Pixels to paper - 10 videogame novels reviewed

Features
By published

From Halo's prequel to Perfect Dark's sequel, we rate the reads

Perfect Dark: Second Front

What is it?
A sequel "continuing the epic story" of Perfect Dark Zero. An imposter posing as Joanna Dark has carried out an assassination, leaving Joanna searching for the nasty people who framed her.

Who wrote it?
Grek Rucka, who's worked as a writer for DC and Marvel comics, in addition to penning a handful of novels.

Fanboy factor?
Scores highly on the fan service scale, given the devotion showed to Rare's svelte secret agent Joanna Dark, and the faint sapphic overtones in the relationship between Cassandra DeVries and her head of security, Anita Velez.

Is it any good?
Second Front executes its blend of James Bond style lightweight intrigue and William Gibson-esque cybertechery at a ripping pace, but character interaction and dialogue - both internal and in conversation - is often laboured and clunky.

Further reading
This novel is actually the sequel to Rucka's own Initial Vector.

Ben_Richardson

Ben Richardson is a former Staff Writer for Official PlayStation 2 magazine and a former Content Editor of GamesRadar+. In the years since Ben left GR, he has worked as a columnist, communications officer, charity coach, and podcast host – but we still look back to his news stories from time to time, they are a window into a different era of video games.