Recently, I was looking for books on game development at my local library. One book I came across was this: Rise of the Dungeon Master. Dungeons and Dragons has had a huge impact on the video game world. So I thought it would be interesting to read about the creator and the creation. And honestly, I think it’s worth the read. Here’s my review of Rise of the Dungeon Master.
Format
Probably most notable is the format of the book. Rise of the Dungeon Master isn’t just a traditional book. It’s a visual novel. The art style is somewhat reminiscent of the artwork from old AD&D modules (although, much more cartoon-y).
The story is told largely through a 2nd-person narrative (i.e. “You are Gary Gygax.”) It reads much like a dungeon master would talk during an actually game of D&D. Which I think is an interesting touch.
Content
The book is broken down into 9 chapters. Each focuses on a different time period of Gary Gygax’s life and the creation of D&D. The beginning of the book center more on the Gary Gygax. Later on the focus shifts more to D&D itself.
Of particular interest to me was chapter 3. Gary Gygax was not the only person responsible for the creation of D&D. He worked with another with another man named Dave Arneson. Together, they took the predecessor to D&D (a naval war game) and shaped it into what we know today. Most of the time, we only acknowledge Gary Gygax. So I was a little surprised to learn about this second person.
Personally, I joined the D&D community much later in life (like, 2013?). I missed much of the pop culture-demon-incantation stuff of the early 80s. (Also, I wasn’t born yet?) I’ve heard about it, of course. But never actually knew the reasoning that all happened. Chapter 6 in particular covers a story that led up to that media craze. (Warning, a bit graphic.)
Fun fact I learned: there was a TV movie called “Mazes and Monsters“. It starred Tom Hanks at 26 years old. He plays an obsessive gamer that can’t distinguish fantasy from reality. I’ll be looking into this movie later.
Final Thoughts on Rise of the Dungeon Master
Overall, I thought Rise of the Dungeon Master was a fairly interesting read. There was a lot I didn’t know and it was presented in a pretty unique way. Was it worth it? Yeah, I’d say so.
For long time fans of D&D, I think it’s worth picking up a copy and adding it to your collection.
If you are more just interested in the history aspect, see if you can find a copy at your local library. It’s a short enough read that it may be better that way.
Either way, I recommend just reading it for the historical context. It was pretty interesting in my opinion.
If you’ve read this book, I’d love to hear your opinion of it. Leave your thoughts in the comments below. Or if you have another book on the history of games, let me know! I’m always on the lookout for my next read.
