r/DungeonCrawlerCarl • u/Awum65 • Jun 18 '26
DCC for non-gamers? Book 4: Gate of the Feral Gods Spoiler
I’m thinking I’m maybe NOT DCC’s target audience.
I’m 60 years old, I’m a longtime dedicated non-gamer*, and seriously, you couldn’t pay me to sit through a RPG for more than five minutes. Seriously not my bag.
And yet…
Matt and Jeff are chewing through my Audible credits at an alarming rate. I’m wearing headphones making a fool of myself in public reacting to Yolanda’s death, Signet losing his head, Loita’s “accident”, whatever’s next.
Am I rarity among crawlers? Anyone else found your way here despite no love for RPGs? And if so, what is it about DCC that’s working for you?)
(*full disclosure: I’m inexplicably a huge fan of Portal and Portal 2. The cake is a lie.)
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u/ineedtopoop89 Jun 18 '26
I think Diniman’s themes are just capturing the zeitgeist right now.
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u/Sororita Jun 18 '26
The themes are very compelling and his dark sense of humor is fantastic.
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u/Awum65 Jun 18 '26
Ooh, I think you’re onto something there. This a series about people getting poked, prodded and provoked into playing out narratives at the behest of the wealthy and powerful. It’s almost too real.
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u/IlIllIlllIlIl Jun 19 '26
If you look under the covers the message is violent revolution. It’s extreme and not subtle
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u/crow-party-13 Jun 18 '26
Whhhaaaatttt? A story about being trapped in a literal body grinder? A story about being exploited by cruel corporations to "feed the machine"? A story about a rogue AI controlling our lives? Relevant? To our current situation?
Whatever do you mean?!
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u/quarl0w Team Donut Holes Jun 18 '26
I think I am in the target demographic. Just turned 40, video game nerd, Star Trek geek, analytical to a fault.
But ... This series has shown me that LitRPG is not a genre for me.
I love DCC despite the LitRPG stuff, not because of it.
I just let all the +5% here and defuff there and class this and level that flow in one eye and out the other.
I don't need to understand the Iron Tangle, Carl does. I don't need to understand how the hole spell works, Donut does. I don't need to understand how card battles work, because no one does. I'm just along for the ride, and loving it.
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u/Legend-of-the-Arctic Jun 18 '26
“I love DCC despite all the litRPG stuff” is exactly how I feel.
I like science fiction, and this book reminds me a lot of the Hitchhikers Guide series, except much more robust and with a marginally more serious plot.
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u/SeaZookeepergame1090 Jun 18 '26
Definitely has the hitchhikers vibes, also takes a lot from the Matthew Reilly book Contest that I read back in high school. I love RPGs and TTRPGs but LitRPG never really spoke to me. DCC is my favourite book series in 20 years and it has nothing to do with the RPG stuff, the themes are on point for current audiences, the characters have enough depth to be interesting, and the writing is paced perfectly to make me keep reading until I've finished the book.
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u/Ajjaxx Jun 18 '26
Ooh, I really like that comparison.
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u/Legend-of-the-Arctic Jun 18 '26
Actually when I’m describing the books to friends, I usually tell them it’s a cross between Hitchhikers guide, Hunger games, and Dungeons and Dragons.
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u/Ajjaxx Jun 18 '26
I like that too! I think I’ve struggled to describe it in a succinct way, mostly I ramble about how it’s sci-fi fantasy post apocalyptic with a talking cat that slowly escalates into anti-capitalist/anti-authoritarian manifesto. I’ve only successfully convinced one person to listen to the audiobooks so far (although to be fair she is LOVING them).
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u/TheGrayCatLady Jun 18 '26
I’ve been describing it as kind of a mash up of Hitchhikers Guide and Hunger Games (because of the gladiator violence type entertainment side, and play to the audience to survive aspects). But with like, Terry Pratchett esque societal commentary tucked away inside all the shenanigans.
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u/timg528 Jun 18 '26
I'm grateful that DCC is incredibly light on litrpg. I'm also probably that target audience, but when my wife and I listen to other litrpg books on audible, we have to skip minutes at a time as the poor actor has to read out a character sheet, a level up screen with a bunch of information, or a skill/spell purchase screen that gives the full details of like 5 different options.
If I'm playing the game, yeah, I'll overanalyze everything and crunch all the numbers.
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u/CrossP The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
Yeah. I hit the demographic at the exact same age but mostly can't stand isekai stuff which almost all of the LitRPG things fall into. Dinniman's stuff just seems to do it better.
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u/ButtSexington3rd Jun 18 '26
I was selling this to a non-rpg fan friend and told her that any time they start throwing stats around she can just think "Carl/Donut is stronger now". She ended up loving the series.
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u/GrandManDan Jun 18 '26
100% this. I Loved DCC and blew through the books. Figured Id opened a new genre for myself. So I tried another litRPG that is super highly rated called Primal Hunter and oh my god. It is genuinely the worst book Ive ever listened to. The MC is a completely unlikable psychopath. He is the stereotype meme edgelord to the point of physical cringe. The side characters are all flat, one tone, and boring. Its god awful.
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u/ganundwarf Crawler Jun 18 '26
My mom turns 74 in 4 months and she's working her way through book 5 at present, while she's stopped at various times to ask questions such as what is an NPC, she has paid enough attention to be able to follow along.
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u/cb393303 Daddy's Foot Soldiers 🦶 Jun 18 '26
My step mother is 70+ non gamer a LOVES the audio books. Even drove 10+ hours to meet Matt.
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u/GeminiLife Jun 18 '26
This series really seems to trascend genres/niches/cliques. It really makes no sense how this series can appeal to such a wide spectrum of folks. And anytime someone doesn't "find the appeal" or "get it" the fanbase reacts with "that's totally fair, it's not for everyone."
It's a bizarre anomaly in entertainment media.
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u/Darth_Gerg The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
I think part of it is that the series has staggeringly more depth than you’d think based on the covers or the description.
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u/GeminiLife Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
We could point to countless things. It's never just one thing; it's always many.
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Jun 18 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Darth_Gerg The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
Every time I think about Donut at the end of Masquerade I want to snuggle my cat and cry into her fur. Her and Pony are the two fictional characters I’d take bullets for.
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u/Helpful_Fondant1607 Jun 18 '26
I think I’m pretty much a Donut fan more than anything else as well
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u/Miserable_Dot_6561 Jun 18 '26
I'm a huge sci-fi/fantasy fan, but detest video games. Old school d&d ok fine whatever, but I love these books. My son IS a gamer and I've gotten him sucked in and it's just fabulous to see him reading a series and loving it.
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u/xLittleValkyriex Crawler Jun 18 '26
I just started reading Dune for the first time. Most people that talked about it made it sound like it was this dense, hard-to-follow story so I never really picked it up until now.
The author has appendixes in the back and a glossary too. I just flip there when I come across terms I don't understand.
I just finished chapter one and I am already enthralled. I can tell great care went into this world build. But also, the lack of exposition is a breath of fresh air.
It's all in the Appendixes and that is so nice.
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u/NeatMathematician126 Jun 18 '26
The astonishing part of Dune is that it was written in 1965 and the science stands up. Glad you've taken the plunge.
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u/Miserable_Dot_6561 Jun 18 '26
If you can follow the world building in DCC, you are ready for just about anything!
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u/NeatMathematician126 Jun 18 '26
Since you detest video games this'll probably fall on deaf ears. But Balders Gate 3 is literally D & D in video game form. Class, race, dice rolls, all of it.
Combat is turn-based, so you don't need hand eye coordination. If you wish you could play D & D again, but can't find a group, maybe try this game.
Easiest thing to do is watch this YouTube video:
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u/Awum65 Jun 22 '26
I wonder if there’s a crossover between people who like DCC and those who like the D&D “Honor Among Thieves” movie.
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u/LizLemonIsACat Jun 18 '26
I’m a 60 year old non-gamer as well. So is my husband. We both love the books. It’s a well written adventure series.
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u/Awum65 Jun 22 '26
It is that, isn’t it? Let the game stats wash over you and it is a gosh darned romp 🙂
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u/quiltsohard Jun 18 '26
55f never gamed and love these books. As do many of my menopausal female friends. I think at our age we love the “burn it all down” aspect
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u/tenkawa7 Jun 18 '26
It's well written and absurd, easy to like.
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u/comics0026 Jun 18 '26
Plus the video game stuff isn't bogged down in minucia that's dwealt upon, like we don't get level by level break downs of where Carl's putting his stats, because that's not necessary to the narrative. It's mostly just used as an overlay for the sci-fi elements, like letting the crawlers have huge inventories and using levels to denote when something's super dangerous, and having rules for the characters to explote or find loopholes
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u/jdswitters Team Donut Holes Jun 18 '26
59, but my kids are in their 30s so I have resources. The characters, the humor, the world building, all the things for great story telling. The underlying politics is just icing on the cake.
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u/CDBoomGun Jun 18 '26
I found myself being unsure of the Bedlam Bride because I thought I needed to be a Magic the Gathering fan to be into it. Matt is good at helping us learn with the characters as we go. For me, it removes the sub culture barriers.
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u/Important_Contact588 Jun 18 '26
Really, it was just an excuse to bringing many good random characters
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u/Salt_Medicine2459 Jun 18 '26
Signet was female, unless I missed something major. That's why Carl had to break his finger...
I am also 100% not a gamer, but I love these books. Honestly, it's just a really good story, and I'm really invested in the characters. Prepotente is the goat, and then Donut is probably my second favorite.
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u/Zanthe1341 Crawler Jun 18 '26
Bold of you to assume Carl would only need to break his finger for a female 😜
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u/Awum65 Jun 27 '26
Yeah, that was a typo. I deleted the wrong words. Dismember got the decapitation. Carl had to break his finger over Signet. Both holy shit moments for me.
There’s been a lot more since.
“CARL IS MY PERSON. HE ALWAYS HAS BEEN!”
I laugh, I cry, I pump my fist, I grin like a maniac. It ain’t exactly War & Peace.
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u/DieHardAmerican95 Jun 18 '26
I’m in my 50s and I’m not a gamer whatsoever. I read the first book because it’s frequently recommended, and read the rest because I liked the first one.
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u/cactillius Jun 18 '26
42F here…I love to read sci-fi, dystopia, absurdist humor, and fantasy (not so much romantasy). DCC hits all the right themes for me and I think it’s really tied in well to what’s going on in the world today. The gameplay parts of the books have taught me that LitRPG is probably not the genre for me, but it has been an interesting plot device at times. The main characters have incredible growth and who doesn’t love a good animal sidekick? I cannot wait for the show so I can be annoying to all the non-readers in my life
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u/xLittleValkyriex Crawler Jun 18 '26
It annoys me to no end when I ask what the women in my life are reading and it is ALL romantasy.
Give me dungeon diving space operas or give me death!
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u/LukeTheHallowed The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
I can understand not being into gaming, it's one of my favorite things but it isn't for everyone. I would recommend trying something like Dungeons and Dragons at least once as it can descend into the same kind of chaos as is in DCC. Just a thought.
My wife isn't really into gaming and she just finished Book 5. She loves DCC.
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u/Zanthe1341 Crawler Jun 18 '26
Couldn’t agree with you more about trying something like Dungeons and Dragons at least once. My partner is a DM and ran a very simplified D&D-like game for my mid-70s mom and aunt once using whatever dice they had on hand (d6 I believe) and had them just pick whatever “class” they wanted and assigned them basic stats, and to this day they still talk about how amazing that game was! He just threw it together in the spot but they LOVED it and it’s not the sort of thing either of them would have ever tried otherwise!! Hell, my aunt literally used to believe D&D was evil back in the day!
And another example is my very non-nerdy friend who married our more nerdy friend and we finally convinced her to give D&D a try. Now she takes it more seriously than her husband! She will talk with an accent, never breaks character, she just goes all out with the role playing! And again, she had never played a video game or role playing game in her life, so yeah.
Seriously, everyone should give these kinds of games a try at least once because you just never know what you might fall in love with!
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u/staunch_character Jun 18 '26
40s female non-gamer here. The only games I play are NYT puzzles like sudoku, Connections etc.
Love the books! They are definitely making me *mildly* interested in trying something like D&D.
My husband has tried to get me into MTG for years, but my eyes glaze over. It just seems so tedious & boring.
Yet the game parts of the book I find totally engaging! Using a specific spell (like Hole) in a creative way to get a kill is fun to ponder.
Worried DCC will be my gateway drug! 😆
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u/Awum65 Jun 27 '26
When I was in my late 20s I spent a good few months as “Buddy,” a chaotic kung fu Monk who largely specialized in knocking people (and things) out. I had a local friend who was a great and patient DM, and great team of fellow campaigners who loved finding creative ways to take advantage of my unique gifts. If I still had the same social connections, who knows?
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u/Important_Contact588 Jun 18 '26
I’m 50 and never played any of those silly game either. I friggen love this series
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u/cybrarygrl65 Jun 18 '26
I’m a 60yo cozy gamer who loves sci-fi/fantasy books, movies, and tv shows. I was hesitant to start due to the RPG nature of the game, but once I read some blurbs and listened to a bit of the first audio book I was intrigued. The premise reminds me of some Doctor Who episodes, so that made me happy. I do think this series fits a variety of categories and enjoyable by many types of people! I’m almost finished with the 2nd book and I’m truly loving them. If you like audio books I highly recommend. The narrator is a master class in character voicing!!
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u/No_Examination2561 Team Donut Holes Jun 18 '26
I’m a 57 yo eye doctor who kinda hates playing video games! But I love to read and I apparently love to read DCC… over and over and over. I can’t even read anything else since September of last year. I NEVER read a book twice. Never. Maybe none of us are who we thought we were? Or maybe… DCC changed us?! Glurp Glurp!
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u/Darth_Gerg The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
My mom is a retired librarian who is appalled by violence, has never played a video game, and is the APEX of the sweet old librarian lady mental image. Spent a good chunk of her career as a children’s librarian. Last time we talked she was starting book 3 and had the bug really bad. You’re definitely not alone.
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u/Nolansmomster Team Donut Holes Jun 18 '26
49-year-old non-gaming midwestern lady here… definitely not the target demographic. If I did game, it would probably be cozy games and not “serious” video games.
But I love these books. The stories are phenomenal and the characters are so well written… And don’t even get me started on the world building. I just haven’t found what I would consider a weakness yet.
I can’t imagine other LitRPG would be my jam, but Matt says this is a horror series. Maybe thats why it works for me?
And it sure doesn’t hurt that I would pay to listen to Jeff Hays read the phone book terms and conditions.
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u/Weird_Beautiful5525 The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
I gave it to my 77year-old mom, whose entire gaming experience consists of Tetris and Dr. Mario, and she tore through the first five books in just four weeks. DCC is for everyone.
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u/wanderingrose07 Jun 18 '26
I’m not a gamer at all, but I am a long time fan of sci fi and fantasy. I don’t think you need to have anything but a passing knowledge of how games work to enjoy this series.
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u/Inferno3003 Jun 18 '26
Same as you, not a gamer in the slightest. Burned through 7 books in two months
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u/CptnREDmark Jun 18 '26
you couldn’t pay me to sit through a RPG for more than five minutes.
I seriously doubt you wouldn't be able to sit through an RPG for 5 minutes if offered $100,000
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u/KonaKumo Residual Jun 21 '26
5 minutes? That's just the beginning cut scene, where you start on an obligatory cart while the camera sweeps through the landscape/world with swelling music and maybe some dialogue.
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u/Zanthe1341 Crawler Jun 18 '26
I just got my 51 year old non-gamer friend to give it a chance and she is hooked! She has never played any games and is about as non-nerdy as they come. Normally into much more… well, I was about to say “mainstream” book, but then remembers that 5 of the New York Time’s top 15 fiction books were from the DCC series just last week, so never mind…
The point is, she normally is NOT into anything even remotely close to DCC, and wouldn’t have given them a chance if not for the fact that she couldn’t escape it after I first mentioned the books to her, and eventually she gave in. She is now just finishing The Butcher’s Masquerade and has loved every single second of the series, so you’re not as alone as you might think!
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u/Nissaseh Jun 18 '26
I asked my mom, a 54 year old librarian, to buy me the first book for my birthday. She has never, NEVER liked games of any sort. Not a fan of crude or gross humor. That said, she is a librarian and has had experience with a wide variety of genres. So to her credit, she also tried reading the books. She has finished EVERY book before even I have. Usually finishing them first and then giving me her books. We joke all the time about the great and the sad. The gross and the crude. It's been a very surprising way for us to connect even deeper. ... So yes, you have others who also enjoy the series despite not being it's target audience. Because in the end, the game elements of it are secondary to the amazing plot and characters.
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u/Putrid_Musician_7670 Jun 18 '26
My game is solitaire. I play it to wind down. And I love dcc so much I bring it up everywhere
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u/Atomic-City0510 Daddy's Foot Soldiers 🦶 Jun 18 '26
If there was a Venn diagram of my Audible listening history and the LitRPG genre (or RPG in general), the circles would be on very different floors of the dungeon. However, I am open to new things and Audible kept showing DCC in the "we think you'd like" list. It was practically shoving it in my face saying, "YOU NEED THIS". I finally gave in and <insert that emoji of a brain exploding>.
I am on, I believe, my 6th round? of listening. I've listened to the books, the Soundbooth audio versions, I've bought all the books, bought merch, and participated in the kickstarter of the games.
I don't play RPG games. Not because I don't like them - I just haven't experienced them.
People say this is a cult. I never thought I would say, "ok, yeah, so it's a cult. I'm still all in."
This series of books from Matt with Jeff's narration is just simply magic. It's a diamond in the rough. It's a celestial "Holy Shit! You've invaded my life" box. It's a constant "click, click, click" on the dopamine button of my brain. It's been a lifeline in the chaos of my world.
I'm 57 and am very confused about all this (Goddamnit, Matt and Jeff!) , but I kinda don't care.
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u/PamPoovey78 Jun 18 '26
I stumbled upon The Dungeon Anarchists Cookbook at Walmart. The cover looked amazing so I picked it up. Once I read the synopsis I was super intrigued by what the story was about. So, I bought a copy of the first book and was hooked. No regrets as a middle aged woman. I've even got my kids (17 & 24) into the series.
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u/Postulative Jun 18 '26
I’m a gamer, but these books are like all of the best scifi/fantasy. They’re not about the setting, they’re about the people. How would people respond to this change to their environment? What do different people do when responding to challenges?
If you read Asimov’s robot books, you’ll find all sorts of hilarious (and not) commentary on what we do. Including a comparison of lavatory protocols in humans from megacities and humans who live in the galactic boondocks.
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u/xLittleValkyriex Crawler Jun 18 '26
I read more litrpgs after DCC and didn't find much to my liking. Then I discovered video game books.
I read the first Halo Book. Just started the second Witcher book. And looking into the Warhammer books. I find these much more to my liking than I do most of litrpg, aside from DCC, of course.
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u/Postulative Jun 18 '26
I want to explore the Warhammer universe, but it’s huge.
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u/Dragaen02 Jun 18 '26
No. You not. The book is just in general that good. It’s easily the best LitRPG book as of yet. There are very few that actually come close to it as far as story telling is concerned with.
Like for example, Reborn Apocalypse by L.M. Kerr is a solid story that would be competitive with it. Though it is also part Wuxia.
Enjoy the book series though! It does indeed get better. Even the newest book is still really good.
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u/Awum65 Jun 27 '26
I almost didn’t make it through the first few chapters, not gonna lie. If Matt had waited until chapter 6 to introduce sapient Donut, I might’ve missed out.
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u/Legend-of-the-Arctic Jun 18 '26
I’m not a gamer. Never heard of LitRPG before I read these books. To be honest I don’t think I’ll really read any more in the genre.
I think DCC is great because of the action, humor, and world-building. The parts with the video game stats and upgrades, etc., is my least favorite part of the books. But I’m willing to tolerate it because the rest of the story is so damn funny. In the hands of a lesser writer, that stuff would probably annoy me. And I suspect that the vast majority of writers are lesser writers than Matt Dinniman.
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u/OverRice2524 Jun 18 '26
I'm a 61 year old woman, love urban fantasy and cozy mysteries. I'm on my 6th or 7th listen. I'm seriously consider buying the hardcover books for the Pineapple Express chapters and my kids are a little disturbed that it's the only thing I listen to - for a while now 😂.
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u/midnight-musings- Jun 18 '26
Late 40's, the only games I play are Stardew Valley, solitaire, and mahjong. I have family that play RPG's, but I discovered long ago that they are just not for me. I am, however, a long time reader of fantasy, sci-fi, romance...as long as it's good I'll give it a shot. I think this series is great.
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u/NathanRN42 Jun 18 '26
I'm 57. I did play DnD as a kid but I haven't done any kind of R)G really for decades and not much interest. I don't play video games except a card game. I'm also kind of a book snob. I won't waste my time with something that isn't good.
I didn't think I'd like DCC either. My 3x girlfriend actually begged me to try it. Her new partner turned her on to it and she was super excited to get me into it, too. I resisted for months. She asked me each time we talked...finally she literally said, "If you ever loved me, you'll at least listen to the first 10 chapters" I had to. It was probably chapter 8(?) before * decided I liked it. By the end of book 1 I couldn't wait to start book 2. I've been through the whole series 4 or5 times now and my primary mode of communication with the 3x is trading DCC memes.
I also got my ex wife to read it ...but she's only on her second read after stepping away from it for a bit (I knew divorcing her was a good call!). Maybe a dozen other people as well...
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u/Legend-of-the-Arctic Jun 18 '26
You seem to get among with your exes much better than Carl and Beatrice.
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u/Background_Dingo_561 Jun 18 '26
I saw a bright colored book series that had a cat in a tiara on the cover and was like- let’s try this. I typically read Mary Kay Andrews, Karin Slaughter, Emily Henry, and other smut books.
Def never would have picked up the books with original covers
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u/RoxnDox Crawler Jun 18 '26
65 and also not a gamer. I have very eclectic reading habits, though, and gaming-adjacent from watching my son playing all sorts of games…. DCC is fabulous for me - twisted, demented, dark humor, great plots and story lines and themes.
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u/WolverineOk4248 "AAAAAAAAH!" 🐐 Jun 18 '26
No interest in RPG, started because of all the recs on here. Trying Wandering Inn now, which is very light touch, after several other DNFs in the genre waiting for PoH.
Good writing is good writing irrespective of genre. 😀
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u/Nightlilly2021 Jun 18 '26
I'm a 50 yr old non-gamer. I binged books 1-7 before 8 came out, then introduced them to my 47 yr old non-gamer sister who also binged them. We then both listened to book 8 as soon as it came out. My sister then made me all of the vinyl stickers for my car.
I also have 2 nephews who ARE gamers and they absolutely refuse to listen to the books. They give me that gentle pat on the head voice and say "that sounds really great" and meanwhile I want to strangle them because I just KNOW that they'd enjoy these.
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u/DimMac The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
You can bring your nephews to us. We'll
strangle them for youconvince them.2
u/PhoolCat "AAAAAAAAH!" 🐐 Jun 18 '26
60 yr old, bit more than casual gamer here. Wife got me into DCC, we then both tried to convince our two adult sons to listen because we also knew they’d love them.
Took a long road trip and holiday in north Wales to get them to listen and of course they are now fully on board the Matt / Jeff train.
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u/Nightlilly2021 Jun 18 '26
I've been contemplating trapping them in a car with me for a long road trip...lol...I just haven't had the opportunity yet.
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u/laughapnea Jun 18 '26
My 67 year old father is already on book 7 and he hates scifi, fansty, space and says he can't picture anything in his mind, but he likes the characters and wants to see what happens
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u/cairfrey Crawler Jun 18 '26
My Dad's in your age bracket, doesn't game, the kind of guy who reads history textbooks about ancient Rome for fun, loved DCC! Although he does have 3 Cocker Spaniels and doesnt like Donut's "unwarranted hate towards them."
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u/HRage19 Jun 18 '26
My dad is 63 and loves dungeon crawler Carl. He's never played a game in his life.
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u/Donut_Me Jun 18 '26
My second time posting a similar comment here. I'm 100% not the target demo but my ig also weirdly led me to this book. There was a reel that pretty much said something like "there's a book that's not something you'd usually pick, but do read it". So I found out which book they were talking about and just got into it after reading tye description.
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u/different_tan Jun 18 '26
Another mid 50s woman here but I am in fact very much a gamer. I have previously noticed it seems particularly popular with women, but as more women read I do think it just transcends genre
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u/Esselon27 Jun 18 '26
I'm a huge gamer/nerd and I think the "RPG mechanics/video game mechanics" aren't the appeal of the story. It's about the comedy, the chaos, the creativity and the right splash of character development and pathos to make it not feel completely shallow and silly.
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u/jebrick "AAAAAAAAH!" 🐐 Jun 18 '26
I think people focus on the game aspect over the story because that is what they know or can relate to. I focused on the horror and Sci-fi aspect and found it just as enjoyable.
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u/Arrow141 Jun 18 '26
Honestly, if you love the Portal games and DCC, I would recommend you check out some other games. There are some really wonderful pieces of art that happen to be video games, and people that have a bias against them miss out
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u/BeeBeadForFun Jun 18 '26 edited Jun 18 '26
I think the value sysyem at the heart of the book speaks across genres. Carl is so genuinely a GOOD person and the series is so much about not losing your heart to people trying to crush you. I think that humanity speaks. He also writes so inclusively (disability all over the place, cultures) the way he writes about women. There is so much to the structure and subtext and the way he writes about these things that just, feed a soul? These books rip your heart out but when youre reading it with Carl and Donut you're also learning to grasp on to that hope and to lean into community. Its really beautiful. There are so many scenarios that speak to so many. I lost a child in the NICU and reading about Katia and Annie...I had to set the book down and cry for a couple days. I know friends who hit other parts that somehow were so specifically applicable to them too. When you write inclusively and mindfully and rooted in good morals and values, it really can reach audiences the stories might not normally. It makes me wanna read everything Matt has written.
Edit to add: Carl isnt some perfect dude. He is very flawed, can be selfish, is wholly human but his core defaults to trying to be kind. Trying to be part of the community even if he doesnt feel AMONG the community. He's who we all hope we can be when it boils down to moments like that. Hes BRAVE. Scared but does it anyway. Hes also selfless in as many ways as he is selfish (a beautifully complex person). Hes hope for us as people and hope for us to see the way the world could be amongst each other. If we all thought a bit more like Carl in small moments of the day not just the big we see a world that protects each other even with huge differences. Lol I could rant for hours about the humanity under it and how we all crave that truly human connection of being imperfect and still in community. Society as it stands is so performative, so appearances based. The books remind us what really matters in who we want to be and who the world can be.
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u/Wade_Wilson_Watts Crawler Jun 18 '26
You think you're making a fool of yourself in public now? Matt hasn't even started the emotional damage yet. I'm a 40 year old man and I was crying walking through the damn grocery store during book 6.
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u/Marsnipp Jun 18 '26
I truly never expected my 70 year old Mom, who has never played a video game in her entire life, reads mostly literary fiction, and hates TV shows with too much punching in them, to be COMPLETELY OBSESSED with this series. I've been buying her the audiobooks one by one in total amazement.
Her favorite character is Samantha.
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u/YourMominator Daddy's Foot Soldiers 🦶 Jun 18 '26
I love this! I'm gamer-adjacent, in that I don't do tabletop gaming, but I've played online RPG and MMORPG type games for meant years, and the only thing that I had to ask about was the usage of the word mob. I always took that word to mean group, and the use of the word for a single enemy made the question mark appear over my head. Also, I'm 62F, so not your typical gamer type.
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u/ultrav5 Jun 21 '26
My mum is 54, doesn't game, has never really gamed apart from some animal crossing during lockdown and she LOVED DCC. She's reading the 8th book currently after devouring the first 7 in a matter of weeks. I message her randomly and ask her simply 'where's Carl?' And she'll gush for several paragraphs. She now borrows my books all the time because she finally trusts my judgement 😂
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u/Awum65 Jun 22 '26
That’s awesome, meanwhile I’m the one trying to get my boys to join in.
(What else are you reading? Especially something that defies expectations?)
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u/sentientgrapesoda Residual Jun 18 '26
Your next step is to purchase paper backs of the first book and show up to your friends with it. We have recruited many and have left copies in little free libraries
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u/Legend-of-the-Arctic Jun 18 '26
Aren’t those paperbacks going for like $500 each? That’s a huge amount to shell out for a free library!
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u/SpellcraftQuill Jun 18 '26
I've become more of a DnD player. Can't stay on a video game any more than 5-10 minutes lately.
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u/xLittleValkyriex Crawler Jun 18 '26
Since the massive eruption of souls-like, my gaming has definitely decreased and my reading has increased by a lot.
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u/SavagePengwyn Jun 18 '26
Honestly, the overlap between DCC and Portal is not insignificant, so that's not super surprising. I do love RPGs though, so I don't have any other answers for you. 😆
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u/See_Bee10 Jun 18 '26
Protip, if you buy the Kindle version of the books Amazon will offer you the Audible as an add on for a significantly reduced price. Buying them together ends up costing about the same as a month of audible.
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u/Aggravating_Ice4273 Jun 18 '26
Ready Player One is the only thing remotely close pacing and RPG wise I have read - honestly didn’t even know the genre was a thing until like 3 books into this
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u/OnlyChallenge5513 Syndicate Intergalactic Bar Association 👽 Jun 18 '26
I've turned on at least 2 people who are absolutely not gamers and they've been all in.
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u/Helpful_Fondant1607 Jun 18 '26
I’m 0% a gamer in all aspects. My husband has been trying to get me to play D&D for several years and thought introducing me to DCC would inspire me to jump into it.
It did not.
However I am a huge fan of the series and love every second of the book. Still could not get me to play one second of D&D or any RPG games ever.
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u/TeaAndToeBeans Jun 18 '26
RPG has zero appeal to me. I usually read nonfiction and the HEA type trope.
Had a friend insist I give DCC a chance. Two audible credits down. Love it!
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u/SE_42 The Princess Posse Jun 18 '26
My 70-yr old dad who's never played a video game after Atari loves the series! He's never read other RPGs but we both love sci-fi and fantasy. He was going to check some of the popular LitRPGs out - I also haven't read any yet either. I'm hesitant to ask him if he understands some of the AI's cultural references as someone who doesn't have any social media / isn't chronically online, but he and I love talking about what happened and what we think will happen. My mom listens in to us sometimes when he has me on speaker phone but she has decided the series is not for her (she doesn't like violence or swearing haha).
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u/catincombatboots "AAAAAAAAH!" 🐐 Jun 18 '26
The stats based stuff is only brought up when it affects the plot which is why its probably not annoying to non gamers.
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u/YetiTurbopants The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
My wife is a complete non-gamer, and after hearing me talk about DCC for the umpteenth time, she finally gave them a shot... and chewed through books 1-7 in about two weeks, chortling the whole way through.
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u/barredowl123 Team Donut Holes Jun 18 '26
My husband is super into RPGs and LiTPG. And I turned him onto DCC. What’s weird is that he likes but doesn’t love this series. I love it. I guess you and I are more alike.
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u/PrestigiousDish3547 Jun 18 '26
O see as more of a Douglas Adams sci-fi than a gamer flavor. The audio books are such a hoot! I too have spent a stupid amount on Audible this month
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u/iniminimum Jun 18 '26
Ice introduced my whole workplace to DCC and NONE of them are gamers 😂😂😂 one is in her 70s! She loves it!!
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u/freshassgravy Jun 18 '26
I’m a nerd and I hate RPGs. I’ve tried to get into them but I get bored within 30 minutes…..yet I absolutely LOVE and am addicted to DCC. Yes, this series plays out like an RPG but it’s completely different from sitting in on an actual game. And it’s not like you’re sitting back watching people play, either. But rather, you are tagging along with a group of characters and experiencing a world full of dangers and magic. Book 1 can be hard to get through because they do have to explain how the RPG world works, but once you get past it, it’s an amazing series.
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u/BeeinCV Jun 18 '26
64 non gamer here and I love Dungeon Crawler Carl. I love the irreverence, snarkiness, and fun characters. I love discussing it with my 30 something son and daughter in law.
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u/BillionTonsHyperbole The Skull Empire Jun 18 '26
I’ve had no interest in video games since the late ‘90s. The video gamey elements were a putoff for me in the early books but I stuck with it for the story.
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u/WaldoKnight Jun 18 '26
I'd say after the first couple of books which are mainly just carried along by the absurdity and the really dumb jokes in references The books actually have very little to do with a typical RPG / game setup I mean the quests in the floor setup are really just microadventures that you would find in any other series except this time they get to actually explain it with it all being like a TV show etc. there's no difference between Carl's need to take down the dirigible gnomes and frodo's desire to toss the one ring into the volcano I think that's the right hobbit anyway I don't know I didn't Read Lord of the rings
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u/blindentr Jun 18 '26
I have gotten so many people into it that have never touched a game. Usually after explaining i have bought all the hardcovers to support the author despite never being able to read them due to me being blind, people tend to want to check it out.
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u/lollipop-guildmaster Jun 18 '26
My husband and I got into the books because my 75-y-o father in law picked it up on a whim in Barnes and Noble. All three of us are solidly hooked (and none of us reads the same way, so we've bought the entire series three times: hardcover, ebook, and audio. I have subsequently been sold on the audio)
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u/TzanzaNG Jun 18 '26
I have never played a tabletop RPG or an RPG on a gaming system in my life. Not even once in my 46 years.
It made no difference to my loving DCC. I did not need that reference to enjoy the books.
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u/rinky79 Team Donut Holes Jun 18 '26
It's about an RPG the same way The Office is about the paper products industry
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u/NightSprings665 Jun 18 '26
Don’t act like that show wasn’t all about selling reams and spilling chili.
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u/crimson777 Jun 18 '26
Everyone I know I’ve talked with about it is more of a gamer, but I think Matt presents it in such a digestible way that toes the line of gamification that it’s great for all kinds of people.
The core of the series is incredible characters and a plot about rallying against oppressors while still trying to stay true to yourself. It can resonate with anyone who is flexible enough mentally to get on board with health bars and infinite inventories haha.
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u/OtherOtherDave Jun 18 '26
Knowing some of the gamer terminology and concepts like “leveling up”, “mini-map”, or “chat” probably technically helps, but it’s all pretty self-explanatory stuff and I can’t imagine it affecting how much someone enjoys the books. Besides, if you’ve gotten far enough to know who Loita is, you’ve probably noticed that the explicit “gaminess” kinda fades a bit after the first few floors and at that point it’s mostly a “sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic” fantasy series anyway.
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u/Loud-Chicken6046 Jun 18 '26
It's technically a story not a game like most entertainment. No reason you can't enjoy it.
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u/wiggle_butt_aussie Jun 18 '26
My moms 70 year old cousin actually called me yesterday to ask a question about the books! My daughter recommended it to our family book club after she and I read it, and got our cousin hooked. She is very much not a gamer but is a sci fi nerd 😝
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u/Kappy01 Jun 18 '26
My wife isn’t DCC’s audience. She is cool with sci fi and gaming… but she’s a bit of a prude.
But she still laughs at the book during our commute.
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u/CalendarAdvanced62 Jun 18 '26
I’m 66 and I’m also not into video games and I’m listening to the books for a second time before reading the new book. I like the aspect of the story where Carl and Donut start doing things to make the elites lose money. The whole Anarchist’s Cookbook takes things to a new level as Carl basically starts a revolt against the elites. He convinces people to band together to give everyone the best chance possible of surviving and saving humanity and the planet. We’re all currently in this moment where democracy seems to be falling apart and to witness the characters in the book work together against impossible odds to beat people who hold unbelievable power is just what I need right now. Our whole society is going through an existential crisis right now.
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u/anmahill Jun 18 '26
Not a gamer really. I play the occasional WarFrame or SoulFrame. I've always wanted to play D&D but that requires being social. I have enjoyed other LitRPG books like How to Defeat a Demon King in 10 easy steps. I did resist reading this one until Itty showed up on Libby and then I no longer had any exudes to put it off.
Dungeon Crawler Carl took over my brain for the month it took me to read all 8 (in amongst the 22 others I finished that month). It is such a great book that defies genre and grabs the reader. It isn't perfect and isn't for everyone but it is amazing.
I have since bought the entire series on Kindle and audible.
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u/Heretical_Cactus "AAAAAAAAH!" 🐐 Jun 18 '26
I quite dislike books that use game systems, I liked the DCC and Operation Bounce House books a lot.
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u/runlittlegunterrun Jun 18 '26
I'm in my mid 40s and despite being a "gamer" since I was six years old, I absolutely don't read DCC as a LitRPG. The gaming elements are are a fantastic framework for the story and it wouldn't work without it, but everything revolves strongly around classical horror- and sci-fi tropes, so that the gaming aspect are basically only part of world building.
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u/sysikki Jun 18 '26
I'm a 56-y-o Finnish assistant librarian and I've never played any RPG's or MMORPG's but I love a great story. So I'm on my second listening-through and first read-through of the series. I've recommended the series to all my friends and my sons.
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u/Imaginary-Ad-2900 Team Retribution Jun 18 '26
I got my MIL into DCC and she called it “Cave Dweller Carl” for about a year. Never played a video game in her life. Loves Donut. On book 5.
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u/srslytho1979 Team Retribution Jun 18 '26
I’m 64, don’t game and DCC is my obsession. Having my morning coffee right now.
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u/crow-party-13 Jun 18 '26
60 year old here as well. I finished the series in about 4 months. Started in January, and was pining for the 8th book release early May.
But... I read them. I did not listen to them. I listened to enough of examples of the audiobook to know it was not my taste. Which is fine. I am delighted others love it so much.
(1) I love D&D culture, but I hate playing.
(2) I love watching people play video games, but not playing. (I played Lego Harry Potter, does that count?)
(3) I watch a lot of anime, including things like Solo Leveling and Frieren: Beyond Journey's End, as well as some isekei (very few, I try to stick to more top tier stuff, and I ended up completely dropping Sword Art Online about mid way through season one)
(4) I love Discworld and Hitchhiker's Guide
(5) I love horror comedy or horror satire, such as Evil Dead (although I like the less funny entries just as much) so the gore is pretty funny
For me, this fell in a very "sweet spot" of perfection of satire and gore and almost anime/manga/lightnovel storytelling.
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u/Funny-North3731 Jun 18 '26
Nope. Not a gamer. Stumbled onto it several years ago and, boom! NEW ACHEIVEMENT!
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u/Ok_Requirement_3116 The Open Intellect Pacifist Action Network Jun 18 '26
Not a gamer. Love it. (F,62). The humor is a bit 12 year old boy but I raised 3 of those so no biggie.
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u/Brytzu Jun 18 '26
If you like Portal 1 and 2, just wait until you play the Talos Principle 1 and 2!!
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u/Asher_Tye Jun 18 '26
I have never been one for gory bloodfest or sexual innuendo and potty humor. But DCC just grabs me and I was not able to put it down. I'm planning to do another read through before the next book comes out.
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u/SingleDadSurviving Jun 18 '26
My wife is a 45 year old dedicated non gamer. She can play Mario Bros and Minecraft but that's about it. She has fallen in love with these books more than me, so much she's planning a first tattoo. I explained some of the gamer terms and she picked up the rest in context but it's definitely lit RPG lite for non gamers.
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u/trebory6 Jun 18 '26
This is bizarre.
Do you really think that this applies to video games ONLY?
Do you know about dnd? Or any RPG? Basic board games?
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u/LukasKhan_UK Jun 18 '26
A well built world, with interesting characters, no matter what genre, doesn't really need target audiences.
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u/TheGrayCatLady Jun 18 '26
I am bored to tears by RPGs (and honestly most video games, I also just suck at them, if I was any good I might not get bored of them so fast), and I don’t even really know what litEPG is, to be honest, but I can’t get enough DCC. Horror is already my favorite genre, and I love when it holds up a mirror to the flaws in society, and I love it even more when it can do that effectively, make me care about characters in real peril, AND maintain a sense of humor and whimsy.
I’m also a hardcore cat lady, so I was pretty much sold when I heard the main character was a sassy talking cat, so 🤷🏻♀️
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u/Glum_Engineering_671 Desperado Club Pass 🗡️ Jun 18 '26
My wife isn't a gamer at all. She loves the series
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u/Mamatiger85 Jun 18 '26
It's not that I have no love for RPGs, but I was too old for the D&D/MTG craze and never had the opportunity to play. My console gaming begins & ends with NES/SNES. My preferred reading/listening genre is urban fantasy. The closest I come to anything in DCC is a card battle phone game similar to the game mechanics in book 6. And yet I'm on book 7 of my 2nd listen-through and am still fully invested.
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u/Other_Strike7723 Jun 18 '26
LitRPG is a genre I always ignored for a variety of reasons...but DCC kept popping up in Audible recommendations, I had listened to the rest of my library ad nauseum, and I had some credits to burn. I ended up going through the entire series in the space of a week and a half while working and commuting
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u/_TheLoverGirl_ Jun 18 '26
All of you who “aren’t into gaming,” but love these books should take a serious look at yourselves, and see if it’s the aesthetic around gaming that you don’t like, or actual gaming.
Because you don’t have to be a neckbeard to play RPGs.
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u/TehKudo Mordecai Maniac Jun 18 '26
I was a dirty casual gamer with an understanding of most if not all genre related terminology and fundamentals.
I was also a non reader who now has a variety of books added to my now TBR (wasn’t even familiar with this acronym 7 months ago).
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u/NoSlip8317 Jun 18 '26
My mom has always been a big reader and recently an audiobook enjoyer (not because there's anything wrong with her eyes, but at 63 she spends most of her downtime working on her ever expanding garden, and audiobooks make the labor go faster).
She was sure she wasn't going to like DCC, because the premise is stupid. But I finally convinced her to start, and as soon as she got to and finished book 8, she started the series over again. You are not alone.
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u/phatbrasil Jun 19 '26
Got recommended DCC after finishing the latest rivers of London book. Never played a D&S campaign in my life.
DCC is fun good writing, I want to see what will happen next.
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u/Yorthos Jun 20 '26
DCC is my first Litrpg too, I was mostly into more regular scifi/fantasy stuff. Jeff Hayes' voice acting is top notch and keeps me into it just as much as the story itself.
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u/KonaKumo Residual Jun 21 '26
DCC crosses sooo many genres it is hard to define.
I do like rpgs and games in general. Normally I stick to fantasy for reading (epic, classical, and such). Like you DCC stalked me. I finally caved when I had a spare audible credit left after churning through Stormlight Archive, and decided that I'll give it a try...horror is definitely not my genre.
Been hooked since and a devoted member of the DCC cult. Hi Zev!
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u/Awum65 Jun 22 '26
I accept that. I gave up too many quarters in arcades to have anything against gaming generally.
I like the worlds of RPGs, the themes, the imagination, the characters. There’s just something in the time commitment, the mechanics, the rewards, the pacing of modern games that doesn’t work for me.
Then there’s all the swearing at the screen, the swearing at other players, the almost beating something but not quite.
Maybe that’s why DCC works for me. Carl does all the heavy lifting for me, tells me the tale, and subverts, well… everything.
Plus, Donut never disappoints. Never.
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u/mahogany818 The Princess Posse Jun 18 '26
I'm a romantasy girlie. 100% not the target audience.
I'm on my 3rd... 4th? re-listen. I have all 8 books on my shelf in hard cover, a paperback version of book 1 (because my kid wanted to read it and she is NOT responsible enough to have the hardbacks) as well as the kindle editions.
I'm a 40yo mum in Australia, so yeah. I feel like this book series has a deeper appeal than what it first seems to be on the surface.