Book of Adventure Games -- Compilation listed on Atarimania? What was this?

[DavidD]

I stumbled across two nearly blank entries on Atarimania for "Book of Adventure Games" and "Book of Adventure Games II" by Continental Software.

 

Is there any information on these two?  I was puzzled as these don't sound like software releases, but I was wondering if anyone had information.

Edit:  The last few pages of the book has a book and software order form, including a section for software by Continental Software.  I assume that Arrays and Continental are the same company, or the book/software wings.  I don't see a reference to a disk in their form, though, at least in my physical copy.

 

http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-comp-book-of-adventure-games_1200.html

http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-comp-book-of-adventure-games-ii_1201.html

 

Edited June 6, 2022 by DavidD

[+gnusto]

It should be this - https://www.amazon.com/Book-Adventure-Games-Kim-Schuette/dp/0912003081

 

and it's sequel (the fact that both exist with the right naming scheme makes it seem pretty probable, plus the time frame is right). Internet archive has the first one (https://archive.org/details/The_Book_of_Adventure_Games_Volume_1_HQ) at least and Continental Software is mentioned in it, but just as a list of various developers for software that was used in writing it.

I assume @Atarimania found a reference to it sometime in the past that mentioned Continental Software and put it there as a placeholder.

Edited June 6, 2022 by gnusto

[DavidD]

1 hour ago, gnusto said:

It should be this - https://www.amazon.com/Book-Adventure-Games-Kim-Schuette/dp/0912003081

 

See, that's what I thought, but it's listed as a software compilation...

[www.atarimania.com]

Beginner mistakes as I don't believe the compilations actually exist 

 

There may have been some confusion with Continental Software offerings in dealer ads with both books listed with disk titles from the publisher. These are very, very old entries when information / scans were not widely available and the pages just remained there for all these years.

 

Both references will be removed from the site in a few minutes so just pretend you imagined the whole thing 

 

 

[+Larry]

I've got both of these large format paperback books, and they are just descriptions, maps, etc. of (then) available commercial software.  They would be useful if you were "into" adventure games.  And wow! that price from the Amazon seller.  They must be "rare."   

 

There are some copies of Volume 1 at Archive.Org.  Two are listed as "Apple manuals" and apparently can be downloaded.  There is also a regular Volume 1 edition set up for "borrowing."  I'm not sure about how the Apple manuals differ from the regular edition -- perhaps they have some portions dedicated to adventures released specifically for the Apple II?

[DavidD]

6 hours ago, www.atarimania.com said:

Beginner mistakes as I don't believe the compilations actually exist 

 

There may have been some confusion with Continental Software offerings in dealer ads with both books listed with disk titles from the publisher. These are very, very old entries when information / scans were not widely available and the pages just remained there for all these years.

 

Both references will be removed from the site in a few minutes so just pretend you imagined the whole thing 

 

 

Yeah, I was thinking it was something like that, once I saw the Continental Software / Arrays connection.  I originally though it was just a weird coincidence...

 

It did give me a reason to pull my copy out of my older bookshelf, though!  I keep meaning to try that Crypt of Medea game, if only because I'm curious about the "gruesome" aspect of it as a text and early graphics game. No Atari version, but...