When Gunnar Long is transported into the first fully-immersive virtual MMORPG, he finds himself in a new world filled with magic, mystery and adventure.
No more 9-to-5 job. No more studio apartment. No more reality TV.
Finally, he's in a place where he can call home, a place with people he can call friends.
But as more people want to trade their real world lives to get inside Eden's Gate, the government of the outside world wants the "game" shut down at all costs.
Gunnar must learn to survive, grow in power and find a way to find send a message back to his old home.
"We're fine. We're alive. Eden's Gate is real."
My Opinion: 317 pages, $3.99, Available on Kindle Unlimited
There are two storylines: 1) The one where the main character explores the new world he’s trapped in, goes on quests, gets equipment, and learns some magic. 2) An exploration of how non-gamers would feel if 5 million people were killed and their minds trapped in a game. Then how society feels when more people voluntarily do the same to get into this game world, knowing it will kill their bodies. The U.S.A. and other world governments feel threatened and plan to shut the game down, killing everyone trapped inside.
I really liked this story. It felt familiar, yet fresh. The opening of the story reminds me alot of Sword Art Online. The premise is set up similarly where the players of Eden’s Gate are trapped in the game by a mad developer. Only in this case, the players' bodies die, so there’s no hope of returning to earth. I enjoyed the more realistic fear based reaction of general society to this event. They don’t understand it, so they want to just shut down the game before more people voluntarily suicide to get in.
The main character, Gunnar, is likable and I find myself rooting for him from the very beginning of his journey in Eden’s Gate. I also really like that there are the realistic consequences for the decisions the main character makes as he starts his new life in Eden’s Gate. When he makes poor, selfish choices there are bad consequences. Reputation is lost or people get hurt.
The game mechanics are pretty standard. Health, mana, stamina, damage percentages. There are no classes but an open skill system. Crafting has only been explored with the ability to upgrade weapons with runestones. Still, I enjoyed the game world and I found myself wanting to learn all the different types of spells.
This is a solid story. It’s well written and engaging. Good action. Good adventure. Can’t wait for the next book to come out. I give it a 8 out of 10.