We all know and love LitRPG books (If you didn’t, you probably wouldn’t be on this site or reading this post.) They provide the awesome and fantastical worlds of sci-fi and fantasy books, and they also throw in fun and exciting elements that really change up the genre. However, no genre of books is without its tropes and clichés. Join as us we count down the top 5 overused tropes in the LitRPG genre!
5. Hot Women Everywhere – It usually appears as though the protagonist can’t go for two minutes without running into some attractive woman. It seems as though normal, average women simply don’t exist in LitRPG books. Either that, or the ugly women are all being hidden away where their hideous visages can’t affront the eyes of the protagonist.
4. The Comic Relief/Expositor – In many LitRPG books, the protagonist wakes up in a mysterious world, with no idea of how they got there, or what the world is like. After coming to the shocking realization that they aren’t in a dream, they then run into a character that introduces the game world, talks about its rules and history, and generally provides exposition throughout the story. No real explanation is given for why every person needs an animal companion, human sidekick, or familiar. They’re just… there. These characters also usually function as comic relief. After all, what would mowing down an entire group of people (who probably all had lives, families, and motivations of their own) be like, without a wise-cracking quip to diminish the psychological trauma and abject horror of committing mass murder?
3. The Secret Item/Class/Power – In almost every LitRPG book, the protagonist starts off incredibly weak and fragile, with those around them capable of killing them with a flick of the finger. To counteract this, the protagonist always uncovers some item, or sub-class that has long since been lost to history and that no one (not even the all-powerful gods that actually rule the world) has heard of for centuries. How the protagonist stumbles into this power, no one knows, but if you’re reading a LitRPG book, expect to run into this a lot.
2. Harems – No. Just no. Please, for the love of God, stop putting harems in your books. They’re unrealistic, add nothing to the plot, and are just plain stupid. Please keep your fantasies limited to your subreddits.
1. The OP Main Character – Finally, we get to the most overdone, overused, and ever-present trope in all of LitRPG: overpowered main characters. This isn’t restricted to only LitRPG books, as it can be found everywhere, from comic books (think Superman) to manga and anime (do Goku and One Punch Man ring a bell?) There’s a reason why they’re so common. People don’t like to see the main character lose. However, OP characters can be incredibly frustrating at times. How can you ever grow as a person if you never lose? What’s the point of establishing characters or gods that you claim are unbeatable, if the MC just comes along and creams them? Sometimes, (read, every time) it’s good to establish a character that the MC simply can’t beat, as it’s a great time to teach humility, puts the MC’s thinking into perspective, and more accurately reflects the actual world in which we live. The MC can’t continue to grow as a character if they never lose, and losing a fight every now and then (you obviously don’t want to make your MC a wimp) can lead to great introspection and character development for your MC.