LitRPG Podcast 246 - Dungeon Crawler Carl, Cookmancer Online, The Aussie Mana Apocalypse, It Seems the Strongest Job is Not Hero nor Sage, but Inspector (Provisional) Instead?
LitRPG Podcast 246 - Dungeon Crawler Carl, Cookmancer Online, The Aussie Mana Apocalypse, It Seems the Strongest Job is Not Hero nor Sage, but Inspector (Provisional) Instead?
Oct. 2nd, 202
Hello everyone, welcome to episode 246 of the LitRPG podcast. I’m Ramon Mejia.
I’m here to bring you the latest LitRPG news, reviews, and author interviews. We have 4 new reviews just for you.
New Releases and Reviews:
Dungeon Crawler Carl: A LitRPG/Gamelit Adventure (10:30)
Another odd but highly entertaining novel from Matt Dinniman.
Score: 7.9 out of 10
Cookmancer Online: A LitRPG / GameLit Novel (VR Verse Book 1) (18:18)
Not Much Depth
Score: 6 out of 10
The Aussie Mana Apocalypse: A LitRPG Novel (26:27)
Humorous RPG Apocalypse
Score: 7.6 out of 10
It Seems the Strongest Job is Not Hero nor Sage, but Inspector (Provisional) Instead? (35:28)
Saikyou no Shokugyou wa Yuusha demo Kenja demo naku Kanteishi (Kari) rashii desu yo?
Casual read with MC with non-combat class
Score: 7.6 out of 10
(Play Music 2)
LitRPG News
More Plagiarized stories
Even claim copyright. All these stories are abandoned which makes them targets of this kind of theft.
Game Changer is taken from an abandoned Royal Road story of the same name. The plagiarist even claimed to be the same author.
Original: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/11561/game-changer-day-dreams
Plagiarized: https://www.amazon.com/Game-Changer-Argus-ebook/dp/B08K82M3VG/
The False Summoned is taken from an abandoned Royal Road story of the same name. The plagiarist even claimed to be the same author.
Original: https://www.royalroad.com/fiction/32552/the-false-summoned
Plagiarized: https://www.amazon.com/False-Summoned-Flameruner-ebook/dp/B08K7M65TD/
Over Leveled is taken from the web novel story of the same name, just as one word Overleveled
Original: https://www.webnovel.com/book/overleveled_17409494606860805
Plagiarized: https://www.amazon.com/Over-Leveled-Hank-Waters-ebook/dp/B08K4NK2W9/
Out Now!
Tycoon - Trudging the Path to a Modest Life in a Fantasy World: A Fantasy LitRPG Series (Book Two)
Zero.Hero 2: A Super Powered LitRPG Adventure
The Great MacGuffin: A LitRPG Adventure (Beta Tester Book 1)
Sovereign (The Gods' Game, Volume IV): A LitRPG novel
Final Odyssey: A LitRPG Journey (Legends Online Book 7)
Guardians (Pal-Tee Planet Book 2)
Bio Dungeon: Parasyte (The Body's Dungeon Book 2)
Nova Terra: Liberator - A LitRPG/GameLit Adventure (The Titan Series Book 5)
Vainqueur the Dragon II: The Year of the Rogues
Twilight of Midgard: A LitRPG Fantasy Series
New LitRPG Audiobooks
Hive Knight - A Dark Fantasy LitRPG (Trinity of the Hive)
Sea of Sorrow - Dragon Heart Series, Book 5
Brightblade - A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Series, Book 1)
Leader - Light Online Series, Book 3
A Cat and His Human - League of Losers, Book 1
Echoes of the System: A LitRPG Adventure
Upcoming LitRPG:
Awaken Online: Inferno (Tarot #3) (Oct. 3rd, 2020)
Undertaker (Monster Girl Galaxy 1) (Oct. 5th, 2020)
Watcher’s Fate: A LitRPG Saga (Life in Exile Book 3) (Oct. 6th, 2020)
Pawn: A LitRPG Adventure (Monsters, Maces and Magic Book 5) (Oct. 6th, 2020)
City of Goblins (In the System Book #1): LitRPG Series (Oct. 7th, 2020)
86-Neon: An Epic LitRPG Adventure (King's League Book 2) (Oct. 13th, 2020)
Seas the Day: A LitRPG/GameLit Adventure (The Bad Guys Book 5) (Oct. 22nd, 2020)
The Otherworld (Underdog Book #4): LitRPG Series (Oct. 26th, 2020)
The Fallen God: A LitRPG Adventure (Eternal Online Book 3) (Oct. 27th, 2020)
The Master of Metal: A LitPPG Wuxia Series (The Cards of Fate Book 1) (Nov. 3rd, 2020)
The First Peak of the Force: A LitRPG Wuxia Series (The Heavenly Throne 3) (Nov. 10th, 2020)
Date: A LitRPG Adventure (Monsters, Maces and Magic Book 6) (Nov. 10th, 2020)
Isr Kale's Journal (The Alchemist Book #4): LitRPG Series (Nov. 10th, 2020)
Dungeon Seeker: A Reborn Online Book 2 LitRPG Adventure (Nov. 23rd, 2020)
Biomedical Self-Engineering : Book 2 (Nov. 23rd, 2020)
The Twilight Hatchling: A LitRPG Adventure (Dream Stream Reality Book 2) (Dec. 1st, 2020)
In Service of the Pharaoh (League of Losers Book #2): LitRPG Series (Dec. 3rd, 2020)
The Tribute (Project Stellar Book 3): LitRPG Series (Dec. 10th, 2020)
The Keepers of Limbo (The Range Book #1): LitRPG Series (Dec. 14th, 2020)
Drawing the Line: A LitRPG/GameLit Novel (The Underhill Chronicles Book 2) (Dec. 15th, 2020)
The Dark Champion (Interworld Network Book #3): LitRPG Series (Dec. 16th, 2020)
Small Unit Tactics (Volume #2): LitRPG Series (Dec. 28th, 2020)
Spear of Destiny: A LitRPG Dragonrider Adventure (The Archemi Online Chronicles Book 5) (Dec. 31st, 2020)
Onto New Releases and Reviews
(Play Music 3)
New Releases and Reviews
(Picture 1)
Dungeon Crawler Carl: A LitRPG/Gamelit Adventure
The apocalypse will be televised!
A man. His ex-girlfriend's cat. A sadistic game show unlike anything in the universe: a dungeon crawl where survival depends on killing your prey in the most entertaining way possible.
In a flash, every human-erected construction on Earth—from Buckingham Palace to the tiniest of sheds—collapses in a heap, sinking into the ground.
The buildings and all the people inside have all been atomized and transformed into the dungeon: an 18-level labyrinth filled with traps, monsters, and loot. A dungeon so enormous, it circles the entire globe.
Only a few dare venture inside. But once you're in, you can't get out. And what's worse, each level has a time limit. You have but days to find a staircase to the next level down, or it's game over. In this game, it's not about your strength or your dexterity. It's about your followers, your views. Your clout. It's about building an audience and killing those goblins with style.
You can't just survive here. You gotta survive big.
You gotta fight with vigor, with excitement. You gotta make them stand up and cheer. And if you do have that "it" factor, you may just find yourself with a following. That's the only way to truly survive in this game—with the help of the loot boxes dropped upon you by the generous benefactors watching from across the galaxy.
They call it Dungeon Crawler World. But for Carl, it's anything but a game.
My Opinion: 446 pages, $3.99, Not Available On Kindle Unlimited
Full disclosure: I received an advanced copy for review. I purchased a copy when it became available.
This is another odd but highly entertaining novel from Matt Dinniman.
This time earth is turned into a dungeon with only a fraction of the population surviving the initial transformation. The survivors must dungeon dive while being watched by an intergalactic audience. Dungeon Crawler Carl, the main character (MC), and his cat companion, Princess Donut the Queen Anne Chonk, must survive the monsters, the other players, and figure out a way to entertain the audience to get sponsors which may mean the difference between life and death.
The story plays like a twisted version of the hunger games mixed with a dungeon crawl. There's all manner of weird monsters and a social aspect that adds a nice twist to the story. The plotting is pretty slice of life with no major goals beyond surviving and the story ends on a little bit of a cliff hanger like a serial story pausing between arcs.
The game stuff is regular and intricate part of the story world. Lots of notifications and item and spell descriptions. Levels, stats, etc all exist but take a bit of a backseat this book.
Overall, I thought the story was really good. Like all of the author's work, he gives a standard trope, the dungeon crawl, a quirky, odd, sometimes gruesome twist which I found interesting.
Score: 7.9 out of 10
Dungeon Crawler Carl: A LitRPG/Gamelit Adventure
Cookmancer Online: A LitRPG / GameLit Novel (VR Verse Book 1)
The goal was simple: level up and earn enough points to pay for my mother’s medical needs.
I’m Kayla and I wanted to soar through the air and command the wind as a feared and respected Airmancer in an online Gothic fantasy world. I’d collected what experience we needed, but someone decided victory shouldn’t be mine. I got hacked, and they used my points on a build used for mule accounts. Now, apparently, I cook. I do magic with my food, but not by choice.
Not only do I have to deal with that, but I have to survive a world filled with the undead, vampires, and a group of people who think I should suffer some more.
With the help of my friends—a flesh-golem, fairy illusionist, and a shape shifter—we put a plan in place to prove to my enemies I can win and help my mom with flour power.
If you love unique classes, strong female protagonists, non-harem GameLit/LitRPG elements, and a self-contained story, you’ll love Cookmancer Online!
My Opinion: 266 pages, $3.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited
Not Much Depth
I didn’t like this story. It’s not badly written, but I never connected with the main character (MC) and actually kinda didn’t like her. Her backstory pushes her into this victim role that didn’t feel right.
The story world is set in a far flung future where humanity is saved from environmental and social destruction by an A.I. that now works with governments to preserve and better humanity. All the major woes, like housing and food have all been solved. Yet, this same A.I. unfortunately, can’t seem to tell when a scummy ex-boyfriend is lying or that there’s a pattern of bad behavior on his part. The real world honestly lacks in much detail or depth and unfortunately that pattern follows the story into the game world. There’s not only a lack of depth to the game mechanics, but the game world in general. I mean, beyond playing the game for social credits, what’s the point? Sure the MC is supposed to be working to save enough credits for her mom’s surgery, but wouldn’t getting a job and saving actual money be better?
On the subject of the game mechanics, the story is pretty light. I mean, there are plenty of scenes in the game, and characters have builds and you can tell the author has gaming experience from how the fights are described. But the game mechanics just lack depth and balance. Additionally, I just expected more cooking from a build called Cookmancer. Instead the MC summons any ingredients she wants in the air and drops them on people and monsters, seemingly without cost of any kind.
Overall, the novel didn’t work for me. It didn’t satisfy that LitRPG itch for me. I actively disliked the beginning of the story and while the end was good enough to mitigate some of that, it was an uphill battle. The story feels like a write to market attempt from someone that’s more used to writing another kind of novel. There are really big emotional stakes and development but little depth to the world or game and in the plot, the game just felt of secondary concern which made the story less than entertaining for me.
Score: 6 out of 10
Cookmancer Online: A LitRPG / GameLit Novel (VR Verse Book 1)
The Aussie Mana Apocalypse: A LitRPG Novel
A GameLit Western.
Set in the Australian Outback.
At the end of their gap years, Keat Walker and his mates repeat their camping trip to Broken Hill. Repeating their schoolies trip seemed like the perfect chance to have a yarn about their adventures over the last year. Then the apocalypse happened.
Mana infuses the world overnight, and a country already containing the world's ten most poisonous snakes, crocodiles, and sharks, is overrun with monsters. Dungeons spring up, boss mobs roam the landscape, and there isn't a wiki to be found.
Facing the Australian outback, Keat has his best mate Nugget, Nugget's sister Mel (who he definitely did not have a thing with), Mel's new boyfriend from Melbourne, and a British backpacker.
Armed with only a BBQ fork he made in woodshop, his new class of Jackaroo, and the potential to tame the monsters now roaming the outback, Keat must find a way towards Broken Hill.
My Opinion: 135 pages, $2.99, Available On Kindle Unlimited
This is a slice of life RPG apocalypse story set in Australia. It has a very regional start which may be an issue for some readers, but once it gets into the RPG apocalypse stuff it shines with good humor and fun adventures.
There are some storytelling issues. It takes a bit too long to get to the RPG apocalypse. The story uses the space before that to develop backgrounds, reference places and events, and establish relationships between characters. I understand why it was all done but I was frankly bored with it and felt a good bit could have been cut out without harm to the story. Especially since many of the location and cultural references were lost on me.
Reading this as someone that didn't grow up in Australia and hasn't visited it, it was challenging to imagine the place the story was set. Not only were there lots of local references and locations, few of them were described. I didn't have any idea if the locations were deserts, beach resorts, or mountains. Additionally, the use of regional slang, with no translation, made some scenes very confusing. This isn't bad necessarily, it just made connecting with the story challenging for me at the start.
Once you get into the actual RPG apocalypse though, most of those issues don't mean much. The story shows what it is, an action oriented story with lots of humor. I mean, the MC deliberately takes the class he's least suited to as a middle finger to the universe and his soul bound scaling weapon is a BBQ fork. The mid and end story plot is a little predictable but that doesn’t take away too much from the sheer fun of the story.
As far as game mechanics, it's mostly standard DnD rules with custom classes. There are stats, character sheets, levels XP, etc. The only unique game mechanic is the tenant system,where controlling property or towns means paying rent in the form of XP and gold. I think it's supposed to be some commentary on housing or land ownership in Australia, but the mechanic doesn't really come into play in this book, but seems like it'll serve as motivation for future adventures. In practice you can tell however that the mechanics are sometimes ignored in favor of a fun story.
Overall, a fun story once you get into the actual RPG apocalypse part of the story.
Score: 7.6 out of 10
The Aussie Mana Apocalypse: A LitRPG Novel
It Seems the Strongest Job is Not Hero nor Sage, but Inspector (Provisional) Instead?
Saikyou no Shokugyou wa Yuusha demo Kenja demo naku Kanteishi (Kari) rashii desu yo?
An average student got summoned to another world and granted the strongest job.
No, not Hero, not Sage either.
It's Inspector.
With ability to inspect anything and gather information accurately, surely this is the strongest job there is!
My Opinion: 25+ chapters, Free, No English Publisher
This is a scanned and translated manga. There’s no official english publisher and this is fan translated so you need to read it from right to left.
I was a little bit wary of this, it's a transported to an RPG game worlds mana with a slightly younger main character (MC). I wasn’t sure if I’d like the teen MC, but the story hits a lot of the slice of light beats I like. It has plenty of RPG mechanics, a non-OP MC, a tiny bit ecchi, but it also has a good sense of humor. The art is black and white, but the lines are crisp and both action and humor are conveyed well. It’s slice of life, so don’t expect too much of a plot, but it’s still a fun story about an MC with a non-combat abilities that we’d see as normal as gamers but in this world are considered uber rare. I liked the unusual class for the MC, Inspector, and adventures he goes on were fun as a casual read.
Score: 7.6 out of 10
Saikyou no Shokugyou wa Yuusha demo Kenja demo naku Kanteishi (Kari) rashii desu yo?
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(Music 4)
Music Credits
"Blip Stream" "Mighty Like Us" "Big Shift" "Vivacity"
Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/