As I continue down Part 2 of my Philip K. Dick book-reading phase, I'd like to look at a few of the book covers for 1963 novel, The Game-Players of Titan, and think about their accuracy in depicting images from the book.
Below is a cover that essentially uses a checkers or chess board as the setting with images of the metallic vug figures and a still montage of the characters. The game itself closely resembles monopoly in structure, but includes a strategy element. The game called Bluff allows the player to move a number of spaces based on the number on a drawn card, but the player may bluff and move a different number of spaces. The space that the player lands on gives instructions like, "Rise in fuel costs. Pay bill to utility company of $50." So, for example, if the player rolls a 3, moves 3 spaces, lands on the message I provided, and the opponent does not call a bluff, the player must pay $50 to the other team. However, if the player rolls a 3, moves 5 spaces, lands on this message, two things could occur. If the opponent calls a bluff, the player pays $50 for the instruction and another $50 since they were found to be bluffing. If the opponent does not call a bluff, the opponent has to pay the $50 since they did not correctly determine the bluff.
In the book, PKD explains the rules sporadically over the 200 pages, but never gives you a dry rule list. It is very interesting. So, the cover below is fairly literal, but the chess board is misleading.
Here's a version with glass balls that may better fit Hermann Hesse's The Glass Bead Game, given that Titan uses cards.
This Japanese version picks up on the use of cards and includes a nice grid image in the background. However, as far as I picked up, I don't think a female character was ever the card-picker-up-er. I could be wrong, though.
Here, an Italian version does use the Monopoly setting. In fact, I'm pretty sure this is actually a Monopoly board and not a custom made Titan board.
Lastly, here is a Portugese version that uses Jupiter and its moon, Titan, and that game that Cracker Barrel consistent offers.
More covers from the source: http://www.philipkdick.com/works_novels_titan.html
