[X] My Assistant

[Ghost_in_the_Sys...]

I'm sure there is a topic somewhere with books and movies and such that are SR related, but I can't even fathom how to start searching for it, so I'll throw out these two books in this here thread. The short story is that a computer program written by a dead game programmer begins killing people and slowly recruiting humans to do work for it. What is its goal? You'll have to read to find out. Does it succeed, or will the people attempting to oppose it and its growing network of human operatives succeed?

The book follows many interesting ideas, many of which don't fully show up until the second book, but they include things like governments being superseded by corporations, including allowing corporations to operate personal mercenary armies within US boarders. The other great thing is the dark-net which has tons of stuff in common with the SR matrix, specifically the AR and how people interact with it. There is also technology grade magic (one character for example can shoot lightning from his fingers using technological means).

There are plenty of unexpected twists, double crosses, and mysteries, and the book could easily provide enough material for an SR entire campaign.

[Bigity]

You know I just picked up Freedom like 2 days ago for .50 cents at Big Lots. I noticed it was a sequel and so haven't started it yet so I could see if I could find the first book for cheap. The jacket description made me think of Shadowrun matrix stuff, that's for sure.

[Ghost_in_the_Sys...]

Very much an SR feel. I think the mall scene in particular shows a really strong parallel. Basically someone pulls up the financial data (without hacking) of everyone in the mall and displays it above their heads, then adds stuff like their medical info. He talks about how this information, along with things like buying habits, are being farmed by corps and no one even realizes, and in many cases pay to make it easier (by buying nicely trackable cell phones).

And then there is, as I said, the way the dark net is basically AR and you have people throwing virtual items at each other and such for easy transfer. All very SR type stuff.

Edit: You could likely read the second book without having read the first, and most of it will make sense (A few things are included seemingly purely as a 'just in case you skipped the first book' footnote), but you'll be ruining several huge surprises from the first book.

[Bigity]

I'll hold off and try to find it first then. I also got Gibson's Spook Country for .50 cents as well. It didn't seem very cyberpunky though but hey, .50 cents bought alot of words.

[Ghost_in_the_Sys...]

Yeah, so does logging onto a blog (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)

[Apathy]

Currently reading pulp fiction called Dead Dwarves Don't Dance. Very close to SR - metahumans, magic, astral quests, razorboys, arcologies, johnsons (called 'smiths'), fixers, hackers, btls, drones, etc.

[Ghost_in_the_Sys...]

The cover certainly looks like it belongs in SR somewhere (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[hermit]

Ben Elton - Blind Faith for Horizon and the Los Angeles setting. It ought to have been done like this. Actuallly, it CAN be done like this, still. Just raise the Tech level a bit.