Series - Tunnels and Trolls: The Crown of Klade

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Language:	English
Publisher:	MetaArcade -- United States
Categories:	Format : eBook Product Family : Tunnels & Trolls

This series of Android/iPhone apps is based on nine books in the Tunnels and Trolls series, four extended mini-adventures from Sorcerer's Apprentice, and it also contains two original titles. These are ordered into a campaign named "The Crown of Klade".

Digital Gamebooks

1. The Ascendant
2. Buffalo Castle
3. Blue Frog Tavern
4. Sword for Hire
5. A Sworded Adventure
6. Gamesmen of Kasar
7. Mistywood
8. Caravan to Tiern
9. Road to Gull
10. Golden Dust, Red Death
11. Hot Pursuit
12. Sewers of Oblivion
13. Deathtrap Equalizer
14. Stop Thief!
15. City of Terrors
16. Ultimatum

User Comments

I've long wanted to play through some of the many original Tunnels & Trolls adventures from the late Seventies and Eighties. This app provides easy and affordable access to them. While the app itself and some introductory adventures are free, most have to be bought permanently or on a per-play basis. In 2019, I paid 10 cents per play.

The main attraction here is the Crown of Klade campaign, consisting of old solos strung together, but you can also play one-off mini adventures like Naked Doom and longer stuff like Labyrinth.

As a T&T newbie who usually prefers printed books to apps, I enjoyed the clean layout and easy-to-follow tutorial more than I had hoped for. The dice-rolling seems nice enough in the first adventure, but once you have several dozen dice in use, the physics engine is beyond its limits. Not only do dice suddenly jump around, you'll also spend more time waiting for the result.

While a lot of effort has obviously gone into the campaign sequence, there are still hurdles to be overcome. Certain scenarios are much harder than the previous ones, and you'll have level up by replaying. Also, some drastic situations in the text are not enforced. Repeatedly, you'll be told that you've lost all possessions, but after a click on your inventory, you'll be relieved to find out this is not actually the case. In a similar vein, you can acquire multiple copies of a unique powerful weapon simply by replaying the scenario (without any further benefit).

Finally, you'll amass gold and jewels while adventuring, but pointlessly, as you can't spend it - there is no market. All of this facilitates the playing at the cost of credibility. I enjoyed my time with the campaign, but under the modern surface of the app you'll still be able to discern the ancient scenarios it consists of. If such things bother you, stay away.

--Florik