The most creative universe

[Casual Shinji]

Nothing is truly original, how can it?

All that matters is that the creator gives whatever world he creates its own identity.

And in that respect I'll mention Berserk. Not original since it's set in the Dark Ages with knights and demons and shit. But the world feels alive and breathing, with amazing depictions of the supernatural. And one of the few stories that gives an insightful description of how magic works without reducing the sense of mystery and awe.

 

[Esotera]

I'm going to say Children of Men, not because it's a very imaginative scenario (no-one can have any babies anymore), but because the implications of that are so well ingrained into the universe. There's the typical in your face products such as empty & abandoned schools, but there's also a backlash against immigration & the rise of a police state and government-subsidised suicide pills. Basically everything in the world looks completely like it has a reason for being there.

 

[Starik20X6]

Adding another vote to the Ooo pile.

Also going to shout out for The Mushroom Kingdom. Mushrooms that make you a giant, fire-breathing turtle monsters, sentient bullets and leaves that give you a racoon tail which allows you to fly? There's nowhere that comes close to that place of utter madness and joy.

And Hyrule. Throughout its various incarnations, its managed to take the classic Tolkienesque 'swords and sorcery' archetype and mould it into something that is uniquely its own.

And while I'm fan-gushing about Nintendo, I'll also mention Pokémon.

LittleBigPlanet definitely belongs on this list, as it is both figuratively and literally one of the most creative worlds I've ever encountered.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Excluding Adventure Time and Xenoblade, I'm going with One Piece.

The world itself is one great big sea and millions of islands (well Alabasta could be a continment but I'm not too sure). While it is divided by N,E,S,E sections and one narrow current with a line of rock that intercept it but with that fill of island, it make one heck of an adventure escpecially when some islands had a unquie feature or climate.

 

[iwinatlife]

The Seven Satrapies of the Lightbringer series win in my book for having one of the most intresting magic systems i have ever read seen or heard of

 

[Innegativeion]

*snip*

I've always found it hilarious that what is essentially the Bionis's ass is a swamp.

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Freelancer's universe always engaged me in ways no other has.

[sub][sub][sub]Freelancer Fanboy Post quota filled for the next three months...[/sub][/sub][/sub]

 

[davidmc1158_v1legacy]

For paper/dice RPGs, I'm going to have to go with Palladium Book's game Rifts. Sure, the post-apocalypse setting has been done to death, but Siembieda and crew developed a truly interesting world with wonderful ideas that run from vampire nations to cybernetic Russion warlords.

For books, I have to go back to some of the classics. Tolkien (just because he's the pattern everyone copies) and H.P. Lovecraft stand out for me.

On a more modern note, Steven Brust and his Vlad Taltos series is pretty damn unique (at least I've never run into anything similar). A human assassin in a nation of bigoted elves. The characters have some real depth to them and no one is ever quite what they seem to be, even to themselves.

Eric Flint's alternate reality/history Ring of Fire books, beginning with 1632 are also very creative. The directions he and the other writers are willing to go keeps me coming back for more.

Actually, it's threads like this one that I find to be a great resource for finding out about all of the other games and books I otherwise might not have seen.

Thank you fellow escapists. Thank you very much.

Severely late Edit: How could I have forgotten to include the Babylon 5 TV series?!?
Well, now I have.

 

[DoPo]

Jim Butcher's series, the Dresden Files.

Old style gumshoe walking the streets of Chicago- pretty standard stuff, except for the whole "throw in the entire fantasy and myth kitchen sink, stir with incredible humour and pacing, season with pure sealed awesome in a can."

Look, I love TDF but I won't call it creative. Every single element, including the whole urban fantasy (yeah, the genre has a name, too) has been done before. It's incredibly engaging and very good but not really "creative".

Freelancer's universe always engaged me in ways no other has.

YOU! I hate you for saying this. Do you know how this make me feel? I fucking want to play Freelancer now! But I can't. And you're one of the many people who recently reminded me of it (so...like, the fourth for the past month or so). It's getting harder to resist each time.

 

[Commissar Sae]

Discworld. Because nothing is quite as creative as a world that is flat and flies through space on the back of four giant elephants standing on the back of a giant flying space turtle.

 

[jollybarracuda]

Probably Zeno Clash's world. it may not be the most polished game, or the most fleshed out world, but damn, it'l like a surrealist painting come to life, and it's fascinating.

 

[Vhite]

A common complaint about today's media is that it copies too much from other places, so it begs the question "what is the most creative universe?"

So, what is the most creative universe that you have seen in gaming/movies/tv/books/any other medium out there?

Spoiler: my choice

Oban star racers

(Having just finished watching the last episode just before creating this thread, I can assure you that my opinion is completely unbiased )

The concept of the series may have been done several times before (a racing tournament is held to determine the outcome of _____) but the way its presented is where the creativity comes from. That and the characters. oh god, the characters. If you love good characters, watch this series. The art style is a very interesting blend of 2d and 3d animation that works wonders for the fast-paced action of the races and... oh damn, I shouldn't start reviewing this here.

Well, I can assure you that its worth a watch anyways and is pretty damn creative in my honest opinion.

I second your opinion OP. Oban was amazing.

 

[BloatedGuppy]

Middle Earth. Birthed an entire genre, and almost direct copies of his work still comprise about 80% of that genre. The amount of influence that man's writing had on literature is just staggering.

For something more modern, I always appreciated how much effort Gaiman put into his Sandman universe, although he borrowed heavily from other mythologies to create it.

 

[XMark]

The universe of Song of Ice and Fire.

I love how, despite the world being one full of magic and mythical creatures, the story primarily focuses on regular human beings and their conflicts with each other, and how realistically detailed the history is behind the various warring houses and kingdoms, with the fantastical elements only being more of a background detail, and hints of supernatural elements making a comeback.

Note: I've only read the first book so far, does it go all dragony and wizardy later on?

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Freelancer's universe always engaged me in ways no other has.

YOU! I hate you for saying this. Do you know how this make me feel? I fucking want to play Freelancer now! But I can't. And you're one of the many people who recently reminded me of it (so...like, the fourth for the past month or so). It's getting harder to resist each time.

Would you explain why you can't play Freelancer? And I have no idea why on God's green Earth you would try to resist Freelancer... <.<

 

[Canis Fidelis]

Originally i was going to suggest the 40k Universe, but then i remembered 90% of that is recycling existing ideas but IN SPACE.

So, considering that I think I'll instead go with Team Fortress 2, 9 psychopaths with interesting personality disorders fighting for two immortal brothers, over pits of gravel. Oh and the Australia of that universe is just fantastic.

 

[DoPo]

Freelancer's universe always engaged me in ways no other has.

YOU! I hate you for saying this. Do you know how this make me feel? I fucking want to play Freelancer now! But I can't. And you're one of the many people who recently reminded me of it (so...like, the fourth for the past month or so). It's getting harder to resist each time.

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7yen5CuIW1rps7cio1_1280.jpg

Would you explain why you can't play Freelancer? And I have no idea why on God's green Earth you would try to resist Freelancer... <.<

Because I would devote too much time to it. And I can't spare it - I have university things to do. Also exams, as well. Resisting playing Freelancer at all is better than resisting playing it for "only 1 hour" or whatever.

 

[Wadders]

Firefly.

I think overall, it is very original. The universe includes its people, places and history. I think Firefly manages to be pretty original with all of that and it only takes it less than 15 episodes to prove it. It's a shame the show was abandoned.

And yeah, Adventure time. And most Final Fantasy games.

But isn't it basically just Cowboys in space speaking Chinese?

Actually, the combination of those things is pretty original... Fair enough

The universe of Song of Ice and Fire.

I love how, despite the world being one full of magic and mythical creatures, the story primarily focuses on regular human beings and their conflicts with each other, and how realistically detailed the history is behind the various warring houses and kingdoms, with the fantastical elements only being more of a background detail, and hints of supernatural elements making a comeback.

Note: I've only read the first book so far, does it go all dragony and wizardy later on?

Yeah, as the dragons grow, the magical weirdness increases. Although I'm only on the end of Storm of Swords so there's plenty of rook for it to increase further

 

[General Twinkletoes]

I'm definitely repeating what someone else said, Walter Moer's universe "Zamonia" is phenomenal. Rumo is one of my favourite books, with The 13½ Lives of Captain Bluebear close behind. They remind me of Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy, but in a fantasy setting.

They are childrens books, but the kind that work very well no matter how old you are, like Adventure Time.