If you can’t beat the computers, BE the computer.
Freshly unemployed gamer Arnold O’Connor is short on cash and facing eviction. When an indie game developer advertises for brain study participants to help revolutionize enemy AI, he’s not thinking about the benefits to his hobby, just his bank account.
But things get weird once the trials start. Neuroscientists monitor his brain waves as Connor performs a variety of tasks, culminating in venturing into a test version of the very game they’re developing. The tests mess with his sense of reality, seeing things he can’t touch and deafened to some sounds but not others. The game world operates on the same principles, forcing Arnold to wonder whether he’s inside the game or just playing it.
The only way to find out for sure is to reach the end victorious!
Available in ebook and audiobook from your favorite store
Praise for Pixelate
“The plot is brilliant, fast paced with lots of interaction between characters and quests.”
“I had a lot of fun reading this and spotting jokes, game references, and tropes.“
“This book gives an interesting view of the world of game design, especially when seen from inside the game itself.“
Pixelate Series
Available in ebook, paperback, and audiobook
Gary Burns thought he’d created a masterpiece. Instead, he’d created a prison for his friends—and himself.
Gary Burns just wanted to create the greatest RPG campaign of his gaming career. But a freak magical accident sucks him into the very world he created—as himself.
Surrounded by heroes who look and sound like his friends, Gary is forced to play out the story he wrote. Worthless in a fight, Gary must prove himself valuable even if it means feeding the team insider knowledge.
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Praise for Metagamer Chronicles
This story really settled inside my heart in a special way. The characters who are observations the main character has about his friends, the side thoughts he has about how people interact in a world he created – the emotional resonance that comes with the characters plight in the world… it fits together brilliantly. * * * * *
If Gary had known he’d get trapped in an RPG with his real-life stats, he’d have tried harder in gym class.
Games were made to be broken.
The difference between a hero and a tyrant is charisma.
Grab the ebook, paperback, or audiobook from your favorite store.
100 tons of walking steel. One human heart.
Sgt. Reggie King wakes up from a battlefield injury to find himself physically intact. But the hospital staff insist he’s not fit to return to duty. As part of his psychological recovery, they introduce him to a game.
Armored Souls is a tank game on steroids. Giant, walking mechs called juggernauts engage in interplanetary wars as noble houses and mercenary factions wage endless battles for supremacy. For the pilots of these juggernauts, the rewards are glory, cash, and XP.
What follows is an epic struggle against the forces arrayed against him, from rival gamers to entire factions looking to crush Reggie underfoot. To survive will take all his military leadership, perseverance, and maybe a little help from some new friends.
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Praise for Armored Souls
I was genuinely surprised by this novel. I went in expecting something sci-fi but the author did a really good job incorporating the mechanics of a mech game.
100 tons of walking steel. One human heart.
It’s time for our sergeant to become a general.
A dying game. A tournament for the ages. One last chance for glory.
Grab the ebook, paperback, or audiobook from your favorite store.
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Xavier P. Hunter was born at the dawn of the video game age. He grew up with a game controller in his hand, moving from Atari joystick through PS4 controller the way a hermit crab outgrows its shell. His little league was RBI Baseball, his first date was Princess Zelda, and his first unpaid internship was leading raids in World of Warcraft.
He lives in a world of pixels and frame rates, coming out infrequently to eat and that sort of thing. Most of his writing is done while patches download or when servers are down for maintenance. Like most superheroes, he operates in meat space under an assumed name.
Or are you, perhaps, a more adventurous sort of LitRPG explorer?
If you’re interested in beta testing new LitRPG books, consider applying to join the Xavier P. Hunter ARC (advanced review copy) team. Team members get early copies of books in exchange for leaving an honest review on release day.