Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.game manufacturer Games Workshop between 1984 and 1986. The primary focus of the magazine was
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...
, with emphasis on the ''
Fighting Fantasy
''Fighting Fantasy'' is a series of single-player role-playing gamebooks created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone. The first volume in the series was published in paperback by Puffin in 1982.
The series distinguished itself by mixing Choos ...
''
adventure gamebook
A gamebook is a work of printed fiction that allows the reader to participate in the story by making choices. The narrative branches along various paths, typically through the use of numbered paragraphs or pages. Each narrative typically does not ...
series.
Publication history
The magazine was established by ''Fighting Fantasy'' creators Steve Jackson and
Ian Livingstone
Sir Ian Livingstone (born 29 December 1949) is an English fantasy author and entrepreneur. Along with Steve Jackson, he is the co-founder of a series of role-playing gamebooks, ''Fighting Fantasy'', and the author of many books within that s ...
, running for 13 issues from 1984 until December 1986. Jackson and Livingstone were the editors until issue 10 and then editors-in-chief, with
Marc Gascoigne
Marc Gascoigne (born 5 July 1962 at Temple Ewell with River, near Dover, Kent) is a British author and editor.
He is the editor, author or co-author of more than fifty books and gaming related titles, notably various ''Fighting Fantasy'' books, ...
as editor. ''Warlock'' was published in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Japan, where the title had an extended run before ceasing publication in 1997.
Regular features included announcements, cartoons, competitions, interviews, maps of the ''Fighting Fantasy'' world, mini-adventures including abbreviated versions of ''
Caverns of the Snow Witch
''Caverns of the Snow Witch'' is a single-player roleplaying gamebook, written by Ian Livingstone, illustrated by Gary Ward and Edward Crosby and originally published in 1984 by Puffin Books. It was later republished by Wizard Books in 2003. It for ...
'' and ''
House of Hell
''House of Hell'' (''House of Hades'' in the United States) is a single-player adventure gamebook written by Steve Jackson, illustrated by Tim Sell and originally published in 1984 by Puffin Books. It was later republished by Wizard Books in 2002 ...
'' with different artwork, a monster bestiary (becoming the basis for the ''Fighting Fantasy'' title ''Out of the Pit'') and miniature figure tutorials.