Fantasy is the impossible made probable
Science fiction is the improbable made possible
- Rod Serling
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This OT is dedicated to discussion of anything and everything related to the wonderful and endlessly fascinating world of science fiction (and speculative fiction and science fantasy and its ilk). From literature to movies, to video games and comics, to myriad ideas and concepts that excite the imagination, science fiction is as vast as the galaxies its works are often set within.
So welcome, both long-time explorers and cautious newcomers, and delight in the endless thrills of science fiction.
MOVIES
Every decade has its fair share of great sci-fi movies; one can go back nearly a century and find classic films throughout the decades: Metropolis and The Day The Earth Stood Still, 2001 and Planet of the Apes, Alien and Star Wars, The Terminator and Blade Runner, and so on.
But these last 10-15 years have been especially diverse. From the bleak dystopian Children of Men to thrilling survival stories within Gravity and The Martan, the time loops of Edge of Tomorrow, the isolated tales of Ex Machina and Moon, to the Villeneuve doubleheader of Arrival and Blade Runner, we've seen a wealth of compelling cinematic science fiction in recent years.
But these last 10-15 years have been especially diverse. From the bleak dystopian Children of Men to thrilling survival stories within Gravity and The Martan, the time loops of Edge of Tomorrow, the isolated tales of Ex Machina and Moon, to the Villeneuve doubleheader of Arrival and Blade Runner, we've seen a wealth of compelling cinematic science fiction in recent years.
BOOKS
If you're looking to get into science fiction, you'd be remiss to ignore the centuries of literature that is the foundation of the genre and subgenres. You'd have to go back to the 1800s to find defining works like Frankenstein and War of the Worlds, so the prospect of reading science fiction can seem like a daunting task due to the centuries of novels and short stories alike one could dive into.
But not impossible. There are too many individual books to recommend comprehensively, but author and genre is a different story. For hard foundational works (hard in this case meaning revolving around realistic plausible science), Isaac Asimov, Arthur C Clarke, Philip K. Dick, and Robert Heinlein are good places to start. For other classic works, Ray Bradbury, HG Wells, and Frank Herbert are must-reads.
If you're looking for sprawling space operas, Iain M. Banks, Vernor Vinge, and Dan Simmons offer excellent examples.. For philosophical musings and truly alien worlds and beings, look no further than the stories of Stanislaw Lem. Cyberpunk fans should seek out the stories of William Gibson and Richard Morgan. Those seeking gritty thrillers and noir mysteries can read Warren Hammond and Adam Sternbergh. Joe Haldeman, John Scalzi, John Steakley, and Dan Abnett are action-packed military sci-fi. Bleak dystopian tales can be found within the novels of George Orwell and Margaret Atwood.
Other authors to look for are Alastair Reynolds, Liu Cixin, the Strugatsky brothers, Kurt Vonnegut, Michael Crichton, Larry Niven, and Richard Matheson.
But not impossible. There are too many individual books to recommend comprehensively, but author and genre is a different story. For hard foundational works (hard in this case meaning revolving around realistic plausible science), Isaac Asimov, Arthur C Clarke, Philip K. Dick, and Robert Heinlein are good places to start. For other classic works, Ray Bradbury, HG Wells, and Frank Herbert are must-reads.
If you're looking for sprawling space operas, Iain M. Banks, Vernor Vinge, and Dan Simmons offer excellent examples.. For philosophical musings and truly alien worlds and beings, look no further than the stories of Stanislaw Lem. Cyberpunk fans should seek out the stories of William Gibson and Richard Morgan. Those seeking gritty thrillers and noir mysteries can read Warren Hammond and Adam Sternbergh. Joe Haldeman, John Scalzi, John Steakley, and Dan Abnett are action-packed military sci-fi. Bleak dystopian tales can be found within the novels of George Orwell and Margaret Atwood.
Other authors to look for are Alastair Reynolds, Liu Cixin, the Strugatsky brothers, Kurt Vonnegut, Michael Crichton, Larry Niven, and Richard Matheson.
VIDEO GAMES
Video games have a long history of sci-fi works; at the most base levels, the medium is rooted in sci-fi, thanks the alien attack of Space Invaders. Kojima's Snatcher, the sadly now-unavailable Westwood's Blade Runner, the cyberpunk slaughter of Syndicate...science fiction has offered some of gaming's most memorable titles.
You don't have to look long to find excellent sci-fi games, although one could argue that many games don't delve much deeper than using the trappings of sci-fi for much more than cool enemies and weapons and exotic locales. For narratives and places that use their science fiction in more substantial ways, series such as Deus Ex and System Shock explore cyberpunk and cybernetic bio-horror respectively. SOMA's sci-fi horror story uses the possibilities and implications of technology to haunting effect. Mass Effect presents a sprawling space opera saga thick with intriguing lore and worlds. Dead Space evokes the industrial lived-in atmosphere of Alien and the grotesque body horror of The Thing, while Prey drops you in a lovingly-crafted space station and a thought-provoking story.
Among indie titles, Sethian challenges you to learn to read and write in an alien language to learn about a lost extraterrestrial civilization. VA11-HALLA presents a cyberpunk dystopian through the woes and struggles of the patrons at your dive bar. Observer takes the social and technological horrors of a megacorp-run cyberpunk world to its bleak and disturbing logical extremes. Stellaris lets you expand, exploit, explore, and engage in war across a diverse galaxy, with intelligent rules for different species. House of the Dying Sun packs some compelling world-building into the chassis of a dogfighting/fleet RTS hybrid. The Turing Test and The Talos Principle deliver engaging narratives through first-person puzzles.
You don't have to look long to find excellent sci-fi games, although one could argue that many games don't delve much deeper than using the trappings of sci-fi for much more than cool enemies and weapons and exotic locales. For narratives and places that use their science fiction in more substantial ways, series such as Deus Ex and System Shock explore cyberpunk and cybernetic bio-horror respectively. SOMA's sci-fi horror story uses the possibilities and implications of technology to haunting effect. Mass Effect presents a sprawling space opera saga thick with intriguing lore and worlds. Dead Space evokes the industrial lived-in atmosphere of Alien and the grotesque body horror of The Thing, while Prey drops you in a lovingly-crafted space station and a thought-provoking story.
Among indie titles, Sethian challenges you to learn to read and write in an alien language to learn about a lost extraterrestrial civilization. VA11-HALLA presents a cyberpunk dystopian through the woes and struggles of the patrons at your dive bar. Observer takes the social and technological horrors of a megacorp-run cyberpunk world to its bleak and disturbing logical extremes. Stellaris lets you expand, exploit, explore, and engage in war across a diverse galaxy, with intelligent rules for different species. House of the Dying Sun packs some compelling world-building into the chassis of a dogfighting/fleet RTS hybrid. The Turing Test and The Talos Principle deliver engaging narratives through first-person puzzles.
COMICS
I only got into comics in recent years, and after thinking the medium was mostly superheroes, Marvel, and DC, I was shocked to find a massive library of incredible science fiction comics. Much like literature, comics are able to explore amazingly diverse and complex sci-fi ideas and concepts, only limited by the art on the page, unburdened by budget or actors. From the hilarious to the horrifying, sci-fi comics cover an entire spectrum of stories.
Personal recommendations would include: Saga's vibrant tale of family and adventure, the warring factions and resurrecting bodyguards of Lazarus, Prophet's endlessly inventive other worlds and alien cultures, the generation-spanning space opera in The Metabarons, the gory dimension-hopping humor of The Manhattan Projects, Descender's thrilling tale of a humanlike android, the retro throwbacks and exciting alternate realities of Black Science, a world crumbling in fear of the unknown in Trees, and Alex + Ada's compelling human-machine love story.
TELEVISION
On the other hand, Fringe delights in the endless potential of science fiction, of alternate dimensions and time travel and human experimentation and impossible technology. Yet, there's heart and humanity there too, demonstrating that wonders of science fiction can still have very human consequences. Come for cool sci-fi, stay for the compelling characters and fascinating world-building.
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