History Literature / ToBeOrNotToBeThatIsTheAdventure

* GenreRoulette: Is the story a mystery? A grizzly gore fest? A romance? An adventure? Either way, the only thing that stays constant is that it's a comedy.

A Kickstarter-exclusive prequel, ''Poor Yorick'', was also made, with illustrations by [[ComicBook/TysonHessesDiesel Tyson Hesse]].

* ChooseYourOwnAdventure

''To Be or Not To Be: That Is the Adventure'' is a ChooseYourOwnAdventure-style adaptation of Creator/WilliamShakespeare's ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', written by {{Creator/Ryan North}}. Using the conceit that it is, in fact, the original story of Hamlet, from which Shakespeare [[CuttingOffTheBranches lifted a single path and later turned that path into a play]], the book allows readers to choose between multiple viewpoint characters and a number of plot tangents of varying levels of realism.

!!''To Be or Not To Be: That Is the Adventure'' provides examples of the following tropes:

* LemonyNarrator: It's a parody of ''Theater/{{Hamlet}}'' as a choose-your-own-adventure book; this trope was practically inevitable. Sticking to the canon route mostly has him bemoaning your terrible decisions and attempting to salvage things by retconning events and/or wresting control from you, but he's got plenty of snark to dish out for the rest of the book.

* AnachronismStew: If you were expecting complete historical accuracy, you're not gonna find it in this book wherein Ophelia invents indoor heating, Hamlet signs to Ophelia "YA SERIOUSLY WTF" and the characters occasionally discuss the sexism inherent in the time period. Of course, this is completely intentional as per RuleOfCool and RuleOfFunny.

* SparedByTheAdaptation: Even if you choose to re-enact the original play, Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern don't die; Hamlet just tells Horatio they did in order to cover up the real events.

It has also been adapted [[http://store.steampowered.com/app/324710/ for the PC,]] [[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ryan-norths-to-be-or-not-to-be/id962986396?mt=8 iOS]] and [[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=au.com.tinmangames.tobeornottobe Android.]] It has a sequel entitled ''[[http://comicsalliance.com/ryan-north-romeo-and-or-juliet/ Romeo And/Or Juliet]]''.

* HeManWomanHater: Laertes. His first line in the book is 'If you sleep with Hamlet you're a slut!'

* {{Dedication}}: "To Bea."

'''''To Be or Not To Be: That Is the Adventure''''' is a ChooseYourOwnAdventure-style adaptation of Creator/WilliamShakespeare's ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', written by {{Creator/Ryan North}}. Using the conceit that it is, in fact, the original story of Hamlet, from which Shakespeare [[CuttingOffTheBranches lifted a single path and later turned that path into a play]], the book allows readers to choose between multiple viewpoint characters and a number of plot tangents of varying levels of realism.

It has also been adapted [[http://store.steampowered.com/app/324710/ for the PC,]] [[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ryan-norths-to-be-or-not-to-be/id962986396?mt=8 iOS]] and [[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=au.com.tinmangames.tobeornottobe Android.]] It has an upcoming sequel entitled ''[[http://comicsalliance.com/ryan-north-romeo-and-or-juliet/ Romeo And/Or Juliet]]''.

* MultipleEndings: Well of course! The endings range from the many ways that Hamlet Sr. can spend his afterlife, to the various ways that Hamlet and Ophelia can kill Claudius, to Ophelia cutting a bloody swath across the character roster, to [[Theatre/Hamlet everybody being total idiots and getting killed in the dumbest ways possible]].

* {{AFGNCAAP}}: Parodied.
-->“That was my uncle Skellington!” screams your husband or wife, depending on your sexual orientation and life choices. If you are not married, you scream it to yourself while looking in the mirror as you realize what you’ve done.

* BiTheWay: Ophelia, judging by the fact that one of the people she can date in England is a woman.

'''''To Be or Not To Be: That Is the Adventure''''' is a ChooseYourOwnAdventure-style adaptation of Creator/WilliamShakespeare's ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'', written by {{Creator/Ryan North}}. Using the conceit that it is, in fact, the original story of Hamlet, from which Shakespeare lifted a single path and later turned that path into a play, the book allows readers to choose between multiple viewpoint characters and a number of plot tangents of varying levels of realism.

The book was funded by a [[http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/breadpig/to-be-or-not-to-be-that-is-the-adventure Kickstarter campaign]] that, when it ended, was the most successful publishing project in Kickstarter history, attaining 2,904% of its $20,000 goal.

Is has also been adapted [[http://store.steampowered.com/app/324710/ for the PC,]] [[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ryan-norths-to-be-or-not-to-be/id962986396?mt=8 iOs]] and [[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=au.com.tinmangames.tobeornottobe Android.]] It now has an upcoming sequel entitled [[http://comicsalliance.com/ryan-north-romeo-and-or-juliet/ Romeo And/Or Juliet]].

* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Throughout the book you can jump between characters. At one point when you're Ophelia and you can't get Hamlet to go along with your plans, you have the option to jump to Hamlet, get him to agree and jump back to Ophelia. Eventually the author chastises you for abusing your reader privileges.

** On the other hand, the narrator is pretty hypocritical, is that the characters often make the canonical decisions when the player is controlling someone else. Playing as Ophelia or Hamlet results in Hamlet Sr.'s ghost deciding to task his son with killing Claudius, something the narrator chastises you for if you play as him. Also, two of Ophelia's branches result in her being LateToTheTragedy with everything playing out in Ophelia's absence as it did in the play -- which can only happen if Hamlet chooses the "stupid" canonical options that the narrator dislikes.

* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Throughout the book you can jump between characters. At one point when you're Ophelia and you can't get Hamlet to go along with your plans, you have the option to jump to Hamlet, get him to agree and jump back to Ophelia. Eventually the author chastizes you for abusing your reader privileges.

Is has also been adapted [[http://store.steampowered.com/app/324710/ for the PC,]] [[https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ryan-norths-to-be-or-not-to-be/id962986396?mt=8 iOs]] and [[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=au.com.tinmangames.tobeornottobe Android.]]

* ShoutOut: Dozens. In particular, every time Rosencrantz and Guildenstern show up, you can expect references to SweetBroAndHellaJeff - up to and including actually ''looking'' like them in some of the ending art.

** On the other hand, the narrator is pretty hypocritical, is that the characters often make the canonical decisions when the player is controlling someone else. Playing as Ophelia or Hamlet results in Hamlet Sr.'s ghost deciding to task his son with killing Claudius, something the narrator chastising him for. Also, two of Ophelia's branches result in her being LateToTheTragedy with everything playing out in Ophelia's absence as it did in the play -- which can only happen if Hamlet chooses the "stupid" canonical options that the narrator dislikes.

* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: When playing as Claudius, the player can make him run away screaming "I'M NOT A MURDERER!" even though nobody accused him of anything. Also this, on the narrator's part: