How long the LitRPG trend will go on?

[Reisinling]

Do you think the LitRPG and isekai trend will stay with us forever.. or is it something that will go away in 1-2 years?

 

[Saileri]

Considering that it's one of the niches, it will always stay on the side like anything that caters to a specific audience.

 

[Agentt]

It will last for 1 entire generation, since I don't think any of the present kids would play any rpg.

 

[TotallyHuman]

After the next generation grows up to become primary consumers, I think this trend will become a niche for us oldheads

 

[Aoi_Sora]

As long as anybody wants to escape reality and think of it as a game world... It will continue.

 

[BubbleC]

I'd say that isekai (particularly in JP anime/manga) as it exists now, is definitely in its heyday and will probably decline in popularity within or around 4 years from now.

I say "as it exists now" because modern isekai, at the least the Japanese kind, typically possesses a very stereotypical format. It's the "die --> reincarnate in fantasy world --> get strong" format. This classical formula is something I think may fall out of favor with many viewers sooner or later, but I don't think isekai as a whole will ever die out.

The concept of going to another world is quite flexible, after all. We see a wide variety of isekai even today from quick transmigration to reincarnating into a novel to other portal fantasies, etc. Personally, I've stopped reading the "trucked --> fantasy world --> hero" stories a while ago and switched over to Korean/Chinese isekais because they provide a different spin on isekai. I think this trend will probably be reflected in wider audiences.

When you consider that SAO is about nine years old (even older if we're talking about the novel), I think it's pretty clear that isekai will probably stick around for a while and change in presentation over time.

(LitRPG more a niche and will probably stick with those that like it. Don’t think it’d last with a more general audience.)

 

[Alkareel]

Ever heard of videogames going out of trend? Don't think so.

 

[Candy_Man]

LitRPG is a genre with great variety. However, since it's so easy to write, it's literally everywhere. This saturation will eventually cause a 'tolerance' for the genre, which will raise the standards higher till it's not worthwhile to write about anymore.

I remember the rise and fall of idle games, for example, which created a sea of mediocre, low-effort games purely made for clicks.

I'd give it around 2 years before LitRPG runs out of gas.

 

[COLOC_Kid]

people will never get tired of isekai mainly because its an escape, a fantasy so to say, they want somthing to make them excited, hopeful, or, amazed people are always hating thier life so they push themselves into a isekai to escape. isekai will never die only change.
litRPG will disappear but slowly and never fully its reaches extend past books and into new cliches and tropes which will be adapted for non-isekai novels for millennium to come

 

[Kitsura]

Lit RPG/Isekai is just another form of "Portal fantasy" wish fulfillment never goes out of style. Turns out people really hate their boring lives. Perhaps we won't keep seeing this "system" novels in the future but the core premise, will stick around.

It's been around forever. Ever heard of "Alice in the Wonderland"?

That's portal fantasy

 

[Discount_Blade]

Hard question to answer. I think it will have at most another 5-10 years and then the interest in it will gradually die down. I don't think it will ever disappear since video games will only continue expanding. I do think it will however, become more niche, and eventually only attract a certain kind of clientele. Kind of like the Armored Core mecha games. Really technical games those with amazing amounts of personal customization for your mech. They were so technical that they tended to have fairly wicked learning curves.

Problem is, while it always sold enough to make a profit, and thus they kept making sequels, it was never on a bestseller list and it garnered no gaming accolades. I think LitRPG as a fiction subgenre will become like this.

It'll have it's crowd willing to purchase, and a prospective author in the future may even live fairly comfortably off of sales. Not rich, or even especially wealthy, but they won't want for anything. I'd say it could produce a comfortably solid middle-class existence.

 

[Cossimeri]

I mean... Narnia is an isekai. This genre is old.

As for litRPG... it may not be portrayed in the same way. (Right now it has a very 'computer game' motif) but I'd say it'll only become more popular with time. The genre simplifies some things in fiction for the reader. Honestly... litRPG is like reading with training wheels (and I say this as an author of litRPGs... it's not intended to be an insult). The reader doesn't have to infer that one character is stronger than another by the author's description of their physical appearances and attributes.

The reader can just go "She's got an 18 strength and he's got a 17 strength, so she is stronger." Boom, baby got it. You'll see an incarnation of this filter into lots of mainstream western novels over the next decade or so I'd guess. Just changing apetites. Some readers don't like ambiguity.

 

[hauntedwritings]

As has been said, isekai is old and will likely remain for some time (or forever). So it will be here to stay - the question is what kind of plot isekais will have in the future (when they move away from the villaness/LitRPG plots that are the current trend).

As for LitRPG, it will likely also stay, because it has a number of advantages.

The genre simplifies some things in fiction for the reader. Honestly... litRPG is like reading with training wheels (and I say this as an author of litRPGs... it's not intended to be an insult). The reader doesn't have to infer that one character is stronger than another by the author's description of their physical appearances and attributes.

Pretty much this. I think newer readers and writers will find an appeal in the LitRPG genre, due to its simplicity. Easy to get into and understand.

I personally feel a bit bored reading LitRPG stories these days because there are so many of them, and I've started wanting more (deeper characters and world building, which is sadly often lacking in LitRPG stories in my opinion). I'm quite pickey, I know.

And I think writers of LitRPG stories also likely feel bored with it as well after a while, and choose to move away from the genre into pure fantasy / isekai / others. But does that mean LitRPG should vanish? Certainly not. It's an aid that can get those who don't have the confidence in their writing to start simple. Once they become more experienced, they will move on - to their own original concepts.

Which is what we all want.

 

[witch_sorrowful]

I agree with @Newfypuppie and @Cossimeri in that "Isekai" is a Portal Fantasy, and is as old as human language in terms of its premise.

I just hope to god that the gamer-lightning-new_world and loser-truck_kun-goddess with bad European names will stop sometime soon. But, it seems those are the only type of stories that do get read. One of the reasons is that the older, popular ones keep getting thrown up to the milieu in form of manga and anime, and that keeps a small cycle going on.

Just as LitRPGs came up from the table sides of many D&D campaigns, I hope that the next LitRPGs would come from the wells of inspiration in Video Games. I hear that MOBAs are pretty interesting. Anybody got any ideas? Wanna come up and make one here? Shoot me a message.

I dislike LitRPGs though - with their tables and their italicized GUI writings. It removes my suspension of disbelief faster than magic tricks.

 

[AKnightWithaKnife]

Iskeai is already a dead format on the tv side of things. However in the manga side of things its going somewhat strong. litrpg dosent really seem to die as it kinda feels like fantasy written by very amateur writers. Also it inflates word counts

 

[COLOC_Kid]

As has been said, isekai is old and will likely remain for some time (or forever). So it will be here to stay - the question is what kind of plot isekais will have in the future (when they move away from the villaness/LitRPG plots that are the current trend).

As for LitRPG, it will likely also stay, because it has a number of advantages.


Pretty much this. I think newer readers and writers will find an appeal in the LitRPG genre, due to its simplicity. Easy to get into and understand.

I personally feel a bit bored reading LitRPG stories these days because there are so many of them, and I've started wanting more (deeper characters and world building, which is sadly often lacking in LitRPG stories in my opinion). I'm quite pickey, I know.

And I think writers of LitRPG stories also likely feel bored with it as well after a while, and choose to move away from the genre into pure fantasy / isekai / others. But does that mean LitRPG should vanish? Certainly not. It's an aid that can get those who don't have the confidence in their writing to start simple. Once they become more experienced, they will move on - to their own original concepts.

Which is what we all want.

you should try this litRPG it's by Aleron kong its called the land https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01ATAN9G2?ref=KC_GS_GB_US

 

[darkpikacha]

I love reading LitRPG for some reason. I can't get enough of them.

 

[Kenjona]

LitRPG will be like other fictional Genres it may change in form/style possibly even in name, but it will continue in one form or another. Just like Isekai has over the centuries since we have been telling stories to one another in one form or another.

 

[lnv]

Do you think the LitRPG and isekai trend will stay with us forever.. or is it something that will go away in 1-2 years?

Like all things in literature, it will never go away. Things will grow and go out of style and then back in style but it is here to stay. AS mentioned, Isekai is centuries old genre.

LitRPG is a genre with great variety. However, since it's so easy to write, it's literally everywhere. This saturation will eventually cause a 'tolerance' for the genre, which will raise the standards higher till it's not worthwhile to write about anymore.

I remember the rise and fall of idle games, for example, which created a sea of mediocre, low-effort games purely made for clicks.

I'd give it around 2 years before LitRPG runs out of gas.

I am not sure why you think LitRPG is easy to write... If anything, it can be pretty hard to write. A lot of people might role their eyes at a table with stats of all kinds, but depending on how difficult your table is, it may end up taking more time to put one out then writing an entire chapter. Keeping track of all the stats, consistency and etc is a lot of work.

In writing, the more cards the author keeps away from the reader, the more flexibility the author has to pull off. With LitRPG, you are pretty much putting everything for the reader to see. Which makes it much more difficult in writing as you can't exactly have the MC with 100 STR overpower someone with 200 STR. This is much easier in normal fantasy cause where an MC can lose in strength day 1, then win in strength day 2 due to "will power".

And this is precisely why as you see many LitRPGs go on, the tables begin to be seen less and less often and the author stops relying on things like stats and eventually just goes into a fantasy that has LitRPG on the side. Precisely because of how hard it is to write a LitRPG.

People simply think LitRPG is easy precisely because you can excuse a power up with a level up or a new skill. But end of the day, that is no different then any other form of fantasy power up. The only difference is that the LitRPG powerup is quantifiable so it actually is harder to work with.

Again, the more the author reveals to the reader, the harder it is to write any form of fantasy. A LitRPG where all stats and skills are revealed and quantified is probably the hardest form of fantasy to write.

people will never get tired of isekai mainly because its an escape, a fantasy so to say, they want somthing to make them excited, hopeful, or, amazed people are always hating thier life so they push themselves into a isekai to escape. isekai will never die only change.
litRPG will disappear but slowly and never fully its reaches extend past books and into new cliches and tropes which will be adapted for non-isekai novels for millennium to come

LitRPG will never disappear, if anything as computers become more and more part of our daily lives, it will only become more popular.

Of course I do agree LitRPG only really works for novel and manga format. And it isn't well suited for anime unless they end up glossing over all the stats. But at the point it is no different then any other fantasy. Only hope for LitRPG in anime format is if VR Anime grows.

 

[Candy_Man]

Like all things in literature, it will never go away. Things will grow and go out of style and then back in style but it is here to stay. AS mentioned, Isekai is centuries old genre.



I am not sure why you think LitRPG is easy to write... If anything, it can be pretty hard to write. A lot of people might role their eyes at a table with stats of all kinds, but depending on how difficult your table is, it may end up taking more time to put one out then writing an entire chapter. Keeping track of all the stats, consistency and etc is a lot of work.

In writing, the more cards the author keeps away from the reader, the more flexibility the author has to pull off. With LitRPG, you are pretty much putting everything for the reader to see. Which makes it much more difficult in writing as you can't exactly have the MC with 100 STR overpower someone with 200 STR. This is much easier in normal fantasy cause where an MC can lose in strength day 1, then win in strength day 2 due to "will power".

And this is precisely why as you see many LitRPGs go on, the tables begin to be seen less and less often and the author stops relying on things like stats and eventually just goes into a fantasy that has LitRPG on the side. Precisely because of how hard it is to write a LitRPG.

People simply think LitRPG is easy precisely because you can excuse a power up with a level up or a new skill. But end of the day, that is no different then any other form of fantasy power up. The only difference is that the LitRPG powerup is quantifiable so it actually is harder to work with.

Again, the more the author reveals to the reader, the harder it is to write any form of fantasy. A LitRPG where all stats and skills are revealed and quantified is probably the hardest form of fantasy to write.


LitRPG will never disappear, if anything as computers become more and more part of our daily lives, it will only become more popular.

Of course I do agree LitRPG only really works for novel and manga format. And it isn't well suited for anime unless they end up glossing over all the stats. But at the point it is no different then any other fantasy. Only hope for LitRPG in anime format is if VR Anime grows.

God damn. Your argument is so well-structured, I have no option other than agree with you. I'm not even going to try finding fault in your thesis because I know I'm gonna get destroyed.