The Empty City

The Empty City was written by game designer Andrew Looney between 1987 and 1991. Subtitled a novel about Love, Games, and the planet Mars, the book is a series of a loosely connected stories which all take place in an unusual city where a board game called Icehouse is extremely popular. This mysterious game, played with small, colorful pyramids, was imaginary when the first part of the book was written, but the authors friends became so inspired by his game ideas that they created a real-world version of the game before the novel was even completed. The game later inspired other games that could be played with the same pyramids, and in 2016, a boxed set called Pyramid Arcade was released which features 22 unique pyramid games. All of these games have their roots in The Empty City. Description from the back of the book: Enter a secret city where dreams blur with reality, eccentric characters populate the diners and donut shops, and instead of chess, everyone plays an exotic game with pyramids. Enter a city where Martian artists lurk among us, time travel has been patented, and that gift-wrapped object someone left behind on the subway might just be an atomic bomb. Enter the Empty City. Enjoy your visit. 152 pages. This edition features 18 illustrations by Alison Frane. The cover was painted by Dawn Robyn Petrlik. Size: 8.5 x 5.5 Softcover only