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Pendragon Rising

by Ian Thomas

2015
Fantasy
ChoiceScript

(based on 4 ratings)
1 review4 members have played this game. It's on 7 wishlists.

About the Story

Seize the throne in the age of King Arthur! Lead an army of Britons against the darkest of enemies in this epic interactive medieval fantasy novel.

"Pendragon Rising" is a thrilling 112,000-word interactive novel by Ian Thomas, where your choices control the story. It's entirely text-based--without graphics or sound effects--and fueled by the vast, unstoppable power of your imagination.

As the bastard offspring of the aging ruler Pendragon, you’ll fight to save Britain from a demon-tainted enemy and claim the crown you deserve. Command an army as Arthur, brave son of Uther, or Arta, fearless daughter of Utta.

Charge heroically to the front of battle, or use tricks to defeat your foes. Dally with your childhood companion, or seek romance elsewhere. Hold the line with your closest friends against foreign invaders and their sinister magics. Find friendship, forge alliances, uncover plots, and triumph over creatures of nightmare to win a future for your people and your kingdom.

Will you be mercenary or merciful? Seductive or solitary? Most importantly, can you lead your allies to drive back the darkness, and seize your place as Pendragon of Britain?

• A 112,000-word fantasy set in medieval Britain.
• A Celtic take on the story of King Arthur against a dark background of war and strange magics.
• Play as male or female, gay or straight.
• Win over allies to swell the ranks of your army as you fight for the future of the kingdom.
• Earn the acclaim of your people by performing heroic deeds that will turn your name into legend.
• Claim your place as an unmatched warrior, a silver-tongued diplomat, or an inspirational leader.

Ratings and Reviews

5 star:
(2)
4 star:
(1)
3 star:
(0)
2 star:
(1)
1 star:
(0)
Average Rating: based on 4 ratings
Number of Reviews Written by IFDB Members: 1
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
A Celtic-centered retelling of the legend of King Arthur, August 7, 2020
Related reviews: about 1 hour

This story had me in the beginning and slowly lost me over time. I was pleased with the overall result, but it didn't have staying power for me.

To begin with, this game was all the Arthurian characters, but with Welsh names, like Bedwyr for Bedivere and Emrys for Merlin.

Also, for the first half of the game, it seems like a non-fantasy, more realistic version of King Arthur, with Merlin being basically just a Roman-educated scholar and troublemaker and the Sword in the Stone just being a symbolic trophy laid on a table.

It offers you romance early on, and has some good stat variability (I put all my stats in Violence, Bravado, and Christianity/Rome).

But all of that changes in the later part of the game. I encountered only a few romance options, and the realism took a sharp left turn into (Spoiler - click to show)wolf-demons and spirits, and somehow all of my stats got cancelled out into one big neutral mess, all almost exactly in the middle. I've never had that happen in a Choicescript game before; I'm certain it was from my own actions, but it was very odd.

The game has a lot of good features, such as the distinctive Celtic feel and a habit of doing omniscient narrator sections in italics.

I received a review copy of this game.

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This is version 1 of this page, edited by Dan Fabulich on 18 December 2015 at 12:45pm. - View Update History - Edit This Page - Add a News Item - Delete This Page