What makes a story Scifi?

What does Sci-fi mean?

In simplest it stands for Science fiction. I’m talking about lasers and aliens! Stick the word space in front of something and it automatically becomes cooler.

Cat.

Space cat.

See? Who wouldn’t want a space cat???

But sci-fi isn’t always about space. Sci-fi can happen right down on planet earth in one place. But weather the scale is large or small sci-fi has always tested the human imagination of what we think we can accomplish in real life.

Science fiction are the tales that mainly use the concepts of spacecrafts, faster than light travel and extreme advancements in tech. Let’s dive into the main concepts!

Common Sci-fi Elements

Robots and cyborgs

These are a big part of sci- fi as well as new technologies. Mechanical advancement is one of the most used subjects in science fiction. Super human strength, laser eyes and even telepathy have somehow found a way to be incorporated by using macince into the human body in stories. (Telepathy and physic powers can be considered fantasy OR sci-fi since it is considered a power that can be achieved without magic or cybernetic enhancements.) Robots and AI devices are also a common topic. What happens when a machine is so smart it makes its own actions. Is it considered sentient if it has free will to make its open choices? Deeper themes like this are a big reason these are popular since they could very well become possible one day.

Space travel and other planets

This is where you’ll find the super crazy spaceship battles. Most people instantly think of Star Trek or Star Wars since these set the basis for space themed stories. Travel to other planets and solar systems have always intrigued man kind, so it’s only normal that we image what we’d find out there! Space conquest is one of the many dreams man strives towards as a momentum to our progress of intelligence as a species and our curiosity of finding other worlds with atmospheres, and creatures unlike our own. Honestly, since pretty much every place on land has been discovered, exploration is a thing of the past in earth. After the first human moon landing, a new possibility opened up! Deep space travel keeps that concept alive!

Aliens and mutants

Who doesn’t love a good alien movie? Aliens are truly just seeing how far our imagination can take us. Since we only have the life forms of our own solar system as a guide, what other species could possibly be out there? No one knows! They could look like us, to being of pure light or globs of slime! Everything to culture to civilization changes with aliens because of the questions that arise with it. How different are they from us? How do they act because of this? Since we only have ourselves as an example for an intellectual species, what’s normal out there may be extraordinary here! Aliens could all have laser eyes and it be completely normal! But maybe water is poisonous to those aliens and they freak out realizing we’re 70% of the stuff? Literal endless possibilities. But there always a central question when it comes to other worldly visitors.

Mustangs are more often then not caused by an extreme freak accident or wide spread disease. Usually altering appearance and even give them what we would see as super powers! X-men dives into this concept of how much do you have to change until your considered not human?

Are you a friend or foe?

Sub Genres

Dystopia- post apocalyptic dystopia is usually after a massive war or natural catastrophe. The means to fix and or survive it are usually accomplished through extreme sci-fi methods!

Cyberpunk- computer/ robot dominated society

Time travel- made a mistake? Just go back in time to fix it!

...

What do you mean trying to fix it made it worse?

Steampunk- The steam power movement on steroids. Lots of brass and goggles and most likely has a hint of British influence.

Alternate future/history- what if some past events turned out differently? What would things be like now or in the future?

Military Advancement- All the advanced tech belongs to the military only. Who has the biggest plasma guns?

Space Oprah- space warfare, melodramatic adventure, interplanetary battles, chivalric romance, and risk-taking. (Basically Star Wars)

Space Western- Space cowboys and or space hobos. Not everyone with a space ship lives a lavish life. In the new space frontier it’s impossible to enforce all laws. Hope you like space pirates and bounty hunters!

Mundane sci-fi- Also known as soft sci-fi.

Social sci-fi- speculation about human society and human nature. In other words, human interaction and exploring its depths.

Biopunk- if cyberpunk focuses on the social, bio focuses on the physical. Cyborgs and mutants are most often in this category.

Climate sci-fi- The ultimate testament to man vs nature. Lots to do with global warming and extreme weather never before seen by man.

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In my eyes, science is how you could explain the unexplained where in Fantasy you don’t really need to. In a fantasy story you can just say the words “because magic” and most people won’t question it. Sci-fi goes into the facts. In all honesty, magic is just unexplained science! People used to think things were witch craft until years later when a logical explanation was found! Wether it’s an alternate universe or an alternate dimensions, science fiction is the genre that makes the impossible suddenly possible!

And that concludes the sci-fi post! I hope this gave you a better image of the genre as a whole. If you like this content and are interested in ing the adventure committee, feel free to check out the wikis below! Also don’t be afraid to the Adventure Chat!

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