Inside LitRPG, the fast-growing genre that reads like a video game

Imagine reading a fantasy novel where the hero doesn’t just get stronger through a vague training montage, but literally levels up. Their strength increases from a 14 to a 15, they unlock a "Fireball" skill, and a semi-transparent blue menu pops up in their field of vision to announce that they have unallocated stat points.

Welcome to LitRPG (Literary Role-Playing Games), a fiercely loyal and explosive corner of modern publishing that marries the narrative depth of a novel with the dopamine-fueled progression of a video game. It is a world where characters don't just fight monsters; they earn Experience Points (XP), manage health bars, loot legendary gear, and optimise their builds.

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Once considered a niche crossover between fantasy and gaming culture, LitRPG has rapidly entered the mainstream. Bestselling series are topping audiobook charts, landing television adaptations and attracting millions of readers who want fiction that feels as rewarding as completing a questline.

The anatomy of a level-up

What separates LitRPG from traditional, ponderous fantasy is its transparency. In a standard fantasy novel, readers are expected to trust that the protagonist is gradually mastering swordsmanship or magic. In LitRPG, the author shows the receipts. Character sheets, damage calculations, skill trees and system notifications are often embedded directly into the text.

Using video-game vernacular provides a powerful narrative shorthand. By simply stating that a character has levelled up, an author can communicate an enormous amount of growth that traditional fantasy might take chapters to establish.

Minor figures are instantly understood when labelled as NPCs (non-playable characters), while quests, rewards and skill upgrades help readers instantly understand a story's stakes.

The genre's growing popularity is perhaps best illustrated by Dungeon Crawler Carl, Matt Dinniman's darkly comic survival fantasy series. The books follow Carl and Princess Donut, his ex-girlfriend's cat, as they battle through a deadly, televised dungeon after Earth is destroyed by alien forces.

What began as a self-published success story has become one of the genre's biggest breakout hits. The series has sold more than 2.7 million copies in print, spent months on bestseller lists and is currently being adapted for television, introducing LitRPG to audiences far beyond dedicated gaming communities.

The dopamine loop

To the uninitiated, reading a book filled with stat progression might sound tedious. To its millions of readers, it is incredibly addictive.

At its core, the genre taps into the psychology of progression. Humans naturally enjoy seeing measurable improvement, whether that's levelling up in a game, hitting a fitness milestone or crossing tasks off a checklist. LitRPG transforms that satisfaction into a storytelling device. Every quest completed, skill unlocked, or stat increased offers readers a tangible sense of achievement.

The genre also occupies a unique space within modern fantasy publishing. Industry observers often describe it as a middle ground between sprawling fantasy epics and romance-driven fantasy.

Rather than focusing on intricate political systems or elaborate worldbuilding, LitRPG prioritises momentum. Chapters are short, action-packed and frequently end with cliffhangers, creating a reading experience designed for binge consumption.

Why audiobooks love LitRPG

One of the genre's most significant growth engines has been audio.

Many LitRPG novels follow a single protagonist and are written in the first person, making them easy to follow during commutes, workouts or long drives. Combined with dramatic voice performances and game-style notifications, the stories often feel closer to immersive audio dramas than conventional novels.

This has translated into remarkable commercial success. Audiobook charts are frequently dominated by LitRPG titles, with fans often discussing narrators and voice actors as passionately as they discuss authors. For many readers, the genre's audio-first accessibility has become one of its defining strengths.

A global mash-up

Though exploding in Western publishing, the foundations of LitRPG are deeply rooted in Asian media.

The genre draws heavily from Chinese Xuanhuan novels, which focus on cultivation, self-improvement and progression through increasingly powerful realms. It also borrows from Japanese isekai stories, where characters are transported into alternate worlds governed by game-like systems, and from Korean webtoons that popularised gamified progression mechanics for digital audiences.

Western writers have forged these influences into a magnificent, unholy mish-mash.

Crucially, LitRPG is less a rigid genre and more an adaptable storytelling framework. A story can easily feature a post-apocalyptic alien survival dungeon, or it can follow a steampunk cowboy and an orc who happens to enjoy cooking.

The internet-native publishing model

Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of LitRPG is how it has transformed publishing itself.

Many authors begin by serialising their stories online, releasing chapters daily or weekly and building loyal audiences before ever signing a book deal. Readers comment on plot developments, offer feedback and often influence future chapters in real time.

This direct relationship between creators and audiences has helped produce a new generation of digital-first authors. Some earn substantial incomes through subscription platforms where fans pay for early access to chapters. One prominent LitRPG author, writing under the pen name Zogarth, reportedly earns tens of thousands of dollars each month through reader subscriptions alone.

By the time traditional publishers become interested, many writers already possess established fanbases and proven sales records. This gives them significantly more negotiating power than debut authors have historically enjoyed. Some can retain digital rights while licensing print, audiobook or adaptation rights separately, creating business models that would have been difficult to imagine in traditional publishing only a decade ago.

The verdict

LitRPG may not be vying for prestigious literary awards anytime soon, but it doesn't want to.

Much like the pulp fiction boom of the early twentieth century, the genre prioritises accessibility and entertainment above all else. Its goal is not to become the next great literary masterpiece but to keep readers turning pages—or listening for just one more chapter.

More than a passing trend, LitRPG represents a shift in how a generation raised on gaming and digital culture consumes fiction. It may not win over every literary purist, but as long as readers continue to find joy in watching their favourite characters level up, this fast-growing genre is here to stay.