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List Price: $49.95 | | Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Salesrank: 315996
Released: November 4, 2004 |
| Our Price: $22.95 |
| Used Price: $12.68 |
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| Media: Hardcover |
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Editorial Review:
A retrospective celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Dungeons & Dragons© brand.
Thirty years ago, the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game made its debut on game shelves and kitchen tables everywhere. Since then, it has grown into a worldwide phenomenon encompassing roleplaying, miniatures, novels, computer and video games, movies, and music, and it has influenced the world of fantasy in ways few other brands have. This new collector's book celebrates that rich history by taking a look at the past, present, and future of the D&D© brand.
The book will be filled with essays and photographs of the events, products, personalities, and art that have graced the world of Dungeons & Dragons over the years. Rich in vivid detail, each page will help tell the story of the evolution of the D&D experience and its place in our culture. Even celebrities will be part of the action, whether by sharing their fond memories of sitting around the gaming table or relating how the D&D experience has shaped their lives and their careers.
Thirty Years of Adventure: A Celebration of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D Retrospective) Reviews:
Retrospective.... 
2008-11-11 - This book is a wonderful retrospective of Dungeons & Dragons. It goes back over all 30 years of D&D, and has lots of pictures and commentary from many people associated with the game ranging from players (that happen to be famous) to designers.
The Geeky Coffee Table Book 
2008-03-12 - "Thirty Years of Adventure" is a coffee table book to celebrate three decades of Dungeons&Dragons. There are celebrity endorsements from the likes of Vin Diesel (author of the foreward) and Wil Wheaton (the annoying wunderkind on Star Trek:Next Generation) There are some great pictures; it's a visual delight. There are some interesting anecdotes about D&D history.
However,the negative aspects outweigh the positive ones. The layout is a challenge to follow (it's easier being a seventh level elf mage) It's like a bad trip. The game isn't given its cultural context either. There's no mention of the infamous anti-D&D Jack Chick tract,nor the "Mazes and Monsters" made-for-TV cheesefest starring Tom Hanks. D&D's initial controversy is mentioned in passing maybe. It would've been interesting to document its growth from "OH NOES, occult game" and Reagan-era hysteria,to something mainstream and acceptable. No mention of the cheesy "Dungeons and Dragons" movie starring Jeremy Irons and Thora Birch either. This book ends up being a plodding bore,you feel like you're stuck in the dungeons,not fighting the dragons. This "homage" ends up being a turgid,naff bore.
Lame 
2006-08-19 - I was excited about this book, then i read it at the bookstore. Trust me, you don't want this. It really looks like it was thrown together with no real reverence for the game, the art, the authors, Gygax, etc.
Kick start your nostalgia
2005-09-29 - As a once avid, now lapsed gamer, I picked up 30 Years of Adventure with great excitement. Scanning its pages, seeing the covers from the oldest Dungeons & Dragons books, I was instantly reminded of my priceless first days of gaming.
The book has two interwoven sections: autobiographical sketches by either people from inside the RPG industry or else in the entertainment industry about their first exposure to the game, and segments about the history of Dungeons and Dragons and its supplements. The history is like the DnD Special Edition DVD...fascinating background for anyone who has only ever seen TSR's finished products, but wants to know more about the process. The self-sketches are for the most part well-written walks down nostalgia lane. I found it extraordinarily inspiring to read about how DnD was such an important early creative experience for so many professional artists.
While on the one hand I would have preferred a bit more substance (graphics cover much more of each page than text), I cannot deny the beauty of the layout, or that its highly graphic appeal are part of why I bought the book in the first place.
Reading 30 Years of Adventure reminded me of a time when I wasn't afraid of humiliating myself by creating something less than a masterpiece. It reminded me of the many years of looking forward to Gen Con, the mecca for all true dorks, where we would gather to meet little gods; men and women who had written the books that helped us create universes.
Alright, enough sappiness. Time to find my dice.
Good book for the true D&D fanboy/fangirl albeit a little commercial 
2005-08-19 - This book is not necessarily a chronological history of D&D. Seems more like a digest of the different D&D worlds with the early history and recent Wizards of the Coast acquisition tacked on the beginning and end respectively. The bulk of the book summarizes the different worlds of D&D Forgotten Realms, Dark Sun, and Dragonlance. They even have the not so popular worlds like Spelljammer, Mystara (never heard of it before), and the horrific 2nd Edition. All this is good with nice, big illustrations and good testimony from the creators themselves, however, because i have an idea of the true history of D&D it seemed a bit too commercialized almost like plugging their products. I really wanted the "true" history of the D&D franchise including the power struggles within and the controversy created by the public. they touch up a little bit on it but not everything. Then again what do you expect from a book published by Wizards. Regardless, it's a good book for the D&D fan. Good presentation and great illustrations. I recommend it regardless but just know what to expect.
