Science Fantasy – Genre Deep Dive
Entry posted by Pallas_Raven in Analysis
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This is a condensed version of the full article which can be found on my Main Blog Here.
Of Robots And Sorcerers
At first glance sci-fi and fantasy might seem incompatible with one another since the first focuses on extrapolations of concepts from our scientific present while the other deals with impossible events and powers. However, behind these differences they share a common desire to explore the nature of humanity through situations as distant as possible from our everyday lives. When combined with this angle in mind their union forms the Science Fantasy genre. For visual novels this marriage is formed of several different approaches which characterise their similar material in distinctive lights. Maybe it is an exaggerated reflection of our own world, often it is the rule of cool which decides how things go and sometimes it is just an extremely tight and interconnection web of concepts that brings the package together. Let’s find our wand and phaser as we look at what this hybrid genre brings to visual novels.
Reflecting The World
A common trend among Science Fantasy visual novels is their tendency to have present day settings. Here the sci-fi element is founded in an exaggerated version of modern science and used to justify many of the common elements of Urban Fantasy through which the narrative tells its more dramatic elements. This union focuses on sticking to the familiar parts of a present day setting and using them to create a bond of empathy with the characters as they go through the mundane realities of life. Yet at the same time the fantastical events give a framing to those mundane actions which draws out their artificial nature and the absurdity when placed alongside a life and death struggle. The sci-fi half keeps the fantasy from causing the player to disassociate from events on screen by tickling their sense of vague familiarity with modern science and keeping the magic and superpowers firmly in a grounding of the known world. By adhering to all of these elements the Science Fantasy can present ideas about the present day through a lens detached enough to allow for a proper consideration of them without being so far away as to prevent them from having the emotional resonance necessary for their desired impact.
Take Chaos;Head for example, here a scientific conspiracy is mixed with teenagers possessing superpowers in order to take a look at what the modern world does a person’s psychological state. The sci-fi elements here focus around the human psyche and how the conspiracy seeks to take advantage of it for their own gain. It includes a lot of familiar scientific and pseudo-scientific terms the player is likely heard about even if just in passing and so registers as vaguely realistic which allows it to serve as a basis for the fantasy half to bounce off of in order to better serve its core ideas. On the other side, the superpowers work to enhance the sense of being detached from the real world which alongside the protagonist’s unreliability questions the effects of the modern social features, such as internet forums, introduced through the sci-fi side.
The Rule Of Cool
Sometimes the choice of Science Fantasy as a genre in visual novels is not in service of some grand presentation of themes and is instead due to the developer thinking it was cool. This originates from the way the genre takes the familiar trapping of each of its parts and puts them through a new lens in order to make them fresh again. Having a strong sense of novelty provides a means of keeping the player engaged over the course of the game and creating a visual and narrative style completely owned by the title. This brand of Science Fantasy tends to lean into a specific aspect of one half while the majority of the rest of the experience is focused around the other. For example of one extreme there is Deus Machine Demonbane. Here is a game leaning heavily into its fantasy elements with magic and lovecraftian powers shaping events and forming the bulk of the reoccurring elements. With one large exception being the titular Deus Machine which is a giant mech, something generally found in a more sci-fi setting. Obviously this is passed through the fantasy filter in order to justify its existence, but its out of place nature makes it memorable and this in turn creates a unique texture to the game that remains in the minds of many even to this day.
Stronger Together
So far the uses of the Science Fantasy genre shown have placed various kinds of clear divides between the two halves or put an overwhelming emphasis on one over the other. However, there are a group of games under this genre which use it precisely because the challenge of balancing these distinctive parts results in a potent and memorable experience through how they link to one another. For this union to succeed the two parts need to hold a similar thematic purpose within the narrative while also justifying their place within the wider world, so their existence does not stand out too much and disrupt the player’s sense of immersion. In return for this delicate work, the game can provide a unique sense of place for its setting which serves a directed purpose of pushing the core themes and ideas of the story in a way simultaneously in the player’s face and also subtle enough to seep into their minds through continual exposure. An approach like this is only effective for visual novels where there are complex or emotional elements to explore rather than something aiming for clean and clear messaging for common themes which need no introduction and where the game not expecting them to be considered deeply.
This can be seen in seen in the fault series where the technology level of the world is both higher and lower than our own to organically integrate it into the areas of people’s lives which magic is not used in order to sell them as complimenting elements. It is through their subtlety that the power of drawing the player’s attention to them originates since being made aware of something previously in the background reshapes the understanding of the elements surrounding it and lends to a clarity of messaging. Utawarerumono takes this approach to its logical extreme by using the presence and absence of each half of the genre to highlight key narrative beats through the divide between the world of the ancient past and the one of the present.
Conclusion
As with many hybrid genres, it is how the union of the two halves manifests and interacts with the visual novel format which makes them an engaging experience. Science Fantasy succeeds on multiple fronts due to how well sci-fi and fantasy play into each other’s strengths. It can mix the fantastical with the mundane to offer a frank representation of the modern world and its issues. The unity can be so coherent and well thought out that the themes and ideas are communicated without needing to say a word or through clever highlighting of key elements. On the other hand, sometimes it just about the rule of cool and the strength comes from impressing the player with spectacle and keeping them amused. There is no denying the flexibility and narrative power found in Science Fantasy and it is a genre more titles should consider branching out into.
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