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A review by mschlat
Dream Park by Steven Barnes, Larry Niven
3.0
This is the 1981 mass market paperback, which I probably bought shortly after it was released. And I've read it so many times that it's no surprise that this rereading took just a day and a half; this book is the equivalent of science fiction comfort food to me.
The concept is pretty straightforward. It's 2051, and Dream Park is an amusement park where live role playing games can take place in a fully immersive environment, with gigantic sets and practical effects assisted by holograms. We follow one particularly high stakes Game (yes, it's capitalized) where a Game Master (think DM) takes on a Lore Master (think party leader) in a grudge match. However, during the Game, a security guard is murdered, and Dream Park's head of security has to enter the proceedings as a player to find the killer. So, nothing too advanced in terms of science fiction, but a great setting for an adventure novel.
As a kid already interested in D&D, science fiction, and gaming in general, I ate this up. As an adult, it's fun with some caveats. I do really appreciate the variety of characters; Niven and Barnes do a lot to explain why some people might Game and do a great job differentiating the various classes of players. And the action rocks in a very tight (about four days) timespan.
The biggest caveat is the Game's setting. Niven and Barnes did a ton of research (which shows) to place the Game in a New Guinea culture based around a cargo cult. And I do appreciate a role playing setting that is not typical dwarves and orcs. However, most of the South Seas residents are portrayed as mystical primitives, with our party serving as the band of Europeans that will come and save them. I found it unsettling on a regular basis. There's also one use of the f-word for a bisexual man and some troubling (to me) sexual dynamics among the main characters.
I'm not sure who to recommend this to. Certainly, if you've liked other more mainstream Niven writing (like his work with [a:Jerry Pournelle|39099|Jerry Pournelle|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1596428568p2/39099.jpg]), you will probably like this. But, if you're not into the nostalgia for 70's and 80's science fiction, I don't think there a lot of other appeal factors.
The concept is pretty straightforward. It's 2051, and Dream Park is an amusement park where live role playing games can take place in a fully immersive environment, with gigantic sets and practical effects assisted by holograms. We follow one particularly high stakes Game (yes, it's capitalized) where a Game Master (think DM) takes on a Lore Master (think party leader) in a grudge match. However, during the Game, a security guard is murdered, and Dream Park's head of security has to enter the proceedings as a player to find the killer. So, nothing too advanced in terms of science fiction, but a great setting for an adventure novel.
As a kid already interested in D&D, science fiction, and gaming in general, I ate this up. As an adult, it's fun with some caveats. I do really appreciate the variety of characters; Niven and Barnes do a lot to explain why some people might Game and do a great job differentiating the various classes of players. And the action rocks in a very tight (about four days) timespan.
The biggest caveat is the Game's setting. Niven and Barnes did a ton of research (which shows) to place the Game in a New Guinea culture based around a cargo cult. And I do appreciate a role playing setting that is not typical dwarves and orcs. However, most of the South Seas residents are portrayed as mystical primitives, with our party serving as the band of Europeans that will come and save them. I found it unsettling on a regular basis. There's also one use of the f-word for a bisexual man and some troubling (to me) sexual dynamics among the main characters.
I'm not sure who to recommend this to. Certainly, if you've liked other more mainstream Niven writing (like his work with [a:Jerry Pournelle|39099|Jerry Pournelle|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1596428568p2/39099.jpg]), you will probably like this. But, if you're not into the nostalgia for 70's and 80's science fiction, I don't think there a lot of other appeal factors.