[ARC Review] You Are (Not) Deadpool by Tim Dedopulos

Publisher's synopsis: Deadpool forces you to defeat predictability (and sure, some crime lords along the way) through mini-games and puzzles in this new adventure gamebook with Marvel’s “Merc with a Mouth”

Things seem weird, even by Deadpool’s standards, when Matt “Daredevil” Murdock offers him a profitable – nay, straightforward! – contract. No chaos, no unpredictability, no funny business… C’mon, Murdock, that’s just not Deadpool’s style. Sensing something is up, Deadpool grabs an innocent bystander off the street to confuse any semblance of predictability the universe is trying to force on him. Good-hearted mischief spirals into a sinister plot full of impenetrable bank vaults, crime lords stroking their (lack of) mustaches in very evil ways, and an assortment of offensively stylish suits that are begging to be blown up, Deadpool discovers his choices are no longer his own – they’re yours!

My thoughts: Can I just say what a fun read/adventure this book was? You Are (Not) Deadpool by Tim Dedopulos was this amazing mix of Deadpool snark and Marvel lore combined with classic choose-your-own-adventure style and dice/chance elements.

Did you ever read choose your own adventure books? I definitely did (I even had a Goosebumps one that I read so many times some of the pages started falling out). Well, You Are (Not) Deadpool is billed as an "adventure gamebook," but the premise is the same. As you progress through the story, you help Deadpool try and save the world from Centauri weapons through a combination of puzzles, dice rolling, and the attributes you've built up over game play. Every answer takes readers to a different page and onto a different plot. When I first read these types of books, they weren't digital so it was really cool to see the same premise taken into the modern age and ebooks. Rather than flipping through to the correct next page and maybe accidentally seeing a page or plot point I wasn't supposed to see yet, the ebook version is automatically linked to the correct page making it very easy to stay on the right path. 

I thought Dedopulos did an excellent job at keeping Deadpool user friendly (since the reader is playing through the adventure with Deadpool, too many obscure Deadpool references would have only taken readers out of the story) while also injecting all the wit, sarcasm, and devil-may-care attitude that Deadpool is known for.

Deadpool was truly the perfect character for a Marvel gamebook. A character known for breaking the fourth wall both in the comics and on the big screen, it was completely in character for Deadpool to spend so much time in You Are (Not) Deadpool talking directly to the reader and even relying on your opinion and knowledge throughout the story.

What I love most about these kinds of books is the fact that you can read them many, many times and read a different story each time. I read through You Are (Not) Deadpool three different times and ended up with three vastly different Deadpool adventures. This book is hours of entertainment featuring the Merc with the Mouth, and I know I have many more adventures to go with this book. 

There are some roleplaying game elements in this adventure; readers do need to keep track of base stats as well as any attributes you pick up along the way. Readers will also need a set of dice in order to determine outcomes throughout the story. I kept my game play 100% digital with the use of a a note app on my phone and a pair of virtual dice. 

Overall, You Are (Not) Deadpool was all around entertaining whether you are a Deadpool fan or not. I would say having some prior Deadpool knowledge is helpful in terms of full entertainment value of this book, but any Marvel fan looking to relive the excitement of choose your own adventure books will definitely want to pick this title up. 

I received a review copy of You Are (Not) Deadpool from Aconyte Books. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. 

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Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.

For more information visit marvel.com. ©2022 MARVEL

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Release date: 7/19/22
Format: eARC
eARC obtained via: NetGalley