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RPG + Books = LitRPG (SPONSORED) - MMORPG.com
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
RPG + Books = LitRPG (SPONSORED) - MMORPG.com
LitRPG is all about taking the elements you know and love from video games and spinning them into narratives. It's the perfect genre for those who already love games but are looking for a meatier story experience to occupy their time. There are some fantastic examples of LitRPG that are already floating around in the wild. From multi-media franchises to classic books, these works help to give a broader view of a developing genre.
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Naborian Saga ....http://store.steampowered.com/app/581340/Narborion_Saga/
Joe Devres Lone Wolf ....http://store.steampowered.com/app/279440/Joe_Devers_Lone_Wolf_HD_Remastered/
Very much agreed. Here's the LitRPG book section at the forum. You can lurk if you don't want to join. We try to keep it updated as much as possible. Sounds like you'd fit right in. Thanks for the comment, and have a great weekend!
I'm personally working on a LitRPG titled "Roguelike"... as the name suggests, it'll be about those great ASCII dungeon crawlers of days gone by as well as today!
https://litrpgforum.com/threads/wip-roguelike-tower-of-gates-standalone-adventure.26/
https://litrpgreads.com/blog/history-roguelikes
Logic, my dear, merely enables one to be wrong with great authority.
Well, fan fiction can be written for any genre. Also, some (not all) LitRPG is edited and polished for publication. Granted, we're talking about self-publishing, but still.
Seriously, though, some of it is probably RPG fan-fic or game fan-fic, but I know I and a lot of other authors have created their own game worlds and game mechanics for the books. That is, we're not really copying any existing game/movie/etc. Thus, it's a subgenre that combines science fiction and fantasy - cyberpunk is a closely related subgenre...
Make more sense?
Great question! Keep 'em coming. I'm by no means an expert, but this topic is near and dear to my heart.
Fanfic would be writing in somebody else's world. LitRPGs usually describe non-existent games with their own mechanics. Most of them are VR MMORPGs with a direct nerve-implant that is still years from developing in reality. Others are a portal to another world with RPG mechanics through a game. Most of the books describe the life outside of the game as well as inside it. Basically the LitRPG genre would be a subset of fantasy or cyberpunk depending on the exact book and not at all a fanfic.
Another great series that I would consider a LitRPG would be Spells, Sword and Stealth by Drew Hayes and I did not think of this one the first time around because it is more of a fantasy with RPG tie-in story than a typical LitRPG where a person experiences a game world.
P.S. LitRPG, thanks for the invite, might consider it but my tastes run more along the urban fantasy or straight fantasy fiction. There are several litrpgs that I like but I find most of the ones I tried are lacking something for me.
Not a problem. I'm coming to the genre after having read Guardians of the Flame by Joel Rosenberg and many other great "litrpg" before the genre had a name. It's exciting because a lot of established writers are moving into the genre. Competition will raise the quality, I'm sure. By Christmas when Jumanji comes out, there's going to be a lot more LitRPG books, IMHO. Over at the forum, we talk about gamer/geek topics outside of LitRPG too. It's your call, of course.
Have a great weekend!
I'm not sure I would enjoy fantasy mixed liked that. I prefer that to be fully immersive without RL counterpart distractions.
So, what other scifi is out there of a caliber similar to those?
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
We have a few recommendations for those new to the genre here...
https://litrpgforum.com/threads/what-would-you-recomnend-for-a-new-reader.173/
While some might not agree with us, we feel Otherland falls under LitRPG...
https://litrpgreads.com/litrpg-books/otherland-city-golden-shadow
As well as Killobytes by Piers Anthony, etc. In fact, through a comment here, I stumbled on this very early 1985 LitRPG. I'm planning an interview with the author...
https://litrpgforum.com/threads/litrpg-short-story-from-1985.705/
You might start with Awaken Online by Travis Bagwell...
Chooose Your Own Adventure
is that what you are referring to ?? what does the LiT part stand for ???
Literary / Literature...I didn't coin the term. Three Russian writers came up with it.
I'd say the Fighting Fantasy books are closer...
https://litrpgreads.com/blog/lone-wolf-fighting-fantasy-books-litrpg
A more recent example of that might be "Ready Player One". (Loved the book, can't wait for the movie)
Some older examples, if I remember them correctly, would be "Dream Park", and even the far more recent "Snow Crash".
Just had to add this, I'm currently reading an online comic called "Not A Villain" that is definitely of that category.
Lost my mind, now trying to lose yours...
It's been a long time since I've gone through any Lone Wolf books, but I don't think they qualify, as they are about the character, not a player in a game. Unless you mean the Lone Wolf chose your own adventure type books, which again don't qualify, because they are a story heavy game you are playing.
Lost my mind, now trying to lose yours...
One of his latest, Reamde, also mixes in some small amount of MMORPG game play with the real life adventure of the protagonists. Although the focus squarely outside the game, things within the game play a vital role in the story. The main characters in the book actually are the owner and other developers of the MMORPG.
“Microtransactions? In a single player role-playing game? Are you nuts?”
― CD PROJEKT RED
They're also interactive whereas most LitRPG is not interactive.
we created our own world, character classes, encounters, dungeons and more
The shaman is my fav so far.
http://royalroadl.com/fiction/4321/kill-10-rats
*cough* Shameless Plug *cough*
I was thinking the same thing. They just updated the term for the kiddies today. I find this all really funny.
I started gaming all the way back with Dragon Warrior on NES. I got into MMOs with NexiusTK back in the day and have played 50 + MMOs since. Since WoW has come out, every MMO has basically felt the same to me. Still miss Shadowbane though. I don't play as much anymore, but I'm hopeful Ashes of Creation or Chronicles of Elyria might push things in a new direction.
If you have found yourself bored of the same old grind, try out a litrpg or two. I'd recommend one of the highly rated ones on amazon. RRL has some good ones, but a lot of the authors that started out there that got popular have moved on and published.
Not convinced? Dozens of LitRPGs have hundreds of thousands, if not millions of views over on RRL. May of those authors are now making a living doing nothing but writing about playing a MMO. Why would anyone bother? Immersion. If you want to feel like you are really living a gaming world, growing more powerful, etc. nothing compares to a novel, not even the best MMO. If you're bored of the same old thing, read!
This isn't to bash MMOs. Honestly, I think there will be a new game that finds a new formula that recaptures the magic for me, but that doesn't mean I will stop reading LitRPGs. I will just have to find the time for both.
It's fairly similar to that, but there are a few big distinctions.
One, you don't get to choose your own adventure. Not to say you don't pick up the book because you like the premise, but that is the same for every genre.
Two, they are not written in second person. You are not the character.
Three, you have not say in where the plot goes.
To more accurately to describe it, you could say its closer to portal fiction... like The Chronicles of Narnia. This is not really arcuate for all of them, but at least a decent example.
Sigil Online: Paragons - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01NBHA0KZ
I've written other stuff, and I like to push the boundaries of genres, but as far as LitRPG goes, this one hits the mark. There is another great LitRPG with superheroes out there, Super Sales on Super Heroes, which I recommend checking out as well.