly end at the hands of Zanbar Bone. Wearing bunny ears. Zanbar Bone, not John Robertson.

Olly Mc and John Roberson at the City of Thieves live readthrough.

The victorious Zanbar Bone, plus fluffy, rainbow bunny ears. 

Another highlight was the Heorot RPG photoshoot with the reenactors of The Vikings UK, as was the 'Write Like a Pro' workshop I did with Darren Pearce on the Sunday morning.

Vikings reading a Viking RPG. How very meta...

Darren Pearce and Jonathan Green, your hosts for the 'Write Like a Pro' workshop.

However, a huge thank you must go to Scott Lewis and Claire Byard, who helped out on my stand again this year and kept me entertained on Saturday night, drinking cocktails and playtesting card games.

Scott and Claire.

Playtesting a certain Christmas-themed card game at around midnight.

If you've never been, you should check out the UK Games Expo because there is something there for everyone, no matter their age. And I hope to be there again next year, but I'm going to need to pull my finger out if I want to have another ACE Gamebook for sale at the event.

ACE Gamebooks at the UK Games Expo 2023.

Gamebook Friday: Official Fighting Fantasy Colouring Books - YOU are the Colourist!

Now available from Snowbooks, are the first four Official Fighting Fantasy Colouring Books!

The adult colouring book craze has been gaining momentum over recent months, but you have never seen a set of colouring books like these before.

A4 format, they feature the black and white line art from the FF gamebooks The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, The Forest of Doom, Deathtrap Dungeon and City of Thieves, by the fantasy art legends Russ Nicholson, Malcolm Barter and Iain McCaig. The Warlock of Firetop Mountain also features the cover art of Martin McKenna.

The books are available to buy from here in the UK, and from here in the US.

Gamebook Friday: YOU are the Colourist!

Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone present

Fighting Fantasy Colouring Books

  

Fighting Fantasy gamebooks have sold over 17 million books worldwide, in over 30 languages. YOU were the hero in stories such as Deathtrap Dungeon, The Forest of Doom, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, and City of Thieves, fighting monsters and foes with a pencil, two dice and an eraser. And now –

YOU ARE THE COLOURIST!

Bring your favourite wizards, monsters and fantastic settings to life, colouring the original emotive illustrations by artists Iain McCaig, Malcolm Barter and Russ Nicholson.

About the authors

Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone co-founded iconic games company Games Workshop in 1975, launching Dungeons & Dragons and Warhammer in Europe. They co-authored The Warlock of Firetop Mountain,which was published in 1982, and went on to write over 20 titles in the best-selling Fighting Fantasy gamebook series. Ian became Executive Chairman of Eidos in 1995 where he launched global video games franchises includingLara Croft: Tomb Raider andHitman. Steve became a Director of Lionhead, the award-winning video games studio best known for developing Fable.

About the illustrators

Russ Nicholson is an illustrator of Fantasy, well known for his contribution to the Fighting Fantasy series, including the first such book, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. He has also produced illustrations for Games Workshop publications, including White Dwarf Magazine, and more recently has worked with Le Grimoire, Scriptarium, and Tin Man Games, amongst others.

Malcolm Barter studied Illustration & Design at Ipswich School of Art. He has freelanced in Publishing, Editorial & Advertising, notably illustrating Ian Livingstone’s classic Fighting Fantasy gamebook The Forest of Doom. His recent work has included more Fighting Fantasy, having been tracked down and lured back by French publishers in 2013.

Iain McCaig is an award-winning artist and one of the most sought-after conceptual designers working in the entertainment industry today. His work includes the landmark designs for Queen Amidala and Darth Maul, for Lucasfilm, as well as several Fighting Fantasy covers, and the internal illustrations for the seminal City of Thieves and the bestselling Deathtrap Dungeon.

Martin McKenna has illustrated covers and internal illustrations for twenty-two of the Fighting Fantasy series from Puffin Books/Wizard Books. He also produces concept and production art for computer games, and film and television productions, which have included the BAFTA-nominated The Magician of Samarkand for the BBC and Gulliver's Travels for 20th Century Fox.

About the books

Available 28th July 2016  |  297 x 210 mm | Published by Snowbooks http://snowbooks.com

Available worldwide from Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com, Snowbooks.com and all good bookshops

9781911390039 • The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Colouring Book • £9.99, $14.95 • paperback

9781911390046 • The Warlock of Firetop Mountain Colouring Book • £25, $40 • hardback

9781911390053 • The Forest of Doom Colouring Book • £9.99, $14.95 • paperback

9781911390060 • The Forest of Doom Colouring Book • £25, $40 • hardback

9781911390091 • Deathtrap Dungeon Colouring Book • £9.99, $14.95 • paperback

9781911390107 • Deathtrap Dungeon Colouring Book • £25, $40 • hardback

9781911390077 • City of Thieves Colouring Book • £9.99, $14.95 • paperback

9781911390084 • City of Thieves Colouring Book • £25, $40 • hardback

Pre-order at http://snowbooks.com/ff

Read more at www.fightingfantasy.com