Look beyond the musical to the real tale of the demon barber of Fleet Street. The myth of Sweeny Todd has long been speculated to come from a true story and this novel, written at the height of the legend, is perhaps as close to the truth as it is possible to get.The original Sweeny Todd – A String of Pearls is a classic from 1846 that is set in the dark underbelly of London. Written as a series of Penny Dreadfuls by Thomas Preskett Press, the series has since been collected into a single novel that will have readers itching to find out the next dark twist. See the characters as you have never seen them before, the way they first appeared. A String of Pearls follows Sweeny Todd as he descends deeper and deeper into madness. Having murdered Johanna’s suitor, Sweeny sets in motion the events that lead to his downfall. Johanna sets out to track her fiancée down and in that process she will unearth a gruesome truth.Meanwhile Toby, Sweeny’s apprentice, will be driven mad by what he finds. Sweeny Todd’s dark agreement with Mrs Lovett and her sinister pie shop has stunned Victorian and modern audiences alike. This classic and brilliant novel will take you back through time and show you a past filled with tragedy and beauty as Johanna goes in search of her lost love.Johanna’s loyalty and bravery stand out all the more as she risks everything to find the demon barber’s secret.Todd is a brilliant character – both compelling and horrifying – who has drawn people again and again into his story. As suspicion grows and Todd becomes more manic and terrifying and Mrs Lovett grows more and more desperate, the two will drive each other further into darkness. Through the years this timeless tale has captured the imagination.The world over, A String of Pearls is a classic that went on to spawn both a hit musical and an Oscar-winning movie.Thomas Preskett Prest (1810-1859) was a British writer, journalist and musician. He was a prolific producer of penny dreadfuls. He wrote under several pseudonyms including Bos, a takeoff of Charles Dickens' own pen name, Boz. Before joining Edward Lloyd's publishing factory, Prest had made a name for himself as a talented musician and composer.Albion Press is an imprint of Endeavour Press, the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.

    This book not only examines content creation and the concepts behind development, but it also give readers a background on the evolution of game development and how it has become what it is today. GAME DEVELOPMENT ESSENTIALS also includes chapters on project management, development team roles and responsibilities, development cycle, marketing, maintenance, and the future of game development. With the same engaging writing style and examples that made the first two editions so popular, this new edition features all the latest games and game technology. Coverage of new game-related technology, development techniques, and the latest research in the field make this an invaluable resource for anyone entering the exciting, competitive, ever-changing world of game development.

    Red Sox. Lakers vs. Celtics. And now . . . Team 3D vs. CompLexity. That would be America’s next celebrated rivalry if the men in Game Boys had their way. 3D and CompLexity are two of the top professional “e-sports” teams in the U.S. Their battle for dominance, as juicy as any feud in “real” sports, leads the action in Michael Kane’s engaging and lively chronicle of the lifestyle and business of gaming. We’ve come a long way since Pac-Man. Today’s games are more elaborate, popular, and addictive than ever. For the elite players, gaming is a full-fledged career that pays big money in prizes and corporate sponsorships. Gamers win, lose, strategize, fight, sign with rival teams, get berated by sideline-pacing coaches. Some use performance-enhancing drugs. And now they’re going on TV. Are they really the “athletes” of tomorrow? They act like they are. Game Boys is a pioneering narrative of the rivalries, quirks, and dramas of a subculture on the cusp of big things. At its most personal, it’s a classic sports tale of victory and defeat, punched up for the millennial generation. It’s also an engrossing business-meets-popculture narrative that reveals the entrepreneurial ingenuity involved in bringing gaming onto broadcast TV, in the vein of the X-Games or televised poker. Game Boys is an engrossing read for technophiles, gamers, parents, and anyone interested in the business of sports and trends in pop culture.

      Also includes 3 digital in-game items.Mobile friendly eGuide access – Digital strategy content optimized for a second screen experience.Multiple play styles presented – Identify tactics, explore hidden caves, defeat monumental creatures, and shape the world around you based on advice for your own style of play and combat.Make the right decision – Your actions and choices will shape a multitude of story outcomes along with the tangible, physical aspects of the world itself. Tough choices define your experience, and even one decision can change the course of what's to come.Be the finest Inquisitor – Choose your class based on recommended character loadouts that take advantage of a unique set of abilities, weaponry, special moves, and even class-reactive story content. Completely control the appearance and abilitiesGet the best out of your team – Connect and communicate with a cast of unique, memorable characters to develop dynamic relationships that will benefit you and your party. Where to go next – Illustrated maps serve as a guide to the next adventure allowing informed exploration of a diverse, visually stunning, and immersive living world.

    Play to win. Play like a champion.In Winning Fantasy Baseball, Larry Schechter discloses the secrets of his proven methods. Packed with commonsense, easy-to-use strategies for beginners through experienced players, Schechter supplies readers with a toolkit to achieve the most important thing in fantasy ball--winning! Some have called Schechter one of the best fantasy baseball players in the world. He is the only two-time winner of the CDM Sports national salary-cap challenge, having defeated 7,500 competitors in 2002 and 6,000 in 2005. He is also a five-time winner of the renowned Tout Wars experts league and a member of the USA Today-sponsored League of Alternative Baseball Reality (LABR).Readers will learn directly from the champ everything they need to know about:- how to project player stats;- how to convert those stats into a specific value;- strategy for snake drafts, and mono-league and mixed auctions;- selecting teams using a salary cap;- playing in keeper leagues;- and performing in-season management.Although the book is primarily about fantasy baseball, many of the concepts also apply to fantasy football and other fantasy sports.

    Another thing that makes Japan unique in the gaming world is the prevalence of game arcades. While the game arcade scene has died in the U.S., there are 9,500 "game centers" in Japan with more than 445,000 game machines. Arcade Mania introduces overseas readers to the fascinating world of the Japanese gemu senta. Organized as a guided tour of a typical game center, the book is divided into nine chapters, each of which deals with a different kind of game, starting with the UFO catchers and print club machines at the entrance and continuing through rhythm games, fighting games, shooting games, retro games, gambling games, card-based games, and only-in-Japan games. Covering classic games from Space Invaders to Street Fighter, games that are familiar to Americans in their home console versions (Rock Band, Guitar Hero and Dance, Dance Revolution), as well as the unique, quirky games found only in Japan, Arcade Mania is crammed full of interviews with game makers and star players, and packed with facts about the history, background and characteristics of each game, all lavishly illustrated with photographs and game graphics. This book is a must-have for gamers everywhere.

    If you're like most players, you struggle with nearly every aspect of the game: offense, defense, execution and combos, and generally having a game plan that is more complex than just mashing buttons at every opportunity. A Road Map Toward Improvement Street Fighter is a game that requires practice, finesse, and knowledge. Unfortunately, most players don't have any guidance on where to begin when learning the game which leads to lots of frustration and losses. This guide is designed to give you a road map for improving your skills so that when SF5 drops you can hit the ground running!Lots of players are under the misconception that since SF5 is a brand new game, there's no point in playing SF4 and improving. While it is true that there will be lots to learn in SF5 such as new engines and characters, this is not a reason not to improve on your Street Fighter fundamentals in the meantime. The Importance of a Solid Foundation Like anything else worth doing in life, developing a foundation of solid fundamentals is the key to improving. Even though SF5 will have brand new characters and mechanics, the core elements of Street Fighter remain the same throughout the franchise. Execution, footsies and space control, combos, punishing, and resource management are important in all Street Fighter games and this guide will show you how to use SF4 to improve on these aspects of your game. Who is gootecks and why should I bother? I've played Street Fighter competitively since 2003, starting with Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike and continuing with Street Fighter 4. I've traveled to compete in tournaments around the world, including places like Japan, Singapore, Australia, Canada, and Europe.A lot of people may know me as the co-host of Excellent Adventures of gootecks & Mike Ross, or perhaps from my work on Cross Counter TV, the entertainment network for fighting game fans.Recently, I've begun training players just like yourself through Cross Counter Training, where players like EG.Justin Wong, EG.K-Brad, Alex Myers are available for helping players of all skill levels improve. Through working with my students, I've developed what I believe to be an extremely effective method of learning how to play Street Fighter. This method is based on the idea of learning one tiny aspect of the game at a time through the eyes of the poster boy of Street Fighter, Ryu. "But Ryu is boring, gootecks!" I know, I know, you think Ryu is boring and everybody plays him and you want to play a cool, flashy character so you can style on people on stage at Evo someday. Unfortunately, you'll need to learn how to walk before you can run and there is no better investment of time as a new player than to learn Ryu in order to build a strong foundation.Taking this time now to develop your fundamentals will serve you well as you transition to Street Fighter 5. Ryu is definitely different in SF5, but the tools and concepts you'll learn in this guide will give you a leg up on the competition when SF5 drops.

    Lovecraft.

     Chess is one of the world’s most popular board games, and is played by millions of people from all walks of life in parks, homes, online and tournaments. This two-player game is played on a checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight by eight grid called a chessboard. The game begins with each player possessing 16 pieces, 8 pawns, two rooks (sometimes called castles), two bishops, two knights, a queen and a king. The different player’s pieces are colored differently and are usually either black or white, though colors may vary. Regardless of the color variation though, each ‘team’ is referred to as either black or white. The objective of the game is to ‘checkmate’ the opponent’s king by placing it in such a position that it cannot escape capture. There are other methods to winning the game, such as when an opponent forfeits or resigns from the match. Forfeitures are normally as a result of the opponent losing too many pieces, or if a checkmate is seen as inevitable. There are also circumstances where the game ends in a draw for various reasons, meaning that neither player wins. The first official world chess championship was held in 1886 between Wilhelm Steinitz and Johannes Zukerfort. The victor and thus the first official World Champion was Wilhelm Seinitz. Since the creation of the World Chess Federation in Paris in 1924, the best chess players in the world have been awarded the title of Grandmaster, which is the highest accolade a chess player can get apart from world champion. The latter half of the 20th century saw computers being programmed to play chess, with many home computers now being able to play with such a high level of sophistication that they can outwit some of the best human players. The first computer to ever beat a reigning world champion was the computer Deep Blue, which beat Garry Kasparov in a match in 1997. What You're Going to Learn: Origins and History of Chess Rules and Notations Movements in the Game The Pieces, Their Movements and Values Chess Strategy and Tactics Tips for Beginners What Not to Do More Tactics ...And Much More! Ready to Play Like a Pro ? * * * DOWNLOAD YOUR COPY TODAY * * *

    Together, Akira hopes they can achieve his newfound dream of becoming a Pokémon Trainer and master the amazing Z-Move. But first, Akira needs to pass a test to earn a Trainer Passport. This becomes more difficult when Rockruff gets kidnapped! And then Team Kings shows up with—you guessed it—evil plans for world domination!

    Contains concept art and models of the game's characters, locations, and weapons, as well as artists' comments on the work and the game.Note:The Rapture Edition Art book is a reduced version of the Special Edition Art book made to be a value against the Special Edition. It is reduced to 96 pages, and scaled down to the dimensions of the game case itself.The Special Edition Art book is the main version of BioShock 2's art book. It is 168 pages and is composed of 10 chapters.♢Chapter 1 - Citizens of Rapture♢Chapter 2 - Big Daddies♢Chapter 3 - Big Sisters♢Chapter 4 - Little Sisters♢Chapter 5 - Environments♢Chapter 6 - Weapons♢Chapter 7 - User Interface♢Chapter 8 - Advertisements♢Chapter 9 - Storyboards♢Chapter 10 - Credits

    Thor, the King of Asgard, has reluctantly agreed to serve as Galactus's herald in order to stave off an even greater threat. But when the two discover an extremely powerful, mysterious source of energy known as the Zero Point, it will take more than the mighty Thor to save reality from Galactus's deadly conquest! Prepare for an epic battle that will shake the foundations of the Marvel Universe and Fortnite!

    Redgrave first introduced this document on Reddit and it has since been revised, and finalized. He closely examines the information available to the player in order to build up the hidden story of the game. Both facts and Redgrave's own speculations are provided and a clear distinction is made between the two in order to allow the reader room to disagree with his conclusions and make up their own minds based on the evidence presented.

    In those heady early days of computing, Britannia very much ruled the digital waves.Electronic Dreams looks back at how Britain embraced the home computer, and at the people who drove the boom: entrepreneurs such as Clive Sinclair and Alan Sugar seeking new markets; politicians proclaiming economic miracles; bedroom programmers with an unhealthy fascination with technology; and millions of everyday folk who bought into the electronic dream and let the computer into their lives. It is a history of home computers such as the Commodore VIC20, BBC Micro, and ZX Spectrum; classic computer games like Manic Miner and Elite; the early information networks that first put the home online; and the transformation of the computer into an everyday object in the British home.Based on interviews with key individuals, archive sources, and study of vintage hardware and software, and with a particular focus on the computer's place in social history, Electronic Dreams is a nostalgic look at how a depressed 1980s Britain got over its fear of microchips and embraced the computer as a “passport to the future.”

    3, Donkey Kong, and The Legend of Zelda!Interviews and commentary from Nintendo visionaries who pioneered this era of gaming.A showcase of vintage advertising and priceless excerpts from Nintendo Power magazine back issues!Plus hand-drawn maps, character and game environment art, and much more!