The Dig

THE DIG! Based on a story by Steven Spielberg! Based on a game designed by Sean Clark! Dialogue written by Orson Scott Card!And another tie-in novelization by Alan Dean Foster. Oh-ho.The Dig, the novelization by Alan Dean Foster, ironically is at its best during the scenes of the NASA shuttle mission to an asteroid on a collision course with Earth. This is only about the first quarter of the story, as the rest takes place on an alien world on which three astronauts find that they have been transported to. Foster manages to narrate the exploration of the asteroid, and the ship structure within, in an interesting way. However, when the story shifts to the alien planet, things get dull. The environments are set pretty poorly. Reading this, there was no real sense of the loneliness and "ghost-town" feel of the abandoned structures and machines. As Boston Low, the main character, journeys around Cocytus, the only real sense I could get of his adventure was that he visited a lot of rooms, and they were filled with a lot of things. That's it. Foster's writing makes the alien world sound utterly boring.I've played the game by LucasArts, and experienced like that, the story is much more engaging and a better sense of adventure is felt. The characters in the game are also worlds more interesting than they are in the novelization. Especially Maggie Robbins. Maggie's character was my biggest gripe about the book. In the game, she is smart and assertive, while in the book she is essentially just along for the ride. Except for one scene near the end where her knowledge of language comes in handy, she does little besides storm off in a huff, then come back later to apologize. Boston Low also comes off as pretty dull in Foster's writing compared to his computer game counterpart. Of course, it just could be that I miss Robert Patrick's excellent voice acting.One of the worst mistakes Foster makes is he establishes early in the story that the astronauts are being observed from a different dimension. For those of you who have played the game, you know who these observers are, and you did not learn who they were until toward the very end of the game. The fact that they're presence is made apparent so early really ruins the "reveal" near the end. Foster should have taken a cue from the game and left the very existence of these observers a secret all the way until the end.The book is good for some light, easy reading if you're in the mood, but if you enjoy a good point-and-click adventure game, play the game. It can currently be purchased on Valve's "Steam" service.

Fun read for fans of the game. Probably enjoyable even to others who enjoy science fiction. Some typos and very abbreviated descriptions at times made it feel like a book written to a deadline, but only a few spots. Certainly no classic, but a good distraction!

I wore my original copy of this story out before i was out of high school in the 90's and never forgot it. Ran across the game on steam played and loved the memories so i ordered another set of the cassettes to see if it was as good as its place in my memories held it. Now i hope they will do a mp3 version so i can take it with me cause my only remaining cassette deck is dieing.

I read this book initially in middle school and wanted to get back to it. I understood quite a bit more now that I've got a good extra 10 years on me. It's a good book and a fairly easy read, even though it's complex enough to keep you interested. I think the ending drops off a little too quickly, but it is a really good way to get a little extra perspective on life. I recommend it for most readers!

When I got this book I really didn't know what to expect. Sure it was writen by ADF by it could be a let down right? Wrong! The story revolves around an Earth saving space mission which goes wrong. The "unlucky" astronauts are ship wrecked on a planet far away from home. They battle group dynamics, alien equipment, alien creatures and others to find their way home.This book is highly imaginative, well written and smooth. I found the book to be compelling and deeply engrossing. If you want a book that whips you along the star lines at the speed of light and doesn't let you go.. Get this book!!!

This is a great reading of The Dig by Alan Dean Foster. If you are as big a fan of The Dig as I am, this is a great piece to go along with it. I digitally recorded this piece so I no longer need a cassette tape player to listen to it.

Didnt seem like it was going to be a happy ending, but there is. I liked it not loved it. Well written.

Great, just great 😀. I can still see the scenic views on my mind. Book is just perfect.

Der Roman zum gleichnamigen Computerspiel liest sich - abgesehen von einigen Schreibfehlern - flüssig und vertieft und bereichert die Story um einige zusätzliche Aspekte.Man merkt, das der Autor nicht alle Elemente 1:1 vom Spiel übertragen konnte. So wurden einige Passagen, die im Spiel erst über einige recht knifflige Rätsel erreichbar waren, im Roman etwas anders dargestellt (Stichwort: Türen öffnen). Dies fügt sich allerdings recht gut in die Rahmenhandlung ein und fällt daher insgesamt nicht groß ins Gewicht. Etwas schade fand ich, dass der Name des Asteroiden (Attila), abgesehen vom Klappentext nirgendwo Erwähnung findet. Vermutlich wurde er erst nachträglich in die Handlung des Spiels aufgenommen.Das Buch ist jedem Liebhaber des Spiels und Leser kurzweiliger SciFi-Unterhaltung zu empfehlen.

Wer das Spiel nicht kennt, der erhält lediglich einen guten, allerdings nicht überragenden Science-Fiction-Roman. Wer jedoch das Spiel kennt, wird seine helle Freude mit dem Buch haben und vor Nostalgie förmlich zerfließen. Alan Dean Foster hat die Atmosphäre des Spiels wunderbar eingefangen und den Charakteren zusätzliche Tiefe verliehen.Ich für meinen Teil werde, jetzt nachdem ich das Buch innerhalb kürzester Zeit beendet habe, als nächstes Versuchen, das Spiel wieder in die Finger zu bekommen!

Der Roman zum Point&Click-Adventure von LucasArts. Über ein außerirdisches Volk, das sich so weit entwickelt hat, dass es nur noch aus Geist besteht und zurück zur Körperlichkeit will. Und dabei die Erde und die Menschheit bedroht. Solide, mehr aber auch nicht.

Dieses Buch von A.D.Foster hat für mich einen speziellen Stellenwert. Unterhaltsam geschrieben ist es, und das Besondere daran ist, daß es zu dem gleichnamigen Computer-Bestsellerspiel verfasst wurde. Das merkt man beim Lesen, und es macht den speziellen Reiz dieser Geschichte aus.

Gute Qualität und schnelle Lieferung.