Customer Reviews

Dream Park

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When I was a young'n, I discovered "Dream Park" and was utterly enthralled. Gaming was, at the time, in its infancy. Video games consisted of Missile Attack, PacMan and Centipede. The world was at the brink of the first major technological revolution since the sixties and the possibilities were endless. Authors Larry Niven and Steven Barnes took all that information and expanded it, suggesting the marriage of imagination and technology in a way that was new and exciting.

The story is relatively simple. A group of pretend adventurers suit up for a campaign called "The South Seas Treasure Game". As in the early Role Playing Games, there are Dungeon Masters, warriors, magicians and thieves. But the difference here is that they play in an artificial enclosure that has been enhanced with special effects, holograms, actors and a clever storyline. The players get as close as possible to truly living their adventure.

The plot thickens when a security guard inside the park is murdered and the main suspects are those playing the game. The park's head of security, Alex Griffin, joins the game to find the killer, but finds new meaning in the games he helps keep alive.

In my youth, this was all fascinating, thrilling stuff. I wanted nothing more than for Dream Park to become reality. The game was deftly plotted and there was a good deal of humor throughout. The characters, except for Griffin, were not rendered well, but I didn't care. They did their jobs as fodder for the game master's trickery and that was all I needed. The authors' real genius lie in the descriptions of the workings of the park and of the game.

I recently reread Dream Park. At the age of 40, the adventure still stands strong. It's not exactly an adult's book, but neither is it strictly for young adults. The ideas and concepts that were once fresh and startling are now old hat to readers of Neal Stephenson, Bruce Sterling and William Gibson, but the archaic ideas about what was possible add a sense of nostalgia, a glimpse of what the world was like when it stood on the rim of the present. For this reason, Dream Park might be enjoyable to new readers, adults and teens alike.

Sadly, much of what was predicted has not yet come to pass. Real-time gaming has not gone much further than seedy laser-tag parlors on the outskirts of town. But I know it's possible. It's going to happen. I just need to be patient.

First of all, it's OK to read this review without spoiling the story for you (I really hate when people do that).

If you read the other reviews you will quickly see that there are many of us who have read Dream Park numerous times and consider it among that small band of visionary science fiction tales. Niven has several books on my short list (Mote In Gods Eye is at the top).

Although gamers will love the story, it is a well written science fiction piece, and also works well as a murder mystery. Some of the technical innovations are now showing their age (fan fold computer paper, etc.) but with the incredible growth of both e-gaming and the huge multi-million dollar amusement/game/fantasy complexes in Orlando, there is a natural symbiosis just waiting to happen. This is not Jurrasic Park or anything like that....this is a classic science fiction approach to what could become.....and as Niven is one of the great SciFi writers of all time.....as well articulated as you will find in any great literary work.

DREAM PARK is a favorite book of mine- though it's hardly a true literary classic, it's a remarkable achievement in the "pop" fiction world. Here is a high-tech thriller that's not just exciting but thoughtful, detailed, empathetic and charming. It's a little epic that's more rewarding than it looks.

The setting is Dream Park, a futuristic fantasy theme park full of holographic attractions and the latest in VR technology. A team of players enters the South Seas Treasure Game, one of the Park's frequent live-action high-endurance fantasy role-playing spectaculars, facing off against the diabolical designs of Gamemaster Richard Lopez. All's fun and games until a Park security guard is murdered, a valuable research property stolen, and all evidence points to someone inside the game. Security chief Alex Griffin goes undercover into the game to unmask the culprit. Unfortunately for him, Lopez believes in fair play, and if the Griffin wants to stay in the game long enough to catch the criminal he'll have to overcome the same obstacles as the rest of the team.

Dream Park is in and of itself a fantastic setting, with enough combination of whimsy and high-tech that I wished I could go (and I'm probably not the only one.) What makes the plot work so well is the combination of the mystery-thriller element with the high fantasy adventure of the Game. The players in this game are just as serious about winning as Griffin is about solving his case- there are no prizes at stake, no salaries paid, it's a matter of them doing their best. Their dedication is actually quite touching, and the descriptions of the adventure are so vivid that they're impossible to separate from the "reality" of the Park. It's not a fearful "has technology gone too far" attitude that prevails here (unlike the similar film WESTWORLD), but an appreciation of fantasy and imagination. It helps that the game's plot is in itself intriguing and original, centering around the magic of the Melanesian "cargo cults", and the recovery of a powerful WWII artifact at stake. There are monsters, zombies, and even a riddle contest with a Melanesian god. There's a lot to digest, but it all moves at a brisk and absorbing pace.

On top of it all, though, what makes this book so much fun is its characters. Niven and Barnes have filled the story with people who are real, vibrant, sympathetic, complicated, and compelling. There's veteran gaming couple Ollie Norliss and Gwen Ryder, the diminuitive, quirky but tough and lovable Mary Martha Corbett (Mary-Em for short, pardon the pun), bewildered novice Tony McWhirter, "game groupie" Janet who appears in the game as a maiden in distress, dedicated second-stringer Holly Frost, and the near-obsessed team leader Chester Henderson. And that's just skimming the surface- almost every character is fascinating.

Is it a perfect book? I suppose not, but it's practically perfect for what it is. It's a sophisticated page turner, and Niven and Barnes could teach Crichton or Clancy a thing or two.

This is seriously one of the greatest books i have ever read.

Seeing how I LOVE RPGs and role playing a character, feeling as you are another person, in another world, I always thought 'Man, it would be so cool if you could do it in real life.' I think it's obvious why I loved this book!

In 'Dream Park', Dream Park is a theme park...but not your ordinary theme park. Sporting technology we can only dream of, such as holograms, Dream Park revolves around it's main attraction: the Games. Players represent a character, may it be a Thief, a Warrior, a Magic User- and use real or holographic weapons against hologram monsters and living dead, mixed with actors such as the female sacrifice and the guide. However, 'It's all fun and games until...' a Dream Park employee is murdered, and all clues point to a game member. 'Griffin', head of Dream Park security must enter the game and try to figure out whodunnit while trying to not get beheaded by zombies, birds, and other Game creatures. I HIGHLY reccomend this book to anyone who has played RPGs or likes role-playing, but I think others would like it as well. This book kept me guessing to the end as far as the mystery went, and the characters were fun, enjoyable, realistic, and sometimes not-so-nice. (Draeger, anyone?)

There are some stories that work on many levels; this is one of them. Just the idea is great: a murder mystery set in a futuristic theme park. Add to this that many people come to the park to physically role play an intense adventure, and you've got tons of elements to deal with--making for a rich story environment.</p>

Add once more to this: a wide variety of detailed characters, including social outcasts, an intelligent thief, a slick security officer, and some "doing it for the dollars" adventure designers and you've got a tale that is simply incredible.</p>

I heartily recommend this book and it's sequels (particularly The California Voodoo Game) to any reader--regardless of what genre they enjoy. I just wish that Niven and Barnes would write another...</p>

Dream Park is a smart mix of near future science fiction, roleplaying gaming adventure, and mystery (with a touch of history tossed in as the basis for the gaming adventure). For roleplaying game enthusiasts, it presents a future for gaming that is quite appealing, yet quite familiar--with rivalries, meta-gaming, gamemaster/player tension, and in-character versus out-of-character comments and actions. At the same time, the historically based adventure and mystery/action elements provide an appeal and a bridge to non-gaming readers. When I first finished reading this book twenty or so years ago, my first thought was that it would make a great movie and I still believe that to be the case. I highly recommend Dream Park to all science fiction and all roleplaying fans. Donald J. Bingle, author of Forced Conversion.

Dream Park is a combination of a science fiction exploration of computer gaming and a murder mystery. It reads fast and kept me engaged with the story.

Basic synopsis: A disparate group of folks at a tech entertainment facility join each other for the ultimate virtual reality gaming experience, and are secretly joined by a security officer investigating a murder that happened right before the game started. As the game progresses so does the murder investigation and the danger that someone else will be killed.

I was a bit skeptical of the book at first. Especially when the adventure turned out to be a treasure hunt set in the mid 20th century. "Yawn," I thought. But it worked.

The gaming aspect is completely plausible. This is where gaming is going (at least for the very rich) if the technology can get there.

The mystery is pretty well done. The action is great.

It contains some typical Niven foibles such as: all the secretaries are female, people have more sex than can really be believed, and the dialogue is...Dragnet-esque. Someone else already mentioned a computer terminal that puts out a lot of fan-fold paper. But none of this really hurts the story. And who knows, maybe society really will return to the weird combination of chauvinism and sexual liberation described here. (I'm crediting this stuff to Niven because I recognize it in all of his work...Barnes may be the same, I just don't know.)

I recommend this for anyone not likely to get annoyed or distracted by some of the gender roles and other minor anachronisms.

This book ranks as one of my most favorite SF books of all time.
I got this book in hardback when it first came out in the early '80's. I've read it so many times that it's not in the best of shape. This book is going to make a great gift for a friend of mine who has heard me mention Dream Park a lot. Until now, the book has been out of print. I'm also getting myself a new copy.
Now let's get Hollywood to make a movie or a mini-series on the Sci-Fi Channel!!!

Think about your favorite role-playing adventure game. As a warrior, cleric, magician, or thief, you can leave your humdrum life behind for a while, pick up a new persona and some multi-faceted dice and embark on a heart-pounding adventure. Now imagine a place where you could go to play out this kind of fantasy in "real life" - following clues, reading terrain, planning battles, running, screaming, and swinging your weapon for all you're worth. Welcome to Dream Park - Niven and Barnes' perhaps-not-so-futuristic getaway resort. Using a combination of animatronics, live actors, holograms, and computer-aided design, Dream Park's Gamemasters allow their well-heeled patrons to participate in the adventure of a lifetime in relative safety. The ruling gaming society assigns points for successful missions, and a good time is had by all, until one day a murder inside the park causes security chief Griffin to personally enter a game in hopes of determining which player is the killer.

The Dream Park itself is one heck of a fun concept, and results in a reasonably good story, although it should be admitted that the book's conclusion is scarcely short of pitiful. There's no longer much that's science fictiony here, because most of the technology described in this book is now actually available - expensive, perhaps. So while what we get is a role-playing adventure game with all the swashbuckling trimmings and the added distraction of a real-life murder mystery, the murder's resolution is so hopelessly contrived that it would have ruined the book if we hadn't stopped caring about it many pages earlier. On the other hand, the gaming side of the story is far more realistic, and loads more entertaining. The gamers themselves are a motley bunch, with some fairly cool characters among them, and they keep the story interesting even when the action slows down.

This is a must-read for anyone into rpg's, and a good introduction to the whole Dream Park concept, but not really an outstanding novel on its own. Interested readers can return to Dream Park in two sequels, The Barsoom Project (which is rather pedestrian, kind of a Dream Park Lite) and the California Voodoo Game (which is really pretty good).

Before Star Trek:TNG introduced the "Holodeck," there was Dream Park... which I got accidentally from the Science Fiction Book Club, forgot to send back, paid for angrily, and then read over, over, and over again. If you are wondering where our entertainment world of Xbox/Playstation/GameCube, Warcraft/Everquest/Quake, TheSimsOnline and "LAN parties" is headed, read Dream Park. It's clever, exciting, and has influenced the thinking of lots of us. Right up there with "Snow Crash" in terms of resonance with the world we live in now. Snap it up if you can find it, or write the publisher and request a reissue!