Third Editions is a French publishing house (not videogames, but books /about/ videogames) which has produced several high-quality companions to some of the very best RPG series in gaming. Bad news: they’re in French. Good news: there’s a Kickstarter campaign – with a highly achievable goal – aiming to translate them into English, for those of us
Which of these other great PC games would you like to learn more about?
Third Editions have published over 40 titles in French so far. Informed by three concepts – creation, universe, and decryption – they are deep dives into a game’s development, and a discussion and analysis of their lore and themes. The current Kickstarter concerns the following three books, which have already been hits on the French market:
- The Legend of Final Fantasy VIII, which explores the design, lore, and legacy of one of the best and boldest Final Fantasies;
- Zelda – Volume 2: Breath of the Wild, which does the same for that open-world RPG that was apparently really good but you didn’t play because it’s not on PC;
- And Dark Souls – Volume 2: Bloodborne and Dark Souls III. Volume 1 focused on Demon’s Souls and the first two Dark Souls games, so Volume 2 picks up where it left off with a dive into the wonders and horrors of Yharnam and Lothric.
For a taste of what you’d be funding, you can download an excerpt from Dark Souls Volume 1 here, from Zelda Volume 1 here, or from The Legend of Final Fantasy VII here. The books will be available in both hardback standard editions and limited issue Collector’s editions.
But Third Editions need your help first.The Kickstarter aims to raise €60,000 – just over £53,000 – to fund the books’ translation. For more information – or to pledge, if you’re already sold –check out the Kickstarter page here. If you can’t wait, some of their other books have already been translated – you can browse them here.