I listened to the audiobook, and Wil Wheaton's narration is spot on. I've upped my overall review of the book to 4 stars because I had a damn good time listening to this during my daily commute. I still wish Cline had done more with this, because I think he really had something with the

Spoiler

idea of the government using video games to secretly train an army to fly drones

.

Let's be honest. I LOVED [b:Ready Player One|9969571|Ready Player One|Ernest Cline|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1406383612s/9969571.jpg|14863741]. It is my favorite audiobook of all time, one I press on any willing soul who'll listen. So, Armada had a lot to live up to. I had fun reading it and I'm super looking forward to hearing it narrated by [a:Wil Wheaton|37075|Wil Wheaton|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1356706649p2/37075.jpg] (same narrator as RPO).

That said, I think the reason I LOVED Ready Player One versus my more lukewarm reaction to Armada is related to the type of video gamer I am. When I do play video games (which is rare post-N64) I like puzzle solvers, RPGs, or "second lives." These type of games don't rely on reflex or other players much like in RPO which is set in a fictional reality called the Oayses. I think gamers who enjoy massive online games, like World of Warcraft, or those who like first person shooters and games like X-Wing Rogue Squadron or Mech Warrior will LOVE Armada.

Still super enjoyable, I was so pleased when I could say "I got that reference" and I loved how Cline was tweaking his nose at the "Video Gamers save the world" tropes prevalent in pop culture. I just wanted more; more depth, more character development, and more time.

I'll save the rest of my thoughts for after I listen to the audiobook.

Thank you to Read it Forward for the free copy of Armada!