- Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: Tindal Street Press (1 Feb 2012)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 1906994315
- ISBN-13: 978-1906994310
- Product Dimensions: 23.2 x 15.4 x 2.6 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 137,236 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Review
A highly original writer --Guardian
A fresh and authentic voice --Iain Sinclair
A fresh and authentic voice --Iain Sinclair
Product Description
In the near future, Lionel's sister Lilith disappears again, leaving him alone with his sick cat in the flat above Milk Street. Down below, CCTV cameras keep watch as the hustlers scheme and glassy-eyed girls disappear into the 'adult heath centre'. Waiting for Lilith to return, Lionel works, chew qat and slips deeper into an alternate reality, where his alter-ego Ludi begins a heroic quest. The imaginery world he enters in CoreQuest is clearer to him than his own past, where a significant part of his childhood has been wiped clean. When Lilith reappears, as abrasive and beautiful as ever, Lionel's memory begins to return: the cruelty of his brothers, the religious fervour of his adoptive parents. At the same time he becomes a real life hero to a vulnerable Chinese immigrant, and the favours he has done his boss drag him into the orbit of people-trafficking gangsters, freedom fighters and the police. As Lionel is pursued across the real world and the virtual, can he save himself and the people he loves before the game is altered for ever.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An absorbing, fascinating, exploration of our modern world.,
This review is from: The Game is Altered (Paperback)
The Game is Altered is a novel set in the near future; a place where our actions are monitored by personal cctv's (SPECS), everyone has a Google device, and online games have become, to some, better than reality.It is against the backdrop of this world, a world as well painted as any in the future-fiction genre, that we chart the main character's (Lionel) `quest' to save a 'vulnerable Chinese immigrant', but we also see his unravelling past, and the influence that it still has over him. While `The Game is Altered' is a strong, plot-driven, novel, I think its main strength lies in its questioning of identity: a question more relevant today than in any other period in history. We frequently present ourselves differently in different `social-mediums' such as Facebook, Twitter, and in the case of the novel, on Multi-player Online Games. The novel explores the schismatic relationship that these forms can have on our `self' and our projected (social-networking) `self' through Lionel. Packer, like Philip K. Dick who is an undoubted influence here, has a great ability to spin a good tale whilst also raising larger questions of reality and identity. This is a fascinating read, and one that I can fully recommend.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An eerie look into the near future, beautifully told.,
This review is from: The Game is Altered (Paperback)
The Game Is Altered was an engrossing read which twice nearly made me miss my station when reading it on the train. The book has three distinct threads that the chapters alternate between. The bulk of the plot and longest chapters are about Lionel, there are shorter chapters about his alter-ego Ludi adventuring in CoreQuest and then little one page adverts for CoreQuest, each of which was expertly crafted.The books extrapolation of modern trends in technology and British society create an eerily believable possibility for the near future. The growth and importance of the online self was a particularly worrying aspect that Packer explored. After reading I had a strong feeling of wanting to connect properly with someone rather than shouting about the book online (however I have come crawling back). Packer's characters have a depth that makes the supporting cast particularly intriguing. Lionel's adoptive mother, Judy, was a personal favourite whose personal development and story was fascinatingly seen alongside the primary narrative. I would recommend this book to anyone who has an online presence, however large or small. Similarly anyone interested in family, identity, technology, immigration or the general direction our society may be headed should also pick it up. So many issues are thoughtfully touched on in a beautiful style that is great to read. Go on, add it to your basket, you deserve the time offline!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Game is Altered,
This review is from: The Game is Altered (Paperback)
Lionel cannot engage with real life. This is what his stepsister Lilith keeps on blaming him for. Yet Lionel is perfectly in control of his virtual life in which he is the avatar Ludi, as fearless and powerful as Lionel has never been.The adventures of Ludi in CoreQuest seem at first to remain detached from Lionel's and his family's real life. 'It's only a game'. But soon, it becomes more and more difficult to distinguish between life and game, between real people and replicants, and the game is altered. Packer's story reminds us of the blurry line between who we really are and who we would like to be. If our past cannot be CANC with a click, our future can be rebuilt from scratch. 'There's always the chance to `Play Again''. I think this is the main point of the book. I would recommend this read to my parents as much as to my teenage nephew and niece.
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