Who wouldn't want to pilot giant robots for a living?
The Overdrive Corporation has announced another Selection, the exclusive tryout process for aspiring Fortress Masters. Designing maps for the Mech battling virtual reality RPG is Julian's dream come true, but a brutal defeat against superstar sniper Dynamic has destroyed his confidence.
Hoping to find a stronger machine, Julian enters an immensely challenging map that promises ultra-rare Mech frames.
During the ill-fated mission, he finally learns what it takes to get better. It's not the strength of the machine that matters most - it's the skill of the pilot.
Julian rebuilds his gameplay from the ground up, seeking out the strongest opponents and the most challenging dungeons. He explores the countless aspects of Overdrive that he's inadvertently ignored. Waiting for him is a rematch with the sniper he's never beaten, with a spot in the Selection on the line.
The fifth novel from writer Ryan Tang, a veteran of the esports industry and high school sports coach, The Heaven's Boxer will delight fans of LitRPG, sports stories, and mecha anime.
My Opinion: 303 pages, $2.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited
This is an underrated Mech battle GameLit story with upgradable and customizable mechs.
The beginning of the novel sets up the series goal of entering a tournament and a bit about a new kind of mech. I was most surprised how little that was developed in this book, considering most of the first 25% was devoted to bringing it up. Instead, the story is a bit more slice of life with the MC training a couple new people while simultaneously realizing his own shortcomings and training to rectify them. I actually liked this shift as it allowed for a more natural explanation of the game mechanics.
One of the few things I didn't like about the story was the first fight at the very start of the novel. It's not badly written or anything, it was just a little off putting. I think it was because the author tried to introduce the game world, game mechanics, the MC and his flaws all while describing the exhibition fight. While the scene did give a peek at other high end players and the types of mechs in the game world, the fight felt bogged down by the other stuff.
Honestly, I liked the story a lot more once it was past that part and the MC started to train his friend to play the game. It was a much better way to slowly introduce the game mechanics, and describe the various types of mechs. The fights after that 1st one were much better too since they didn’t need explanations that slowed the pacing.
Outside combat, the story is still interesting. There’s lots of good dialogue between players about tactics, different play styles, and mech build theory. One of the things that makes Mech games so fun.
There’s no real RPG system but rather parts and weapons with classifications and levels of quality. The mechs increase in power through good piloting and through purchasing, winning, or crafting those more powerful parts and making mechs within the points limits given. There’s plenty of other game stuff, but it leans more towards the strategy of PvE and PvP, build and play style, and player skill. You can tell the author has a passion for mech games and the game stuff is good.
Overall, this is a good story once past that initial first fight. I only wish it had RPG mechanics but anyone that’s played a good mech game will enjoy the story.
Score: 7.4 out of 10
The Heaven's Boxer: Scifi LitRPG - Esports - Mecha Battles (Overdrive Book 1)