A Hard Reset - The System Integration Chronicles, Books 1, 2, & 3 (stubbed)

Self-Published

Community Rating

Description

The System rewrote Earth’s reality in 72 hours. We weren’t ready.Monsters swarm a broken world, the power grid’s dead, and only those with classes stand against annihilation. Caden Taylor, a reluctant Sharpshooter with a mana-infused rifle and a leveling system in his brain, fights to keep his friends alive as goblins and worse close in.In Book 1: A Hard Reset (on Amazon Kindle Unlimited on July 1!), Caden transforms from scared teenager to leader in a System-ravaged world. Building a village and battling monsters, hunger, and grief, his party faces humanity’s brutal tutorial. Read the first 3 chapters free here, then grab the full story onAmazon.In Book 2: A Hard Landing (actively updating on Royal Road), Caden’s fledgling village faces new threats—deadlier monsters, rival survivors, and choices that tear at the heart. With deeper progression and higher stakes, the fight for survival grows fiercer.The System Integration Chronicles delivers tactical combat, emotional depth, and a grounded cast navigating a world reshaped by the System—one quest at a time. Start with the free sample of Book 1, grab the full story on Amazon, or dive into Book 2’s ongoing updates right here!

Information

Status
Ongoing
Year
2023
Author
drewmcgunn

Tags

LITRPGACTIONFANTASYADVENTUREMAGICPOST APOCALYPTICLOW FANTASYPROGRESSIONDYSTOPIAAPOCALYPSE

Royal Road Stats

Rating
4.3/ 5.0
Followers
344
Views
19,865

Chapters(11 total)

Reviews

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Community Reviews(10)

  • LUCIFER36Royal Road
    ★★★★★ 5.0
    "A Hard Reset" takes readers on an exhilarating adventure through the eyes of Caden, a 14-year-old passionate gamer living with his singer father. The story unfolds in contemporary America, requiring no extensive worldbuilding and allowing the focus to remain on the characters, the introduction of a mysterious system, and the events that follow.
    Style:
    The author skillfully maintains a fluid and straightforward narrative style, immersing readers in Caden's perspective without resorting to overly ornate language. The tone of the writing and dialogue aptly capture the essence of a young teenager, ensuring an authentic portrayal of Caden's worldview.
    Premise:
    The premise of the novel is intriguing, blending the realms of gaming and survivalism. Caden's father, a game warden and survivalist, imparts his knowledge of firearms to his son. This skill becomes unexpectedly vital when the newly introduced system presents both perils and excitement. It is through Hanna, Jayden's sister, that Caden becomes aware of the potential dangers associated with the system.
    Story:
    The story unfolds seamlessly, shifting from establishing the characters and the system's arrival to gripping action. As the trio of characters rise to the challenge, readers are captivated by their dynamic and eagerly anticipate the unfolding of events. The execution of the narrative thus far is flawless, leaving readers intrigued and eager to discover what lies ahead.
    Grammer:
    Throughout the novel, the author demonstrates a strong command of grammar, ensuring a smooth reading experience devoid of distractions. The absence of any jarring errors speaks to the author's attention to detail and dedication to maintaining the reader's engagement.
    Characters:
    The character development shines in "A Hard Reset," with Caden taking center stage. As an enthusiastic gamer with intelligence but limited maturity, Caden's journey is relatable and endearing. His friend, Jayden, shares Caden's enthusiasm, forging a bond that tra
  • MockwellRoyal Road
    ★★★★★ 5.0
    Overall:
    To be honest I am rather picky, but this story was really enjoyable.
    Overall, I would actually like to continue reading.
    Grammar and descriptions might need a little improvement. A little more introspection in places might not hurt either.
    Overall really good!!! (Not one, not two, but three exclamation marks)
    Style:
    The style really jibes with me. A fairly logical and realistic interpretation of system apocalypse (sorry Tao, using this phrase, so deal). The story progresses at a decent speed. The writing style easy to understand and I'm impressed by the author knowledge of particular weapons and associated terminology.
    Story:
    Chapter 1 - appears there is a rule that characters can only logout from Inns (or at least safely so)
    Love the initial intro to the system, kind of got a bit of a chill and uncertainty of what is happening.
    Logically speaking though, after getting the system message, I’d probably troll the internets or news for similar occurrences, unless of course you’re a conspiracist and think someone’s watching you, then you’d go to the local library or something and search on a public system anonymously. Though, the transition is good, I’d probably feign innocence until I could properly prove it, as you would want to seem like a loon.
    Like the character sheet, easy to gloss over and to understand.
    So far interesting but hasn’t quite hooked me.
    Chapter 2 - I am actually enjoying this and legitimately want to keep reading.
    Holy crap, I’m really enjoying the realism. Well done! I really get a sense of urgency and unease.
    The foreboding is good, and I like the insertion of seriousness and consequences.
    Chapter 3 - still not bored.
    Good system integration.
    Chapter 4 - So far the reading is pretty smooth and enjoyable. Flow is good.
    What I like now is the severity of the danger.
    [A nearby blast rattled the front windows.] Blasts are sudden, I feel like you should just start with ‘A blast…’
    Love this bit! [
    Classes seem simple but cool. There is a lot of
  • Second LawRoyal Road
    ★★★★★ 5.0
    A Hard Reset is the story of Caden, a 14 year old avid gamer who lives with his singer Dad. The father is a game warden and also a survivalist, and has taught his son how to use guns, something that becomes quite important once the system comes in with all its perils and excitement! The latter of which the 14 year old boy had expected, but the former would have come as somewhat of a surprise if not for Hanna, the sister of Caden's friend Jayden.
    Style Score : The story is narrated mainly from the POV of the MC Caden, and the author does a good job keeping the narrative fluid and straightforward, without any unneccessary flower or grandiose language. The tone of the writing and the dialogues makes sure that the perspective of a 14 year old MC is not turned into a mature adult one.
    Story Score : I have discussed much of the story in the beginning, so here I'll just critique it. Since the story is set in comtemporary America, there is no need for any worldbuilding, and the story focuses majorly on setting up the various characters, the premise of the system integration, as well as various world events and news broadcast that happen in regard to that. Once the premise is setup and the system starts to arrive, we get into the thick of action, and our trio of characters steps up to the task in an enjoyable manner that wants you to see where the story will go from here. Overall, the premise is interesting and the execution so far has been flawless.
    Grammar : Didn't find any mistakes, though it might be due to how egrossed I was in the story. At the very least, there were no mistakes that broke my flow of reading.
    Character : The character of the MC is the one we get to see the most, and it is well done. A young boy who is an avid gamer, who is smart but not very mature, and starts out too enthusiastic about the system's arrival. Then there is his friend Jayden, who may be different from Caden in many aspects, but in the enthusiasm, the friends are the same. Finally, there
  • TheMadProfessorRoyal Road
    ★★★★★ 5.0
    Things I Liked:
    Dialogue – I thought the dialogue was well done. You know who is talking and rarely need to be told in the prose. Everyone has a personality that feels natural and a part of their character.
    On top of that, you really get the sense that these characters have actually known each other before the story began, which is nice when you want to really sell the world as something real and believable.
    Internal Thoughts – I love how the internal thoughts are short sweet and to the point. You do get enough to understand the character and what makes them tick, but it’s not a deluge of words that serve solely to demonstrate the author’s vocabulary.
    Hanna & Jayden: I want to say I appreciate Jayden’s character who stands by his friends. He is on the aggressive side, but not to where he’s actively trying to start a fight to start a fight. And Hanna doesn’t judge Cade or Jayden’s decisions simply to be antagonistic, but to make sure they all survive what’s about to happen. No one is being mean to be mean, and I like that they’re looking out for each other.
    The Dad: I have to say, I was expect the father to be more of a 2-D characterization, but I was pleasantly surprised that wasn’t the case. He’s protective but not over-the-top. You also know that what he’s doing is from genuine concern for his kid. You don’t get a sense that he’s trying to over bearing simply to be overbearing, which is nice, and he does care for his son.
    Tables: Oh my god! Thank you for making the tables small and succinct. One of the biggest issues I have with a lot of LITRPG’s are the tables being bigger than needed. It just feels like the space is being used up for filler and I’m usually skimming it until the prose is back. Here’s there still a decent amount of information, but the space is being used frugally and you get back to the story quickly.
    Social Observations – I did like Hanna’s point about needing more than the apocalypse to stop commercials. I’d actually see a lot of televisions tr
  • keeganashleyliveRoyal Road
    ★★★★★ 5.0
    Okay, I'm going to be a dork and write the first thought that came to my head while beginning to write this review: "the force is strong with this one". Absolutely. This story has so much potential and, honestly, so much fun ingrained in every chapter. It was a true pleasure to read.
    Although it is obviously playing off a familiar LitRPG storyline, it feels, somehow, intrinsically different and unique in a way that makes me want to keep reading. I'm not sure if it's the writing (which is very good), the characters (all completely relatable and intriguing - Hanna definitely stuck out as a favorite of mine) or the casual, realistic dialogue or overall vibe of it...I can't exactly put my finger on what it is. But, here's the point: I really like it. It feels casual but not light-hearted, and fun but, also, more realistic, world-disaster-feeling. ...Maybe that's it. Maybe I just really vibe with it because the doom part feels more like it could actually happen verses some of these other LitRPG that feel more silly/all-fun-and-games...anyway...
    There were no glaring grammatical errors that interfered with my reading. Honestly, it's a casual, easy read with longer, meaty chapters which I enjoyed. The writing is flowing and lends itself to the story extremely well.
    I'd highly recommend this story. Well done to the author! If you're looking for a LitRPG that's a fun read with a healthy dose of the-world-is-ending, this would be a great fit!
  • Ryan_HairRoyal Road
    ★★★★★ 5.0
    Good start to a novel. The author does a great job at describing the system, hitting emotional beats for the characters, and the way the neighborhood bands together is so great. I really like our MC's use of guns and its helped even further by the author's clear knowledge of guns. Overall, give this story a chance because it's an enjoyable one.
  • SchusfusterRoyal Road
    ★★★★★ 5.0
    I read a lot of post apoc progression stories, because it's my jam, but this is something different. Sheet light, story heavy, fewer one dimensional enemy tropes and more community building, actual surviving...
    The wtiting is great. Not just passable, but great, engaging, enjoyable. Great secondary development and character arcs, great development of networks and alliances. I'm really looking forward to more of this story.
  • snowbellRoyal Road
    ★★★★★ 4.5
    The story is progressing well and I am really enjoying the village building aspect of this. I like how the relationships between the various characters are being handled as well as the occasional glimpse into how the world as a whole is dealing with the system integration. This story can go far, though right now it’s just in the starting stages.
  • RfaeRoyal Road
    ★★★★ 3.5
    That the mc is 14 is just not that believable age him up and then it would be better. Not a bad apocalypse book liked the characters and while it’s not breaking any barriers it also a fun book. I like the base building aspects and I can’t wait for more character development and world building
  • SteelsunRoyal Road
    ★★★ 3.0
    It's ok, a few grammatical errors here and there.  Fairly predictable plotting. Needs more descriptive language in the story and a smoother flow between scenes. But it is promising.
    The fiction title needs to change as it says Book 1 & 2, but only has 3 teaser chapters for book 1. Not a fan of this type of activity.