Discussion So, Transmigration Novels. System or No System?

Discussion in 'Novel Discussion' started by Hoshiandme, Dec 19, 2020.

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DO YOU LIKE SYSTEMS?!

  1. Yes

    10 vote(s)
    28.6%
  2. No

    9 vote(s)
    25.7%
  3. Doesn’t matter to me.

    16 vote(s)
    45.7%
  1. Hoshiandme

    Hoshiandme A Wandering Star Who Watches From Afar

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    Honestly.

    I’m in the no system camp of transmigration. And I’m super happy when there is a system and the system doesn’t talk and it’s just some kind of robot and ai.

    I honestly don’t really like those talkative and chatty systems. I feel like they take away from the story and plot when they stop gabbering. I’m all like please just shut up and watch how the Mac suffers. I don’t need you to narrate and close your metaphorical eyes cause you can’t bear to watch anymore. It’s so annoying.

    like. It takes away a lot of the realism in a story when there’s a chatty childish system. It kind of makes it feel that everything’s a game and like no matter what you do, it’s all fake and isn’t real. That’s what it feels like. It feels like you shouldn’t care about these people or other characters because they don’t matter.

    i honestly love transmigration stories where there isn’t a system. It makes feel real, and it basically makes it an isekai. Because if there’s system, it means there’s some reason behind what ever is happening to you. And when there isn’t a system. It kind of adds this bit of mystery to it and makes you wonder and think more.

    SO TLDR. I HATE SYSTEMS. THEY ARE ANNOYING.
    And sometimes even more stupid then the white lotus that frequent their plots.
     
  2. Cream

    Cream Cream

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    I prefer non-system transmigrations too. Systems can sometimes feel like the author is beating me over the head with this giant plot device. The story only progresses because of the system issuing missions, and the main character is just a marionette following the system's missions. Those novels are entertaining but I just don't feel as invested.
     
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  3. akumetsu_F1

    akumetsu_F1 Well-Known Member

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    I personally like novels where they have systems, especially if they have a personality. When done well, the system can become a character on its own that supports the protagonist and follows them through thick and skin.
    Since the system is sort of a position of "observer", similar to the reader, they can make sassy or comedic remarks to interject on the main characters monologue, I find that entertaining most of the time.
    On the other hand, systems tend to provide a sense of direction for the novel. Something I feel neutral about. It's uninteresting when the writer is lazy about giving MC an actual motive, interesting when the MC is bound to the system and is forced to act against his own interests/morals. It's a toss-up, really.
    Unlike others in this thread, I don't think they overstay their welcome in most cases. Maybe I haven't read that many novels with this trope yet. Although perhaps a story where most of the story happens between the MC and the system sounds interesting to me.

    Ironically, I'm not a fan of having static status screens in transmigration stories, especially when all they have is a bunch of meaningless numbers that tell you "a is slightly stronger than b". Really garbage imo. If you're gonna put that in at least give useful or interesting info such as skills/abilities. If not, don't insert statuses.
     
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  4. c.decora

    c.decora Holy Cardinal, Ascended Mouse

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    I would rather read a transmigration that had a system rather than one where some doctor/assassin/agent/girl-next-door/etc transmigrate then flipping the world over.
     
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  5. Fuyuneko

    Fuyuneko winter cat

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    I think system novels can still be very good if done well, but that's rare. I like this one novel where its revealed that the system is a prisoner too and MC and system work together to defeat mad scientist that created system and kidnapped MC.

    Or, story where MC fights against system and system is making life harder for MC instead of being a pure cheat like first half of Banished to Another World. The combination of MC that is the opposite of Holy Mother and a system that's forcing him to do good acts is so funny. I think this is the first time I read about an MC that's tries to outsmart the system.
     
    Last edited: Dec 19, 2020
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  6. Hoshiandme

    Hoshiandme A Wandering Star Who Watches From Afar

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    yes. My thoughts exactly.!

    You’re right though In saying that if the system is done well then it’s really good. But don’t you sometimes feel that the sarcastic remarks and comedic replies sometimes takes you away from the situation, and kind of ruins the mood of everything? I remember reading this one story where when MC and ML started getting XX the MC was all like “shoo, kids shouldn’t see this, so go take my money and use it.” And the system was all like “I’ll go shopping with my friends.” Like what. A system has friends? Lol
    hmmm guess that’s true. A system limits the MC to an extent.

    you’re right. IT IS RARE. I honestly don’t mind systems, but if they are all just whiny little kids. Then it’s really annoying. And is this novel you read on here?! Can I see ?! Lol sounds interesting
     
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  7. xfaustus

    xfaustus New Member

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    I have a feeling that it's mostly because the translations didn't do them justice. I read Chinese novels, and mostly the Systems have a really cutesy, dramatic, and just overall really funny way of speaking, but it's really hard to translate that into english.

    Yeah they're not supposed to sound whiny - authors actually use them as comic relief, as a way to add a refreshing break in instances where FL or ML are too serious.

    It's so damn hard to translate, and translators do their best, but yeah it's unfortunate.
     
  8. Darius Drake

    Darius Drake A poster of verbose posts

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    Honestly, my issues with Systems don't have anything to do with transmigration or personality, it's more to do with the fact that I have only seen a single story where the System isn't either A) Universal, and/or, B) The MC's OP Cheat. I know I avoid more than a few stories because I don't want to see a System at it's worst as a broken cheat, and the times when it's Universal but only a OP Cheat for the MC is just annoying, particularly when there isn't a good explanation for why nobody, or practically nobody, else abuses it.

    The one story where this isn't the case? He Who Fights With Monsters, where everyone has 6 racial abilities (Humans get 4 that are empty slots that get filled when they gain Magical Abilities), and 4 of the MC's 6 make up the MC's System, while to actually gain magical abilities and grow in power the MC has to follow the same rules as everyone else.

    There are some other outliers, but most of them have some explanation for their System that I feel disqualifies it from the capital S, such as being related to a video game and not bringing the game's system into reality. Even in the cases where the game's powers are brought into reality, I feel like the capital S from System should be disqualified because the System isn't directly related to everything they're doing like it is in System Novels. But this paragraph is off topic, as this doesn't happen in Transmigration novels. Or, rather, in Transmigration Novels, it's less that the System is brought into reality, and more the MC's Transmigrated into a place where the System is both Universal, and the MC's OP Cheat (or, at least, part of it), with minimal reasoning for the Transmigration, System, or why nobody else ever works out any ways to exploit a System that, supposedly, literally affects every part of their lives.

    I don't remember reading many translated novels where the System is an individual character, with a few, minor, exceptions. But I can see where translating that would be incredibly difficult, particularly when translating from Asian Languages where there's and obvious strict difference between formal language and informal language, and may have clear, formally recognised, indicators in their language for words and word methodology that differs depending on whether it's used by children & adults.
     
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  9. Clinton55_Agyei

    Clinton55_Agyei Member

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    I think Soul Of Negary is the only novel that made me see the dangers of the system. And it also makes you wonder if the same can happen to you. It's a very great novel try it. Personally I enjoyed it than reverend insanity. He's evilness is so extreme it make people wonder how it can feel so holy and he is also a mastermind manipulating everyone only intervenes when necessary and there's no romance, harem,drama or courting Death. Only mc killing and planning indiscriminately to become the god of error and misfortune. I recommend:blobokhand:
     
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  10. Megatron

    Megatron Decepticon

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    I don't mind system novels if they're done correctly, but the LN scene is so saturated with system novels that it's getting boring now. True about the chatty systems, throws the immersion right out the window. I think they just add in system dialogue for word count tbh. My favorites are gene change novels, love em but there are far too few good ones. :/
     
  11. Azuru

    Azuru Active Member

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    I feel like my opinion on this differs depending on the system itself and the overall scenario of the story- sometimes it's better if the system is just like something out of a video game, where it doesn't speak or pester it's host, but that really only works for me when the character dialogue/monologue is interesting on it's own. If the MC is going around being hypocritical or doing things far removed from the common sense of the world/scenario, then it can also be funny to have a sentient system to go and tsukommi or be extra pitiful. Sometimes, in the extra-bad ones, I read them just to watch the system regret every life choice it's ever made.
    It also ticks me off when the system is sentient or has dialogue, but it's super clear it was just there for the wordcount, because it has literally no meaning.
     
  12. Isaac20

    Isaac20 Dark Lord | RS

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    I like both as long as they don’t use a lot of tech apps.
     
  13. Hamski

    Hamski Well-Known Member

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    I'm a fan of systems that provide passive benefits to the user. For example, in God of Cooking, the system allows the user to identify mistakes in his cooking and identify the skills of the chef's around him, but this does not tell him directly what he needs to do to improve his recipe nor does it improve his cooking skills. These things must come through his own efforts. I think this is a healthy way to have a system in a transmigration story because the system user's accomplishments feel much more meaningful.

    Active systems are not so bad either in my opinion, but there is a point where they become unreadable for me. Stories that have a main character who is over-reliant on the system suck the enjoyment out of the story in my opinion. In this case, you may as well make the system the main character. A prime example of this is Warlock of the Magus World, where the A.I. chip (which is basically a system) does basically everything for the main character. I believe World Domination System had a similar issue, but it was a bit more subtle than WOTMW. Then again, I did enjoy Monster Paradise which arguably has a main character who achieves nothing without the help of his system(Goldfinger), so perhaps it is less the overreliance on the system and instead that the system does not have enough limitations.

    Overall, in my opinion, systems can enhance the story as long as I feel like the protagonist is not being handed power for free, but if it reaches the point where there is not even the illusion of effort, I would rather have no system.
     
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  14. Swift Gull

    Swift Gull Well-Known Member

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    Yes even Profane Prince of Domination and Peerless Genius System and Age of Gluttony
     
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  15. Aurorarainbow

    Aurorarainbow Active Member

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    No difference for me as long as the author has good plots and stuff
     
  16. Steelbuck

    Steelbuck Active Member

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    I don't like sentient systems that are like a pocket Yoda. I like Princess Medical Doctor because she has a medical system that isn't replenishable, but forces her to help patients.
    Also Shen Hu Di Nu, where she has medicine and a storage space that restocks after a while.
    But in both of these, the system is there, but is often forgotten since it's not a character.
     
  17. katofu

    katofu Well-Known Member

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    Same I’m no system tbh...I used avoid novels with the syatem tag like the plague but I do dabble in some now. It just breaks the flow and idk it’s hard to immerse yourself in the story imo. It also feels especially unrealistic when the system is literally like a huge information pocket which makes the mc OP asap. The only system I genuinely liked was from SVSS
     
  18. Resplendor

    Resplendor High Lord of Souls

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    I prefer no system.
    At best, it's a McGuffin, just there to drive the plot. Something that would better driven by character growth and internal/external conflicts rather than a thinly concealed deus ex machina.
    At worse, it's an annoying side character with no purpose who's often forgotten when convenient.
    It can be interesting when the system is actually the antagonist, but I've yet to read one of those done to my satisfaction.

    Pure transmigration has much more potential in my opinion.
     
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