Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl is expanding beyond its bestselling books, with a tabletop RPG and card game set to arrive later this year, writes Collider.
The post-apocalyptic sci-fi LitRPG series, which Dinniman self-published in 2020, has grown into a major literary franchise.
The eight books released so far have sold more than 14 million copies, while the ninth instalment, The Beautiful Place, is currently in development.
The audiobook editions, narrated by Jeff Hays, have also become hugely popular, accumulating more than 140 million listening hours on Audible.
The franchise is also heading to television, with Peacock developing a live-action adaptation.
Hays is set to voice Princess Donut, the spoiled but beloved talking cat. However, the series is still some way from production, with scripts being developed and casting yet to be completed.
The television adaptation recently added Arrival screenwriter and Shadow and Bone showrunner Eric Heisserer as co-showrunner alongside Chris Yost.
Seth MacFarlane’s Fuzzy Door is also backing the project.
While fans wait for the TV series, they will soon have another way to enter the World Dungeon.
Renegade Game Studios is developing Dungeon Crawler Carl: Unstoppable, a tabletop RPG and card game based on Dinniman’s universe.
A BackerKit campaign launched in April with a $250,000 goal and ultimately raised more than $13 million.
The Dungeon Crawler Carl RPG will allow players to create their own crawlers and explore the deadly World Dungeon, battling monsters and bosses, collecting loot and navigating traps.
The starter set covers the first two tutorial floors and includes pre-made character sheets inspired by characters from the books, along with rules, tokens and a one-shot adventure.
Meanwhile, Dungeon Crawler Carl: Unstoppable is a roguelike deck-building card game designed for solo play or two-player co-op.
Players can build and customise decks based on Carl and Donut as they attempt to progress through three floors of the World Dungeon.
The accompanying accessories include themed dice sets, temporary tattoos, playmats, miniatures and game screens.
The dice loot packs are expected to ship in October, while the RPG, card game and most other accessories are scheduled to arrive in November, just ahead of the holiday season.
With the books continuing to sell millions, a TV adaptation in development and new games arriving this autumn, Dungeon Crawler Carl is rapidly becoming a multimedia franchise beyond its literary origins.
