Book picks similar to
Initializing by E.M. Hardy


litrpg
dungeon-core
fantasy
science-fiction

Star Conqueror


J.A. Cipriano - 2018
    Well, you would if you were a dragon.When David Briggs beats the final level of Star Conqueror, that's exactly what happens to him. Gaining the power to become a fire-breathing dragon and recruited by alien freedom fighters, he has one chance to save the galaxy.There's just one problem.To stop her, he will have to break the mind control of a million super-hot female warriors, storm a hundred planets, and fight through armies of mechs.Then again, you know what they say, if you want to save the world, you better bring a dragon.Please Note: This novel contains a harem. You have been warned.

The Land: Founding


Aleron Kong - 2015
    to "The Land!"Tricked into a world of banished gods, demons, goblins, sprites and magic, Richter must learn to meet the perils of The Land and begin to forge his own kingdom. Actions have consequences across The Land, with powerful creatures and factions now hell-bent on Richter's destruction.Can Richter forge allegiances to survive this harsh and unforgiving world or will he fall to the dark denizens of this ancient and unforgiving realm?A tale to shake "The Land" itself, measuring 10/10 on the Richter scale, how will Richter's choices shape the future of The Land and all who reside in it? Can he grow his power to meet the deadliest of beings of the land? When choices are often a shade of grey, how will Richter ensure he does not become what he seeks to destroy?ps - Gnomes Rule

Quick Change Volume 1: Slyborn


C.T. O'Leary - 2020
    Seth is instantly transferred to the world of Morgenheim, where knights in shining armor and magic are normal, and citizens must actually “level up” to get stronger. Seth is given the chance to choose a boon from a list of incredible super powers, but accidentally chooses seemingly the most useless power in the list. Can he make it on his own in this world of magic and monsters?

Dominion of Blades


Matt Dinniman - 2017
    Any gamer with an immersion rig can enter the world of sword and sorcery, of goblins and dragons, and they can hack and slash their way to glory. But the game is too real for some, and after an epidemic of real-life fatalities, public use of the immersion technology has been banned, causing the game to be shut down. Jonah wakes to find himself in-game, level one, with no memory of how he arrived and no way to eject. With only two companions, trapped in a world that once hosted millions, Jonah must battle his way across a treacherous landscape, fighting virtual monsters, all-too-real pain, and a very human enemy in a desperate bid to survive.

Village of Hawkshead


John Elijah Cressman - 2021
    Now he’s been abducted and dropped into a strange world with others who have been taken from their homes. And magic and monsters are real.Now, Ethan is a wizard and must convince his new companions to band together in order to survive in this strange new world as they level up, gain abilities and try to unravel the mystery of why they were abducted and how to find a way home.But things are never easy and soon he and his friends find themselves in the middle of a conflict that could spell disaster to their new home.Oh, and there might be something murdering wizards and sucking out their brains.Could things get any worse?

Nascent


Tony Corden - 2017
    From the age of six, she decided that she wanted more and with the help of her local gang-leader she learned the skills to escape the relentless pressure to mediocrity. On her sixteenth birthday, she was inadvertently implanted with a Neural Enhancement Chip instead of the free Government provided basic level personal AI. This mistake not only removed the limits placed on the AI but also broke some of the Government instigated control parameters. Leah’s life rapidly becomes a battle, both in the virtual-multiverse and in real life. On the Stork Tower by Wáng Zhīhuàn Along the mountains sink the last rays of sun, Towards the sea, the Yellow River does forward go. If you would fain command a thousand miles in view, To a higher storey, you are expected to go.

The Laboratory


Skyler Grant - 2017
    When her systems are booted up she finds herself in control of a long-abandoned facility in a post-apocalyptic wasteland. The world is filled with dangerous threats granted great powers by the same cataclysm that befell the world. Emma must balance safety with the desire for test subjects as she brings herself back fully online and stakes out a place in this new world.

Ball of Light: Evolution


AR Chen - 2019
    Heck, he doesn't know what he is. Despite his spotty memory, he's pretty sure he didn't used to be a floating ball of light. He's also certain that he's not originally from this dangerous fantasy world...maybe. Okay, fairly certain. To make things stranger, he seems to be involved in something big, something magical...a game. Who was he before? Will his memories come back? Why does he have an assistant explaining the game's rules to him? He can evolve? There's a countdown timer? One thing Steve does know is that he needs to figure out what's going on fast, and if he is playing a game, even a deadly one, he plans to win.

The Slime Dungeon


Jeffrey "Falcon" Logue - 2016
    A soul, blessed by a goddess, falls to the land and enters his new life. He clings to a single memory, the defining moment of his previous life. Now, he learns how to succeed in his new life, as a new dungeon heart. To become the best dungeon he can be, he partners with the one existence all dungeons need: his bonded Dungeon Pixie.

Inheritance


Morgan Cole - 2020
    But when he walks through, he discovers he's trapped there and he’s got company.The station's AI enlists Jake to reclaim the systems needed to support life, but there’s a catch—he has only eight hours to complete the task or he’ll die alone in the cold vacuum of space. With only his trusty wrecking bar, work boots, and some basic survival equipment he must defeat the horrific monsters that infest the station before his air runs out.But aliens aren’t all he has to worry about. Hidden in the station is a message that could spell doom for Earth, and the entire universe along with it.If you're a fan of crunchy, sci-fi LitRPG with a healthy dose of base-building, then this space survival adventure with visceral combat is the book for you.

Raiya: Starter Zone


Russell Wilbinski - 2018
    When he becomes the first player to reach level 100 in his favorite game, he is offered the chance to test a brand new game. Never one to read the fine print, he jumped at the chance to be the very first player to see the brand new game. But some opportunities are just too good to be true... Awaking to find himself trapped in a brand new world and struggling to survive, James must find a way to master the game and escape the world of Raiya. Angry wildlife, gargantuan monsters, and mysterious allies are not the only things he has to worry about. Will he have the backbone to do what is right and not what is easiest? Will the carefree Skree find something worth fighting for? Something worth dying for? "From the get-go it had me, I just don't want to put it down! So much Fun!" Sylvia - Amazon Customer

Tech Mage


D.L. Harrison - 2019
    Weak in comparison to other mages, but he has a special way with technology. But what good was rebuilding a car with magic, or hacking a computer, when an elemental mage threatens him with death?At least he was weak, until the government recruits him to advance their understanding of alien technology, of a ship that crash landed on Earth over seventy years ago.His life is about to change in a major way, and the surprises will keep coming, not all of them pleasant. Author’s note: This is primarily a space opera. The fantasy elements of the book are tangential at best, and I don’t believe that will change through the rest of the series. Oh, there’s mages, shifters, witches, and vampires in these pages, but that’s really not the focus.

The Pioneer


A.R. Holloway - 2019
    A world that operates similar to the video games Daniel has always enjoyed, Ethria is a place where power can be found in many forms, both light and dark, and whose true purpose is unknown even to most of its denizens. Taking the long way home, Daniel will make another choice, to help a group of persecuted people whose story mirrors that of his pioneer ancestors. But In a time when Gods are changing, the people of every race suffer, the foundations of nations shift, and change and danger are in the very air, what can one under-leveled, foreign wizard do? All the while at the roof of the world, at the base of the Sawtooth Mountains a darkness grows, a creature plots, and an ancient evil from the foundations of the world seeks to re-emerge onto Ethria.”

Accidental Thief


C.J. Davis - 2017
    His wife's a successful engineering executive while his IT help desk job led nowhere. Even his daughter's daycare teacher thought he was a loser. He couldn't catch a break.Then a strange woman at a flea market sells Hal a bootleg early release of the highly anticipated Fantasma game. It is just what he wished for and he can't wait to play it during his long weekend home alone. His luck has finally turned around, right? Hal should be careful what he wishes for.Whisked away into the game he only wanted to play for a weekend, Hal enters a world desperate for a hero.Is Hal Dix that hero?Join the adventure in this first book of an epic LitRPG fantasy trilogy. Play along with Hal and his new friends in Fantasma, as he becomes an Accidental Thief, and perhaps, a mythical hero of prophecy.

Asgard's Fall


Robert Hinshaw - 2020
    Even the danger of the experimental full immersion technology didn’t put him off. It beat living in a nursing home and was supposed to let him feel young again, at least until modern medicine and his body gave out.But there was something wrong with Asgard’s Fall. The “gods” running the game didn’t act like AIs were supposed to most of the time. And some of the players took things too seriously, like they knew something about the game that Noah didn’t. Forced to rely on skills he abandoned a lifetime ago and new digital abilities that resemble ancient magics more than modern code, Noah has to unravel the mysteries behind Asgard’s Fall. And in doing so, discover an ancient threat that has forced a world long hidden from mankind into the light.