Ben Riggs: Slaying the Dragon (2022, St. Martin's Press)
English language
Published Oct. 24, 2022 by St. Martin's Press.
Well written history of the time where TSR wasn't a little company anymore, but wish there had been a bit more detail about the scope of products that they tried to put out to go with the business narrative.
A pretty good history of TSR and their financial decline and purchase by Wizards of the Coast. The writing style isn't to my taste (it reads more like a series of blog articles than a book), but it covers the material well.
Great research, iffy writing
The author did a great job researching primary sources and is very explicit when discussing something that could not be verified. The material feels credible and honest.
Unfortunately, the writing isn’t good. It feels like written as a rushed article for a website. It is full of weird transitions and unnecessary parentheses. I wish they had a different editor to help with those.
Having already read multiple histories of TSR and Dungeons & Dragons, I wasn’t sure this book would really be worth reading, but it was!
The first couple of chapters weren’t anything new, but after that things got really interesting. The history of TSR West that made the “comic modules” that showed up briefly on bookstore shelves. The unearthing of the contract between TSR and Random House that helps illuminate what went wrong at TSR in the 90s. The driving away of creative talent. Details of the purchase of TSR by Wizard’s of the Coast. All of these topics had new details or anecdotes that I had not seen previously.
I particularly liked the author’s efforts to provide both sides of the story where things get contentious. Particularly when it came to stories involving Lorraine Williams, who would not grant an interview to the author; and Brian Thomsen, who is no …
Having already read multiple histories of TSR and Dungeons & Dragons, I wasn’t sure this book would really be worth reading, but it was!
The first couple of chapters weren’t anything new, but after that things got really interesting. The history of TSR West that made the “comic modules” that showed up briefly on bookstore shelves. The unearthing of the contract between TSR and Random House that helps illuminate what went wrong at TSR in the 90s. The driving away of creative talent. Details of the purchase of TSR by Wizard’s of the Coast. All of these topics had new details or anecdotes that I had not seen previously.
I particularly liked the author’s efforts to provide both sides of the story where things get contentious. Particularly when it came to stories involving Lorraine Williams, who would not grant an interview to the author; and Brian Thomsen, who is no longer alive to grant one. Both come under harsh criticism from others, and the author does a good job of trying to give them some defense while not taking sides.
He also gives multiple accounts of incidents where memories differ.
Overall, a well written history that was a joy to read, and a nice addition to my gaming history shelf.
