# Is "The Game-Players of Titan" by Philip K. Dick a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Game-Players of Titan by Philip K. Dick (Ace, 1963) is identified by: Ace single-volume paperback original, catalogue number F-251, 191 pages, with a printed cover printed price. US Ace paperback original is the true first; standardly catalogued as 1963, though Ace distribution ran into January 1964, and some references date the release to January 1964.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- Ace single-volume paperback original, catalogue number F-251, 191 pages, with a printed cover printed price
- Cover and title-page illustration by Jack Gaughan
- As a stand-alone Ace paperback (not an Ace Double), the true first carries the F-251 code on the spine and cover with no statement of a later printing
- Publisher imprint reads Ace
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | Philip K. Dick |
| Publisher | Ace |
| Year | 1963 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | Ace single-volume paperback original, catalogue number F-251, 191 pages, with a printed cover printed price |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
Ace single-volume paperback original, catalogue number F-251, 191 pages, with a printed cover printed price. Cover and title-page illustration by Jack Gaughan. As a stand-alone Ace paperback (not an Ace Double), the true first carries the F-251 code on the spine and cover with no statement of a later printing.

## Is this the true first?
US Ace paperback original is the true first; standardly catalogued as 1963, though Ace distribution ran into January 1964, and some references date the release to January 1964.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book club edition. Later Ace reissues carry different catalogue numbers and higher cover prices and are not the F-251 first.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Game-Players of Titan* by Philip K. Dick a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-game-players-of-titan
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.