| Then don't watch anime that lack world building, its that simple |
DrakoWiz said: By asking other people or doing research on that anime beforehand?Maneki-Mew said: What are you talking about? There are a lot of anime with great world building. Name some examples then, don't just leave a mystical vague response! Klad said: Then don't watch anime that lack world building, its that simple How am I supposed to know which do and which don't if I do not at least try them out, wow. |
DrakoWiz said: Maneki-Mew said: What are you talking about? There are a lot of anime with great world building. Name some examples then, don't just leave a mystical vague response! Made in abyss is an obvious answer , also i don't think Konosuba needs any worldbuilding , you watch that shit to see the main cast being idiots . |
| I think the setting is not as prioritized as the actual story and characters for many anime which results in a lack of world building. Shorter series do not have as much time to do this also which may also contribute to it. |
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DrakoWiz said: Maneki-Mew said: What are you talking about? There are a lot of anime with great world building. Name some examples then, don't just leave a mystical vague response! Klad said: Then don't watch anime that lack world building, its that simple How am I supposed to know which do and which don't if I do not at least try them out, wow. gintama, mob psycho 100 etc. these animes have fucking great worldbuilding. It is your fault if you haven't watched this. Most of the anime you mentioned were either isekais or mainstream shounen. there are many gems out there, you just need to pick them. |
 "All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost." |
| The Aria franchise has god tier world building |
 It’s okay to look back at the past, just don’t stare too long |
| apart from rezero and konosuba they are just garbage. konosuba is a comedy/parody and still has better world building than garbage like incel hero, goblin slayer and slime. rezero focuses on the mc's development and waifus |
| poop |
| @DrakoWiz you shouldn't drop gintama just after 30 episodes. atleast give it a try until benizakura arc which is about episode 48 and the show after that is pure gold. |
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost." |
| [quote=DrakoWiz message=57031531] BourBon-7so said: Made in abyss is an obvious answer , also i don't think Konosuba needs any worldbuilding , you watch that shit to see the main cast being idiots . Ok, added it. Heard it was a Kaiba wannabe tho. haven't seen Kaiba before so i can't answer that , Hope you enjoy it . |
| Idk if it's necessarily Re:Zero's fault that there's a lack of worldbuilding. Apparently it comes from a web novel and when they adapted it to a light novel and anime, the editor asked the author to push the world building back to a later arc in the series. That said, the pacing is still questionable. Plus Konosuba is a comedy so I don't expect there to be consistent worldbuilding. Mostly I agree otherwise, Goblin Slayer felt really generic, I'll never watch Isekai smartphone, etc. I think part of it is that they want to hook readers in before doing any worldbuilding. |
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DrakoWiz said: Okay then? That sounds like your own problem Klad said: By asking other people or doing research on that anime beforehand? Yet it is easier just to watch the first episode and see for myself than ask others which could not share my preferences or understanding? |
| Fairy Tail still has better worldbuilding than Bleach to be honest and Horizon in the middle of nowhere was a terribly executed show from the start, and what I've seen of it was pretty much the opposite of good worldbuilding. It was rushed, confusing and trying to do way too much in way too little time. I feel like OP is mistaking setting/concept with actual worldbuilding based on him just complaining about 'generic settings' multiple times. But setting =/= worldbuilding. You can have good or bad or no worldbuilding in any kind of setting. That also explains the generic isekai/fantasy hatred. Plenty of fantasy/isekai have pretty good worldbuilding, like Overlord and Log Horizon, even Death March was decent in that regard, but they do all have fairly similar fantasy settings, albeit they can still differ a lot in tone and focus. A lot of them also don't need worldbuilding, like Grimgar or Konosuba or Goblin Slayer, because they're trying to do different things. I think it's very reductive to just judge every show solely by its worldbuilding. There is a lot you can do in a story without focusing on just that. Even the positive examples you mentioned don't really focus a lot on worldbuilding, like Spice and Wolf, so I can't really relate to your obsession. The appeal of that show surely lies elsewhere, in the character dynamics, dialogue and all that great stuff. So yeah as always it's never a good idea to just care about one thing and then expect it from every single show without even trying to understand what they are trying to do and whether you need worldbuilding for that. You don't need it in comedies or introspective character dramas or romance etc... I'd much rather shows like that focus on being good at what they are trying to do instead of cramming in random world building elements just to please someone like OP who seems to have no other interest. There's still plenty of shows who do focus on worldbuilding and do a good job at it. Stuff like Juuni Kokuki or El Hazard have pretty great and unique fantasy/isekai settings if you ask me. Then there is random stuff like Magi (modern battle shounen with good worldbuilding), Altair (classic swords & empires story with a lot of focus on worldbuilding) or even less typical examples like Banana Fish, JoJo Part 4 and Golden Kamuy which do a good or even great job at expanding the world they're set in. DrakoWiz said: Klad said: By asking other people or doing research on that anime beforehand? Yet it is easier just to watch the first episode and see for myself than ask others which could not share my preferences or understanding? You can't judge worldbuilding after 1 or 2 episodes anyway, it's something that happens over time. It's a process, hence it is worldbuild-ing, and not just 'worldbuild' or whatever. So watching an episode doesn't give you any information about how good the worldbuilding will be. I'd say it's more efficient to just ask for recs based on worldbuilding if it's that important to you. |
| I probably regret this post by now. |
| As much as I hate it, I must admit that One Piece has great world building.. It is not the same thing with Naruto and Bleach though ... About RPG sekai, I am getting tired of it too, but I think they will keep making another ones as long as idiot people out there keep watching and reading (LN) them.. I like some of it though like ReZero, Log Horizon and of course Konosuba (but it is because that is technically a parody) ... |
Jim_HeartFeb 27, 2019 6:21 AM
"The Slave is the have-not, the oppressed one with nothing to spare. But because the Slave is in that despairing situation, having nothing, it can kill the Emperor !" |
DrakoWiz said: If I have to suffer through another insert generic fantasy MMORPG inspired setting ala Goblin Slayer, Shield Hero, Isekai Smartphone, Re;Zero, TenSura, Konosuba, and so on, I'll go crazy! Because you're obviously watching (and insisting on) the wrong kind of anime. Hereby I declare the thread locked. To name a few that Maneki-Mew didn't mention and have decent world-building and that aren't set in generic pseudo-medieval RPG worlds: Kemono no Souja Erin Mahoutsukai no Yome Kekkai Sensen Hakumei to Mikochi (good anime but the manga is better) Tanoshii Muumin Ikka Monogatari Series Mushishi Kino no Tabi Haibane Renmei Gankutsuou I heard Natsume Yuujinchou is good, too. Also Yakusoku no Neverland. Movies: Wolf Children Sayonara no Asa ni Yakusoku no Hana wo Kazarou Almost everything by Ghibli Some manga: Blame! (probably the most impressive I've seen in the medium, as the world is built solely by the art and mostly silent narrative) Dorohedoro Tongari Boushi no Atelier Ran to Haiiro no Sekai Somali to Mori no Kamisama Chimoguri Ringo to Kingyobachi Otoko (not a fan, but got some crazy ideas that might be your cup of tea, and fantastic art) |
Satyr_iconFeb 27, 2019 6:21 AM
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DrakoWiz said: For all of you that say Konosuba is comedy so there should not be wordbuilding, remember Slayers? It is the same thing, but older and better. Maneki-Mew said: You are only speaking about some Isekais, but that copy-paste fantasy world is not a "problem" of anime alone. There are tons of copy-paste Tolkien rip-off novels in the west too. Okay, I only can name high fantasy-like settings and others except science fiction and urban fantasy etc., I personally found interesting and appealing to me, so of course I'm kinda biased for them (no order): Fullmetal Alchemist - A steampunk world with alchemy powers. There are a lot, a lot of details to them and it's a great worldbuilding. Attack on Titan - A special setting between high fantasy and steampunk, it's imo pretty original and the author seemed to overthink a lot of details, also from the daily life in the world. Houseki no Kuni - Never have seen something like that. It's about gems, who look like people, in a future world without humans. Shinsekai Yori - Also a very special setting in an utopian future and people have powers and live in small villages in a seemingly peaceful world. Made in Abyss - Very special setting with an abyss people want to explore. There are a lot of interesting creatures and plants and the author put a lot of details into it. Children of the Whales - An utopian island with people, who have magic powers, but in exchange to that, they will die early. I think their society is very interesting too. D.Gray-man - Pretty dark steampunk world with demons and teenager from an order fighting against these demons, which are reincarnated souls. The Promised Neverland - A seemingly peaceful orphanage, but the kids find out they are demon food and try to escape and survive. 12 Kingdoms - It's on first glance a normal isekai fantasy world with mythological creatures etc., but their designs are really creative and you see creatures you normally wouldn't see in such a world. Also it's a lot about politics there. Inuyasha - Also an Isekai, but the female protagonists lands in a Japanese medieval age with a lot of demons and Japanese mythology. Dororo - Same, Japanese medieval age with mythological creatures. Mo Dao Zu Shi - Chinese medieval story with dark fantasy. Magi - It's an arabic-esque adventure with magic and all. Arslan Senki - A "normal" historical war story, but it's not european Shoukoku no Altair - Same, it's a turkish-esque setting Akatsuki no Yona - Same, it's Korean and has also fantasy in it I bet I forgot a lot. xD There are a bunch of interesting scifi and urban fantasy settings too imo. And some great dystopia. I never said that only anime suffers from that. I've read plenty of high fantasy novel series, and at worst they are still better at it than anime at average. Most you mentioned I've seen, or are based on older shows. I guess I should have specified, I mean modern stuff, I know most of the old. Mo Dao Zu Shi seems interesting tho. almost all of the stuff they listed are modern anime tho. There's maybe 2 or 3 from before 2010, it doesn't get much more modern than that list of recommendations. |
| I probably regret this post by now. |
| I disagree on Naruto especially, it has decent enough World Building with the Background Lore of the Chakra Fruit, the Creation of Ninjas, the History of Ninjas, the different Countries and Villages and their governments and motivations, although we mainly explored Konoha and some Suna, it was definitely there and it was pretty decent too, the different Elements Ninjutsu Chakra etc are also all a part of what makes the Ninja World. I wouldn't say One Piece has bad WB either, i don't like the Show and i goddamn hate the pacing and character Design but the WB is there. From the Isekai Titles you mentioned in your first post i'll agree except for Tensura, Konosuba because not every Show needs World Building, it really depends on what the Focus of a Show is and for Main Comedy as Focus Characters and Dialogue is more important than World Building and Story. As for Tensura, there is decent World Building but it isn't told well, a lot of details are missed that would be necessary to understand it better.. so yeah. I'll agree on the rest of the Shounen and Isekai mentioned.. |
| @DrakoWiz i see i misread your first statement nevermind^^ you are a tough one with your scores you might enjoy Code Geass or Gundam IBO, standalone or Jormungand |
| eh, boku no hero tries to integrate a realistic world into its shonen setting with more focus on mass media and public reputation as well as bureaucratic hurdles even though the mc's get to be the exceptions to the rules anyways. it's still a step-up over what came before |
| "I like young-girl sexual creations, Lolicon is just one hobby of my many hobbies," he says. I ask what his wife, standing nearby, thinks of his "hobby". "She probably thinks no problem," he replies. "Because she loves young boys sexually interacting with each other." |
| Check out Made in Abyss if you want to see some innovative world building. |
One Piece episode 914 & 915 & 1027 were a mistake and 957 brought the salvation - FMmatron |
DrakoWiz said: Pullman said: Fairy Tail still has better worldbuilding than Bleach to be honest and Horizon in the middle of nowhere was a terribly executed show from the start, and what I've seen of it was pretty much the opposite of good worldbuilding. It was rushed, confusing and trying to do way too much in way too little time. I feel like OP is mistaking setting/concept with actual worldbuilding based on him just complaining about 'generic settings' multiple times. But setting =/= worldbuilding. You can have good or bad or no worldbuilding in any kind of setting. I'll disagree. Even if FT has a larger world, they do not do anything with it. In Bleach the world is smaller, but they do explore the other regions at least. Also for Horizon, I mostly meant the Light Novel, the anime adaptation wa confusing yes, but you see that was because the light novel is a sequel to a previous one, Owari no Chronicle, and hence you need to at least be familiar with what goes on. Hmm, that is why I gave examples like isekais which are set in their own fictional world, and not some random urban setting anime, now did I? Your thread title says only 'anime', you made this thread in 'anime' discussion. Don't blame me for not being able to read your mind, when you list anime I'm going to talk about those and not about their source material which I haven't even read. There's other places you can go to talk about LNs and whatnot, I'm just commenting on the anime you listed. I this isn't your personal fault, but it always annoys me when people make a discussion thread about anime, talk about nothing but anime in their post, and then suddenly try to debunk my points or counterarguments with some LN/manga/source material that neither of us was talking about before. Stick to the one medium please, otherwise it just becomes confusing and arguments become inconsistent. The Bleach worldbuilding is just atrocious imo, every new arc basically makes up a new part of the world that hasn't been mentioned before, often not even hinted at. Nothing is planned or foreshadowed, everything is only relevant for the one arc that introduced it out of nowhere and usually drifts into obscurity after it's over. It's just terrible at implementing the worldbuilding, I honestly think it's one of the worst cases of worldbuilding I've ever seen in anything. It doesn't feel like we are learning more about a world that existed from the start, but rather like the author himself just keeps making up random new stuff out of nowhere as he goes. That's the opposite of good worldbuilding to me, which should feel natural and like it was there from the start. FT has similar issues, but definitely does a much better job of making the different aspects of it count even outside the arc that first introduces them. Makes it feel much more like an actual world rather than a just bunch of isolated worldbuilding aspects with no significange or even presence outside of their one arc. I'm still not very high on Fairy Tail, but I definitely think it beats Bleach, overall and specifically in terms of worldbuilding. Also idk why you only listed fantasy/isekai examples, I still can't read your mind. It just seemed that they have more in common in regards to the setting and not the worldbuilding so I assumed you're mixing up the two to some degree. This gets backed up by you actually only mentioning the setting being generic in your first sentence as your reason for disliking them. Seems like you're annoyed by that part of it more than anything. That also explains the generic isekai/fantasy hatred. Plenty of fantasy/isekai have pretty good worldbuilding, like Overlord and Log Horizon, even Death March was decent in that regard, but they do all have fairly similar fantasy settings, albeit they can still differ a lot in tone and focus. A lot of them also don't need worldbuilding, like Grimgar or Konosuba or Goblin Slayer, because they're trying to do different things. I already gave examples of the good and bad. Yeah and they don't seem very consisistent or agreeable to me which is what I wrote most of my reply about, not sure how 'I already gave examples that you disagreed with' is any kind of argument here, but okay. And it's hard to not recognize that all your bad examples are isekai/fantasy titles while the positive examples are much more varied. Not hard to reach the conclusion that you just dislike that type of show, especially since you just grouped a bunch of shows that are trying to do completely things together and criticized them as if they were all the same. It just isn't very effective the way you framed your criticism, it just reeks of bias. I think it's very reductive to just judge every show solely by its worldbuilding. There is a lot you can do in a story without focusing on just that. Even the positive examples you mentioned don't really focus a lot on worldbuilding, like Spice and Wolf, so I can't really relate to your obsession. The appeal of that show surely lies elsewhere, in the character dynamics, dialogue and all that great stuff. Excuse me, but when I watch a show set in it own fictional world, I expect smt there. Really, Spice and Wolf can't? Have you read the Light Novel? It has a lot of worldbuilding going on. It's own cities, cultures, history. Again, feel free to discuss light novels in the manga section, but I'm always talking about anime in anime discussion and assume other people are doing the same because otherwise they'd just be off topic. No comment on the LN, but the main appeal and focus of the anime was definitely a lot of other things and not the worldbuilding. There was a bit of it, but it was more incidental than anything. So yeah as always it's never a good idea to just care about one thing and then expect it from every single show without even trying to understand what they are trying to do and whether you need worldbuilding for that. You don't need it in comedies or introspective character dramas or romance etc... I'd much rather shows like that focus on being good at what they are trying to do instead of cramming in random world building elements just to please someone like OP who seems to have no other interest. We ain't talking about every anime here, just about anime set in their own worlds where it is expected to at least have some worldbuilding going on? You are just misunderstanding and coming to your baseless conclusions putting words into my mouth I did not say. Do you disagree that settings set in a medieval world do not need worldbuilding then? If they are historical I can agree, but when they are fictional they do infact need to have smt there. I'm saying the setting has nothing to do with whether a show needs worldbuilding because the setting has nothing to do with what a show is trying to do conceptually, so being set in a medieval world is irrelevant. You can have a romance or a comedy or an adventure show in that setting, among others. Only one of those needs worldbuilding. Based on that example I think it's you who aren't understanding my point. If a show sets out to introspectively explore the psyche of certain characters and their relationships and interactions and whatnot, who cares about worldbuilding? If a show sets out to be hilarious and make you laugh and be silly and random, who cares about worldbuilding? An anime needs to be good at what it is trying to do and if worldbuilding isn't one of those things, it's moot to criticize it for that. I get that you want to see it in more anime, but that's just what you'd like, it completely ignores what the shows you listed are actually trying to do and whether they succeed or fail at that. A show like KonoSuba doesn't need worldbuilding, it's purely comedical so it should focus and does focus on having funny characters and situations and dialogues and visuals. Who cares about worldbuilding if it makes you laugh a ton every episode like it set out to? Apparently you, for some reason, but it makes no sense to me. Criticing it for something that is so irrelevant to the nature of that show just seems to miss the point for me. It's complaining for the sake of complaining. It's like watching K-On and ranting that there weren't enough sword fights in it. Criticism should always be about what a show was trying to do and whether it was good or bad at that, and why. Otherwise you're not criticizing the show, you're just ranting about what you would like it to be like if it was a completely different kind of show. There's still plenty of shows who do focus on worldbuilding and do a good job at it. Stuff like Juuni Kokuki or El Hazard have pretty great and unique fantasy/isekai settings if you ask me. Then there is random stuff like Magi (modern battle shounen with good worldbuilding), Altair (classic swords & empires story with a lot of focus on worldbuilding) or even less typical examples like Banana Fish, JoJo Part 4 and Golden Kamuy which do a good or even great job at expanding the world they're set in. Like now you get to the actual point of my post, wow. And I agree here, these have what I want. I still do not understand why you felt the need to demean me and make an ass of your self, but oh well I guess. So the point of your post was that there are actually plenty of anime with good worldbuilding and that it's pretty inaccurate to say 'anime usually has poor worldbuilding'? Because that was my point in the paragraph you quoted. To prove wrong your thesis of bad worldbuilding being the norm. In my experience most anime that focus on worldbuilding, do a pretty good job at it. Also insecure much? If you can't take any criticism of your 'arguments' and opinions without getting all pouty and feeling 'demeaned' and calling me an ass, then idk what you are doing on a forum. If I see someone say stuff that I don't agree with, I'm gonna argue my point. You could do the same or at least just accept the recs for what they are - recommendations - but instead you're just whining about the fact that I dared to argue with your assessment of the examples you listed. What kind of attitude is that to have on a discussion forum? The whole point is to discuss and argue things, and I'm not gonna pretend I agree with your examples or point just because I'm afraid I might hurt your feelings if I disagree. I'm pretty sure I was being polite and neutral up until now in my disagreements with you, no insults or anything, just making my points like a nerd that cares about arguments and examples. If that's 'making an ass' out of myself, then idk what you are making of yourself right now. But it's definitely something worse than a donkey. Not sure what else to say except for I'm sorry you feel that way? I'm not sorry for anything I said, cause it was all harmless and on topic. You can't judge worldbuilding after 1 or 2 episodes anyway, it's something that happens over time. It's a process, hence it is worldbuild-ing, and not just 'worldbuild' or whatever. So watching an episode doesn't give you any information about how good the worldbuilding will be. I'd say it's more efficient to just ask for recs based on worldbuilding if it's that important to you. Then a few episodes. Do not take it 100% literal, jeez. I can get a basic understanding of the concept of the show and if I seem to enjoy it I will stick around, even if I do not, I'll give it another few episodes if it has some intriguing ideas before I give up. That just supports my initial thesis that you are talking more about setting and concept than worldbuilding tho, without realizig it. In the opening post you complain about generic settings, now you talk about understanding the concept of the show after a few eps. Both are understandable statements, but they aren't really related to worldbuilding, which was my point from the start and why I found your whole post to be so inconsistent. Anything you drop after only a few eps won't be dropped because of worldbuilding since that is something that happens slowly and gradually over time, but because of how much you like or dislike the setting or concept or characters or whatever. |
AlcoholicideFeb 27, 2019 7:40 AM
| I probably regret this post by now. |
| Also, don't get discouraged because of the surge of the heavy-handed RPG elements in anime/manga. Although the west has the upper hand in literature, I think Japan is still better when it comes to fantasy in comics and animation. It's just a matter of scavenging for the good stuff. |
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| I hate these RPG inspired worlds in Light Novels too. It's like the creators are saying "you've played a video game before, right? Then we don't have to explain the lore and rules of this world anymore!" |
| Overlord has pretty good world building... I’m too lazy to elaborate on this or mention any other shows with great worldbuilding... Sorry:( |
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| The fact you say One Piece has bad world building tells me that you didn't even get past the East Blue saga. The reason One Piece is so long is because it takes its time to build the different settings and the Characters that will intervene in the arcs. If it had bad world building it would've ended by now. |
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| I don't know, i don't think i've watched enough anime to form an opinion on that, but for some good world building in my opinion, check out these two anime: Shoukoku no Altair Tegamibachi + the sequel Tegamibachi Reverse |
 My Shoujo, Josei and Female targeted anime adaptations starting from 2017+ stacks: Part 1: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/9181 Part 2: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/9195 Part 3: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/9225 Part 4: https://myanimelist.net/stacks/9280 |
| There's kinda a difference between poor worldbuilding and generic world building. Poor worldbuilding is a world where the various elements clash with each other and you wonder how it can exist as a cohesive world. Generic simply means it's been seen before. Given most of your examples seem to be examples of generic worldbuilding as opposed to bad worldbuilding, (since most of them do feel like a cohesive world with thought about how the various elements work in the world to a decent extent) you seem to be angrier at generic worldbuilding. So you want to see something different than the standard fantasy or slightly modified urban setting. Fair enough. There was Made in Abyss, Girls' Last Tour, Little Witch Academia, Princess Principal, and to a lesser extent Grimoire of Zero from 2017, 2018 had Violet Evergarden, B: The Beginning, and to a lesser extent Megalo Box and Darling in the Franxx (until it screwed that up later), this season we have Promised Neverland which is working to establish it's own new world, and later on this year there's Dr. Stone which has it's own unique world (or so I hear). There are modern anime with unique worldbuilding, in fact I'd argue there's about as many as existed back then. We just have the benefit of hindsight and can lump them all into one cohesive whole as opposed to how spread out they were even back then. |
MaskOfIceFeb 27, 2019 8:33 AM
| You have shit taste, and then I have taste so shit it makes your taste look good |
| Your title doesn't even match what you say in your OP. World building =/= setting or concepts in a particular show. Also, being generic is not bad. |
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| First off, here: Recommended Essays Exploring Actually Excellent World-Building[/quote] Second, to paraphrase Brandon Sanderson, there are generally three main aspects to a story: character, plot, and setting/world. If you have to sacrifice one to have more time to make the other two better, sacrificing/dumbing down on the setting is usually the safer choice. You can still have a successful story. Case in point, Harry Potter. Surprised? Good world-building does not always mean interesting setting. It just means that the world is consistent with its own rules and everything can make sense in light of everything else. Harry Potter isn't. As one fan puts it: (https://www.reddit.com/r/AskReddit/comments/aldjqh/what_kind_of_teenage_bullshit_probably_happened/efedpqc/) Rowling didn't do much worldbuilding before writing the first book, and even as the series went on the world grew organically based on the needs of the characters in the book, without too much thought on how it would affect the wider wizarding world. So something like a timeturner made some sense for Hermione in the context of the book, but was enormously problematic for the wider world and were quietly forgotten about until they were "all" destroyed in a later book. Whatever the magical system that enables the Ministry see what all underages do when not at Hogwarts makes sense for Harry's relationship with the Dursleys, that system mysteriously disappears when it comes to the Ministry being able to detect the mass use of very illegal spells by underground Death Eater organizations because that would make for a shorter series. Rowling started out writing a relatively lighthearted coming of age story about kids at a magic British boarding school, and had to change it over time into the epic fantasy series it ended up becoming The question now is, are you, @DrakoWiz, actually asking for good world-building or just interesting settings? Because you're probably not going to like my answer if it's just the former. My answer would be Log Horizon, an MMORPG isekai. Why? Because it creatively uses MMORPG mechanics. MMORPG mechanics allow for a pretty strong backbone in constructing a hard magic system. In fact, it’s one of the easiest ways of establishing a hard magic system, really. Hard magic systems, as opposed to soft magic systems, have clearly defined rules so that the reader can understand and predict them, in accordance with Brandon Sanderson’s first of three laws of magic: “An author's ability to solve conflict with magic is directly proportional to how well the reader understands said magic.” This allows the reader/viewer to participate in the storytelling because the reader/viewer now has a clearer idea of what the characters can do and if he/she is quick enough, he/she can predict what the characters could and would do based on their capabilities. Quick, what does an MMORPG offers you? It offers relatively clearer defined rules that you could understand if you play RPGs or reading the basic straight-forward rules of the game genre. This also puts the onus of solving problems not on the magic itself but on the character and how he/she utilizes said magic spell. The series, for example, has a character use a barrier spell as impromptu stairs and another character use a bind/root spell as a high damage whip. The spell is Thorn Bind Hostage. It wraps the target in five thorny vines and every vine an ally of the caster cuts deal 1000 HP worth of damage. The spell is a support spell for a squishy support character who's weak in direct combat. But now that they're not in a game anymore, what if someone uses that vine as a whip? Well, now you have a 1000 HP per hit vine, turning said support character into a fearsome damage dealer. It also clears Sanderson's Second Law of Magic: "The limitations of a magic system are more interesting than its capabilities. What the magic can't do is more interesting than what it can." One, their magic is limited by mana and by what the magic were specifically designed to do when they were in a game and not in an alternate reality that matches the game. They can't just pull out a new magic. They have to repurpose their preset magic spells; as I pointed above. The other limitation is the fact that in a typical MMORPG, players are divided into several unique classes, each with its own strengths, weaknesses, and gameplay. This allows players to find and excel in the playstyle they favor. It also means that they can't do everything. Each one can do a couple of things really well. They have to work together because they can't accomplish a lot of the things the game/world expects them to accomplish by going at it alone. The very nature of RPG classes restricts and limits them. Then we have Sanderson's Third Law of Magic: "Expand on what you have already, before you add something new. A brilliant magic system for a book is less often one with a thousand different powers and abilities -- and is more often a magic system with relatively few powers that the author has considered in depth." Here's more exploration of the Third Law (and anyone who has completed Season 1 of Log Horizon can attest to how the series does the things mentioned here): https://coppermind.net/wiki/Sanderson%27s_Laws_of_Magic Extrapolation It is important to consider the effects that a magic will have on a world. If for example your magic can create food out of thin air, what will that cause, what will happen? How will it affect trade, politics, warfare, education and social norms? Asking these questions and working out what effects your magic system will add depth to your world. Interconnection Another important point is to interconnected. Try to make the powers of a character seem like a coherent whole rather than separate abilities. In Mistborn, for example, magics were designed to be what thieves would want and then the powers named accordingly. Tying your powers together thematically is an important part of worldbuilding and expands the world, rather than adding to it. Streamlining Streamlining is also important in any magic system. Combining pre-existing magics and powers is often better than adding new ones. A different culture reacting to a magic entirely differently than what has been shown so far, is often better than a culture with its own unrelated magic system. For example: a simple heat-generating magic may be used by different cultures in very different ways. A warlike culture might use it for assault or for forging weapons, a peaceful one for heating and preparing food, for merchants for making products, nomads for powering transportation and so on. Remember, however, not to streamline too far as that will make the single culture or character seem too packed and might decrease their plausibility. |
 You gave up your freedom of speech when you clicked Agree to the User Agreement This is not a public platform. My gaze is the measure of all things: I stopped considering "anime" a helpful tag Recommended Essays Exploring Actually Excellent World-Building |
MauledDivine said: Re:Zero has some of the best world building ever. Much better than Made in Abyss imo. It's just more subtle. So far let me name some pretty big things that have been explained that ya may have missed. Flugels Tree Kararagi Empire Literally the entire history of Lugunica The Witches The way the merchants operate in this world. The dragon The Alstrea family The white whale The witch cult Beatrice Library All of these and probably dozens more contribute to the world of ReZero. Each one is very significant and has a long history that contributes to the story. Sure the anime just mentioned some of these without more inspection. But it's only on its first season. I mean Rezero has it's own alphabet for God's sake. And the spells have their own rules and structure for saying them. It's not just saying some generic cool sounding term like in sds. True, but all of those come later in the novels. The first season didn't delve into that and nor do we know the full story behind them. The season's main target was to setup one of its main characters (Subaru), and then hint at setting up the other (Emilia) at the very end. In short, not saying there wasn't any but if you dig through the subtleties in the first season alone, more questions were raised than answers. This has mostly to do with the author being advised to shift the world building to later volumes by his editor. So OP's statement of 'lack' of worldbuilding is true up to this point. |
 Truly a Divine Comedy  |
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