Quote Originally Posted by Ouch! View Post
Kes is spot on about the term steampunk originally being used as a type of divergent reality based on a different path of advancement from Victorian era steam technology. However, the term, as far as I understand it, has become an acceptable way to describe any world reliant on a technological system which is an equivalent alternative to our own.
I don't think it has become acceptable to apply steampunk to any alternative tech system, actually. Unless it's clearly designed to look like such, Maco (spelling?) based tech is not going to be equivalent to steam based or clockwork (which tends to also fall under steampunk, I understand). In this case, the technological aspect of this game can be considered SF but since it's not "hard" SF (ie. those books that put more thought into the plausibility and timeline of the technology than the actual plot), and in fact has a strong magical element, the subgenre would probably best defined as Science Fantasy.

Also, cyberpunk seems to be another good term for FFVII as that is "Classic cyberpunk characters were marginalized, alienated loners who lived on the edge of society in generally dystopic futures where daily life was impacted by rapid technological change, an ubiquitous datasphere of computerized information, and invasive modification of the human body" (once again, found on Wikipedia, though this is actually sourced). Clearly, this is FFVII, yes?

I've been seeing a lot more people becoming aware of steampunk than cyberpunk and then using the term for both. Prescriptive vs. descriptive grammar blah blah blah, it's still wrong.


Though either way, this throws FFVII outside the "classic" fantasy idea which uses little to no technology. It still is fantasy, though.


Would everyone agree that embodying the idea of fantasy would require both magic and mystic creatures (prefferably dragons)? And then at least some of the following: a medieval-esque setting, other races, a legend/prophesy of somesort, a vs. A Bad Guy / Overloard (instead of "society", government, or a corporation), and limited technology?

I know that that's a pretty much purely Western view of fantasy, but I'm ignorant of any others.

((Still no spell check))