Pixels to paper - 10 videogame novels reviewed

StarCraft: Queen of Blades

'Jimmy!
"Aaahh!"
"...but of course Mengsk - pardon me, Emperor Arcturus the First - claims this was all necessary. According to his spokesperson, the new Terran Dominion is doing everything necessary to remove the alien threat..."
Jim Raynor lay back down, eyes staring up at the steel-gray ceiling. He ran one hand over the sweat-drenched stubble atop his head and felt himself smile despite the adrenaline still coursing through him.'

What is it?
A guns'n'grunts romp in Blizzard's StarCraft universe, following the intrepid Jim Raynor and his quest to rescue his ill-fated squeeze, Sarah Kerrigan.

Who wrote it?
Aaron Rosenberg, a writer who's also designed table-top games and scribed the encyclopaedic Age of Empires game manual.

Fanboy factor?
Kerrigan is both a feature of StarCraft fanboy lust (just see her delicious turnin our Sexy Fan Art gallery) and one of the best videogame villains. This novel, covering her Zerg transformation, will drive 'em wild.

Is it any good?
Queen of Blades' quality is clear from the off, as it begins by using that hoary old technique of a lead character amusing themselves with a recent memory, smiling and laughing unrealistically as they do so. Clunky exposition aside, though, it's an interesting and occasionally diverting piece of fiction, even if you aren't a StarCraft nut.

Further reading
There's a fair few to try - why not explore Sarah Kerrigan's pre-mutant life inUprisingorLiberty's Crusade. Or there'sShadow of the Xel'Naga andSpeed of Darkness, or a novel based on the aborted StarCraft Ghost videogame,Nova.