Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Publication
Sphere (1977), Paperback, 157 pages
Description
Years ago, Earth and Titan fought a war and Earth lost. The planet was irradiated and most of the surviving population is sterile. The few survivors play an intricate and unending game called Bluff at the behest of the sluglike aliens who rule the planet. At stake in the game are two very important commodities: land and spouses. Pete Garden just lost his wife and Berkeley, California, but he has a plan to win them back. That is, if he isn't derailed by aliens, psychic traitors, or his new wife. The Game-Players of Titan is both satire and adventure, examining the ties that bind people together and the maddening peccadilloes of bureaucracy, whether the bureaucrats are humans or aliens.
User reviews
LibraryThing member JudithProctor
I suspect Philip K Dick is one of those love him or hate him writers and I suspect I'm going to fall into the latter category.
On the evidence of this book, he appears to like the weird for the sake of it being weird and not to worry too much about making it all hang together rationally.
One of the
My other main complaint is that the book focuses on the game that is played by the Titanians and is central to their culture and is played avidly by many humans as well. Now, I know this book was written back in 1973 back before the modern revolution in board games, but I'm still vastly disappointed by futuristic board game that is on the level of "A roll of seven lands you on 'Your rich grandmother dies and leaves you $20,000'". The only skill element in the game is the option to bluff about you die roll.
As games go, even for that period, this is greatly lacking in both imagination and playability. It hasn't got anything approaching the tactical/skill level of bridge or poker, both of which were around at the time (and still are, precisely because they are interesting games).
On the evidence of this book, he appears to like the weird for the sake of it being weird and not to worry too much about making it all hang together rationally.
One of the
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central concepts of the book is who is human and who is alien, but the writer appears to be very inconsistent as to whether humans are being replaced by aliens or simply shifting their allegiance to be aligned with aliens, or are being telepathically controlled by aliens. The mish-mash leads to confusion on the reader's part.My other main complaint is that the book focuses on the game that is played by the Titanians and is central to their culture and is played avidly by many humans as well. Now, I know this book was written back in 1973 back before the modern revolution in board games, but I'm still vastly disappointed by futuristic board game that is on the level of "A roll of seven lands you on 'Your rich grandmother dies and leaves you $20,000'". The only skill element in the game is the option to bluff about you die roll.
As games go, even for that period, this is greatly lacking in both imagination and playability. It hasn't got anything approaching the tactical/skill level of bridge or poker, both of which were around at the time (and still are, precisely because they are interesting games).
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LibraryThing member bookaholixanon
I don't know, maybe I'm crazy, but I have read just about every "SF" novel PKD has written (some 30-odd books), and dammit, this one is probably close to my favorite. I know that Game Players of Titan is commonly dismissed as the more or less "failed" novel Dick wrote following on the heels of Man
This novel has Everything in it ... it's Dick's ultimate "kitchen sink" novel, with precogs, aliens, drugs, alternate and constantly changing realities, multiple (unreliable) narrators (mostly the unforgettably flaky and fucked-up Pete Garden), time travel, staggeringly imaginative and inventive bits in everything from the smallest details to the entire plot trajectory, and, neither last nor least, filled with drastic shifts and surprises in the story, places where Dick pulls the rug out from under the reader in a way that makes my head spin even on second and third reading.
Does it all add up at the end, or even 1/2 or 2/3 of the way through? Well, no, of course not! But does everything ever "add up" in ANY of Dick's novels? Most decidedly NO, not even in The Man in the High Castle, certainly not in Valis or in Scanner Darkly or -- good heavens, Ubik? The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch? The Simulacra (another personal favorite)? No, no, and absolutely not! But the way the world Dick creates falls apart in this book is, well, it's just epic ...
So give it a read with an open mind, and be ready for anything.
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in the High Castle, however I beg to differ on the "failed" part ... it's just a completely different kind of novel than "High Castle", and for me, it's one of Dick's most thrilling examples of "a universe that falls apart two days later", to steal a quote -- a title, actually -- of a talk PKD gave in 1978.This novel has Everything in it ... it's Dick's ultimate "kitchen sink" novel, with precogs, aliens, drugs, alternate and constantly changing realities, multiple (unreliable) narrators (mostly the unforgettably flaky and fucked-up Pete Garden), time travel, staggeringly imaginative and inventive bits in everything from the smallest details to the entire plot trajectory, and, neither last nor least, filled with drastic shifts and surprises in the story, places where Dick pulls the rug out from under the reader in a way that makes my head spin even on second and third reading.
Does it all add up at the end, or even 1/2 or 2/3 of the way through? Well, no, of course not! But does everything ever "add up" in ANY of Dick's novels? Most decidedly NO, not even in The Man in the High Castle, certainly not in Valis or in Scanner Darkly or -- good heavens, Ubik? The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch? The Simulacra (another personal favorite)? No, no, and absolutely not! But the way the world Dick creates falls apart in this book is, well, it's just epic ...
So give it a read with an open mind, and be ready for anything.
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LibraryThing member ChrisRiesbeck
Middle of the road Dick. A checklist of ideas he used in many books: southern California as the center of the universe, a suicidal main character, unhappy male/female relationships, blobby aliens called vugs, and talking cars with an attitude. We lost a war with the vugs, but the earth is
OK for fans of Dick. Not for those who hate him. For beginners, I recommend Martian Time-Slip.
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undamaged. The population is greatly decreased, thanks to an unbelievably stupid move by the Red Chinese, and withering. Somehow, some people are telepathic or pre-cognitive, perhaps also as a side effect.Others, including the main character, are allowed to play the Game with each other, to win ownership of various cities, and/or trade wives, looking for "luck", i.e., a fertile union. Nothing really engages until nearly the midpoint for this short novel when Dick finally invokes his common move: calling into question what is real. Surprisingly this predictable step is still where the book works. It's where Dick was in his element. OK for fans of Dick. Not for those who hate him. For beginners, I recommend Martian Time-Slip.
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LibraryThing member Redcloud0
Great fun reading this one. A greatly depopulated earth is occupied by the Vugs - natives of Jupiter moon Titan- amoeba like creatures who
communicate with Terrans via telepathy. The Vugs oversee the playing of Bluff, a monopoly like board game in which the stakes are the real cities of earth. The
communicate with Terrans via telepathy. The Vugs oversee the playing of Bluff, a monopoly like board game in which the stakes are the real cities of earth. The
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point of the game is to match male and female players in the hope they can reproduce and thereby have "luck". When a top notch player with great "luck" is murdered, the novel takes off with the lines between Vugs and Terrans blurred, and the familiar Dick theme of shifting reality explored. The novel culminates with a Bluff game on Titan between the undermatched Terrans and the mind reading Vugs, the outcome of which will determine Earth's fate. Show Less
LibraryThing member delta351
As another rater said, you either like PKD or hate him. I actually like this one. It starts rather slow but picks up momentum as it goes. The game playing is a simplistic Monopoly, but what else did they really have back in 1963? Lots of shifting realities, sassy back talking cars, and talk of the
I read the Gregg Press version of the book, which had an excellent intro piece by Robert Thurston. I have found it better to read it after I finish the book though, because it gives away too much of the plot. Excellent insight though
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Rushmore effect. The beginning reminded me of Demolished Man by Alfed Bester, but I lost that vibe about half way through. It also had the feeling of a futuristic detective story. I read the Gregg Press version of the book, which had an excellent intro piece by Robert Thurston. I have found it better to read it after I finish the book though, because it gives away too much of the plot. Excellent insight though
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LibraryThing member TheCrow2
In this PKD book in a post-apocalyptic, depopulated world dominated by the Vugs of Titan the survivors playing a Monopoly-like board game to determine who owns the various cities. But it's a PKD book so it's not so simple. There is treason, drugs, changing reality.... a great PKD style fun!
LibraryThing member Saretta.L
3.5/5
Sulla terra convivono terrestri e titaniani dopo la guerra tra America e Cina. A causa delle armi usate gli umani sono per la maggior parte sterili e solo alcune combinazioni fortunate portano a nuove nascite.
Le combinazioni sono decise, così come la divisione delle città, dal Gioco
Il romanzo ha un inizio rilassato con la perdita di Berkley da parte di Pete e l'arrivo di Luckman nei tavoli di gioco californiani, poi, dopo una brusca svolta, aumenta il ritmo degli eventi narrati.
Molti temi sono quelli classici di Dick come la confusione rispetto alla realtà e le allucinazioni che ne derivano, il concetto di simulacri come inganno, la presenza di pre-cog e il gioco come distrazione dalla sconfortante realtà.
La parte conclusiva è forse un po' sbrigativa e poteva essere resa più chiaramente, in generale l'ho trovato un buon romanzo e una buona partenza per chi non ha mai letto nulla dell'autore.
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On Earth both terrestrial and titanians are living after the war between America and Cina. The weapons used on that war had as consequence the sterility of most human beings and a few couple combinations are luck enough to give birth.
These combinations are decided, as the city owning, by the Game introduced on Earth by the titanians (that it is basically the Monopoly game modified to be less boring).
The beginning of the novel is quite slow with Pete losing Berkely and Luckman coming to play the Game in California, then there is a turnover point after which the plot becomes more entertaining.
There are some themes common in Dick's novels like the confusion about reality and the consequent hallucinatory states, the simulacra and pre-cog presence and the game as a distraction from the actual discomforting reality.
In my opinion the conclusion is too hurried, in general I found this a good novel and a good starting point for who has not read anything by this author.
Sulla terra convivono terrestri e titaniani dopo la guerra tra America e Cina. A causa delle armi usate gli umani sono per la maggior parte sterili e solo alcune combinazioni fortunate portano a nuove nascite.
Le combinazioni sono decise, così come la divisione delle città, dal Gioco
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introdotto dai titaniani sulla Terra (che poi è il Monopoli modificato e reso meno noioso).Il romanzo ha un inizio rilassato con la perdita di Berkley da parte di Pete e l'arrivo di Luckman nei tavoli di gioco californiani, poi, dopo una brusca svolta, aumenta il ritmo degli eventi narrati.
Molti temi sono quelli classici di Dick come la confusione rispetto alla realtà e le allucinazioni che ne derivano, il concetto di simulacri come inganno, la presenza di pre-cog e il gioco come distrazione dalla sconfortante realtà.
La parte conclusiva è forse un po' sbrigativa e poteva essere resa più chiaramente, in generale l'ho trovato un buon romanzo e una buona partenza per chi non ha mai letto nulla dell'autore.
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On Earth both terrestrial and titanians are living after the war between America and Cina. The weapons used on that war had as consequence the sterility of most human beings and a few couple combinations are luck enough to give birth.
These combinations are decided, as the city owning, by the Game introduced on Earth by the titanians (that it is basically the Monopoly game modified to be less boring).
The beginning of the novel is quite slow with Pete losing Berkely and Luckman coming to play the Game in California, then there is a turnover point after which the plot becomes more entertaining.
There are some themes common in Dick's novels like the confusion about reality and the consequent hallucinatory states, the simulacra and pre-cog presence and the game as a distraction from the actual discomforting reality.
In my opinion the conclusion is too hurried, in general I found this a good novel and a good starting point for who has not read anything by this author.
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LibraryThing member dtn620
I liked this book. It was paced nicely and was full of the standard PKD tricks. I still think I prefer Ubik and Do Androids Dream... I never felt as paranoid reading this as I did in the other two books. I am definitely looking forward to reading more PKD.
LibraryThing member scottcholstad
This was a pretty exciting book to read with lots of action. The plot revolves around a dystopian Earth where an atomic war caused by the Red Chinese has resulted in the sterilization of the human race and with that, humans also fought a war with the Vugs of Titan and lost, leading to the Vugs as
I'm giving this book four stars instead of five because even though it was exciting, I never really got why the aliens insisted they play a Monopoly-like game for real property and wives, other than to find pairs of humans who could reproduce. Even though they were trying to keep the population level down. And what does the property have to do with it? Additionally, we're never really given a good description of the Vugs, other than they might have been amoeba-like or slug-like. But are they small? Are they big? Where did they get their telekinesis from? And their technology? And love for games? None of this is explained. I think Dick could have filled in a lot more holes if he had tried. Still, it was a good book and I certainly recommend it, not only to PKD fans, but to anyone.
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overseers of the human race. They've instituted a game called Bluff that Bindmen, or people who are property owners, must play, the stakes being property and wives. Our hero, Pete Garden has been married to 18 different women and in the first chapter, he loses Berkeley and another wife. And is pretty ticked about it. The person who won Berkeley sold it to an east coast Bindman who wants to dig his claws into California and flies out to participate in the game. And winds up murdered. The problem is, Pete can't remember what he did the day of the murder and his car has recorded the fact that he went to the deceased's hotel. Soon, the telepathic police are after him. Confusing things is the fact that six people in their Bluff group can't remember their days, so it could have been any of them. This leads to a crazy adventure featuring ESP, alcohol and lots of drugs, more murders, interplanetary travel, and more. Pete gets caught up in a deep secret and discovers there are Vugs all around him in human form. This leads to the group playing Bluff with the Vugs on Titan for ownership of the world, which I never got, and with them beating the Vugs. It's an open ended book, however, as we close with a Vug and a human wandering off to God knows where. I'm giving this book four stars instead of five because even though it was exciting, I never really got why the aliens insisted they play a Monopoly-like game for real property and wives, other than to find pairs of humans who could reproduce. Even though they were trying to keep the population level down. And what does the property have to do with it? Additionally, we're never really given a good description of the Vugs, other than they might have been amoeba-like or slug-like. But are they small? Are they big? Where did they get their telekinesis from? And their technology? And love for games? None of this is explained. I think Dick could have filled in a lot more holes if he had tried. Still, it was a good book and I certainly recommend it, not only to PKD fans, but to anyone.
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LibraryThing member DanielSTJ
This was a very decent novel. The story is wrapped around the game called "Bluff" which determines the course of the story and the fate of its protagonists. Especially eventful is the final showdown, which I will not spoil. I thought it was a story that started off slow, but then picked up
3.5
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massively and ran full-force to its conclusion. If you like Philip K. Dick, don't miss this one.3.5
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LibraryThing member Grandville
I saw that a critic had classified GPoT as a parodic meta-narrative. If so I believe this was my first parodic meta-narrative; I can't say that I'm a fan.
Set in a future dystopian version of the USA, the backstory for how things have reached their current condition is delivered in bits and pieces
There are too many elements of 1960's USA that remain in this future; their appearance is jarring. (I do of course recognize how hard it must be to write a story about the future that a reader 60 years into the future still finds futuristic).
There also is some action on another planet; that setting was minimally described and needed more definition.
The hero is a privileged jerk and acts irrationally.
The problem that needs to be resolved (the conflict) keeps evolving and evolving in a way that should increase the drama. I found no increase in dramatic tension.
The action in the climax requires some collaboration of the hero with others, which was an interesting premise.
The story builds toward a climax but then resolves that climax quite prematurely IMO.
The twist at the very end (final page) totally disappointed me. If in fact Dick intended this to be a parodic meta-narrative, the twist undercuts the impact of both parody and meta-narrative; it seems like a commercial move to me.
Set in a future dystopian version of the USA, the backstory for how things have reached their current condition is delivered in bits and pieces
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throughout the book, and a clear understanding was not given. Much detail is left to the reader's imagination.There are too many elements of 1960's USA that remain in this future; their appearance is jarring. (I do of course recognize how hard it must be to write a story about the future that a reader 60 years into the future still finds futuristic).
There also is some action on another planet; that setting was minimally described and needed more definition.
The hero is a privileged jerk and acts irrationally.
The problem that needs to be resolved (the conflict) keeps evolving and evolving in a way that should increase the drama. I found no increase in dramatic tension.
The action in the climax requires some collaboration of the hero with others, which was an interesting premise.
The story builds toward a climax but then resolves that climax quite prematurely IMO.
The twist at the very end (final page) totally disappointed me. If in fact Dick intended this to be a parodic meta-narrative, the twist undercuts the impact of both parody and meta-narrative; it seems like a commercial move to me.
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LibraryThing member CraigGoodwin
Excellent . Brim full of ideas in a very satisfying narrative.
Subjects
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1963-06-04
Physical description
157 p.; 17.7 cm
ISBN
0722129610 / 9780722129616
Local notes
Omslag: Ikke angivet
Omslaget viser et rumskib med motoren tændt tæt ved en asteroide
Indskannet omslag - N650U - 150 dpi
Gameplayers
Omslaget viser et rumskib med motoren tændt tæt ved en asteroide
Indskannet omslag - N650U - 150 dpi
Gameplayers
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Pages
157
DDC/MDS
| 813.54 |