Arifureta or Grimgar?
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I want to start a new series in which I can really invest my time. I need a little help in determining between Arifureta and Grimgar. After reading synopsis of both I have realized that they are both Isekai stories but that's all I got.
If you guys can share what you liked/disliked about these series (without any hard spoilers) I will really appreciate it.
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Hmmm, I just started reading Grimgar LN this week (watched anime prior to it) and put it on hold after 100 pages in favour of reading volume 4 of Kumo and Youjo Senki first :)
But I really loved Arifureta and can't recommend it enough. Arifureta is just really wholesome story, with humour, tragedy, love and interesting MC. Unlike other isekai stories, I did not encounter a single arc or volume that I disliked.
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I've only read the first volume of Arifureta, so I'll leave it to those that have read more of the series to talk about it. So I'll give my vote to Grimgar. Despite being an isekai (though the "isekai" aspect hasn't been focused on much), the main characters are not OP: they have to grind and grind and grind to gain skills and experience. Everything they accomplish was through blood, sweat, and tears; it makes those victories all the sweeter.
The main characters' lives are not easy and as a reader, you're always worrying about whether they will survive, and that's all I'll say about that. I mean, "grim" is in the title, so you can't go in expecting it to be all sunshine and rainbows. If you'd rather have your isekai more light-hearted, then I wouldn't recommend it, but if you want an isekai where everything is not served on a silver platter to the MC, then this series is great.
The one annoyance that you have to deal with is the character Ranta: he can be quite obnoxious.
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Arifureta is a lot more "anime-like" and closer to what you might generally expect from a light novel (i.e. anime in prose form). If you wanted to read something like that, like say Bleach or Seven Deadly Sins, then Arifureta would be right up your alley.
Grimgar is so far removed from that it'd give you whiplash. While there are some RPG game-like systems, it otherwise is very much a grounded story, as much about character development and interpersonal relationships as much as action or worldbuilding. It's a lot closer to something you'd read in Western fiction than a light novel, really.
I'd say both are worth investing in, it just depends whether you want something fun and over-the-top (Arifureta) or deep and at times even stressful (Grimgar).
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Both isekai, but very different.
Arifureta, I would say, is more your typical isekai. OP protagonist, girls swooning left and right, over the top villains, unjustly persecuted, and various cliches.
Grimgar is more about average people surviving, overcoming, and growing in a dangerous and unforgiving world. The isekai thing is also put pretty far in the background.
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I'm probably not gonna be objectif at all, given that Grimgar is by far my favorite LN ^^
Personaly i find Arifureta to be a little generic (but i only read 1 vol so it may be better later on). Also if you go in for the revenge part (like i did), you will be desapointed it's only use as a way to start the serie.
On Grimgar, what I love about the serie is first it's "realism". Obviously if you really look at what happend it's not really realistic: the setting is unrealistic and the physic may be a little off at time (way less than in most series tho). But the way the characters act, the world is build and the fact that the characters have little to no plot armor, give the serie an impression of realism.
Second the characters are good, some people hate Ranta, personaly i like him, but like all the characters in the serie he has some devlopement which make even him relatable.
That not limited to the party, most characters have interesting personality, and the monster and enemis unlike in most fantasy (especialy isekai) aren't bloodlust things that attack people because they're bad, they have reasons to do what they do, and the protagoniste aren't allway on the moraly good side.Third the world building, it may not be that visible at the begining of the serie where aside from the monster traitement it's a fairly generic fantasy world, but once you get to Vol4 the serie begin to show its world and it's great (i can't really say more without spoiling a lot). To keep with the world building a part where the serie is really good is how it manage to keep its world mysterious and imposing. For exemple Dragons, in many serie they end up being just big lezar with fire breath, but here when the party encounter one, you can feel why the people near its nest worship it like a god.
Lastly may be the most important point, everything feel earned,when the party achieve something it's through failure and effort, they rarely succed because of luck and you never know if they will succed or even if everybody is gonna survive.
Also the little romance we have, is so far quite good.
If it wasn't allready obvious ^^, i think you should go with Grimgar.
Ps: never go on the wiki, it's the best way to get spoil, even if you only go on the home page. At least that the case for Grimgar, but it's probably the same for Arifureta.
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@raitoiro said in Arifureta or Grimgar?:
Also if you go in for the revenge part (like i did), you will be desapointed it's only use as a way to start the serie.
Might want to read more books before claiming this :< though I will definitely agree in that I like Grimgar better.
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@myskaros Really, it became a thing again later on? i might try it again if that the case.
I said that cause before stoping to read I ask a friend who read up to vol 5, and according to him the MC
but it was the WN version so may be it change in the LN
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@raitoiro I think it really depends on what you are looking for. From what you've said, I think it plays out different from what you would probably expect, but it's not like revenge "isn't a thing" at all.
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@smiley_101 said in Arifureta or Grimgar?:
if what you like about Isekai is the 'fish out of water' , how a modern person deals with a different world. Grimgar doesn't have much of this (at least not as a plot point, the characters don't remember their previous lives for the most part)
I agree with comments above- Arifureta is much more a typical Isekai LN, feels like an anime. Grimgar (at least in the first few novels) feels like a D&D novelization, and that isn't a bad thing - but it is difficult to put these 2 series in the same category.
How not to Summon a Demon Lord, much more of the 'typical' Isekai than Grimgar is
I say, read them all
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@myskaros Yeah, it's not nothing, but iit's still a rather little part in the story. It's true, that it may be misplace expectations, but when i ear of revenge isekai i think of something more like Nidome no yuusha.
From what i've see it seem like that not what people who read Arifureta are looking for anyway, but still if you're going in expecting revenge you may end up desapointed.
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It's worth noting that those are volume descriptions, not series descriptions.
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@myskaros Yeah, true but it's quite common to see it advertise as such on forum or list.
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They're both very different, aside from being isekai like you said. I very much dislike serious realistic things as I read as a way to escape from such things so grimgar was a no for me. Also Ranta was an extremely annoying and prevalent character. Arifureta on the other hand is generic yes. That's what I like about it. It doesn't pretend to be anything else. It's a straight-up classic isekai ln.
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IMO Grimgar only gets better as the story goes on, while Arifuerta goes down in quality and will never be as good as it was like volume one. I still like both but I’d choose Grimgar every time if I had to pick.
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Thanks for all the replies. Really appreciate it. I will go with Grimgar (11 volumes yay).
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@smiley_101 You can go with 12vol, all the part for the last one are allready translated, and it will be out the 16 of this month.
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Grimgar can get super-irritating with all of Haru's internal "but I'm so incompetent" monologues, but the story itself is pretty interesting. If you can get past the irritating bits that pop up in almost every volume, it's solid.
Arifureta is just good fun, although it has a lot of fan service-y stuff, so if that isn't for you, probably steer clear.
Arifureta is mostly just fun with an OP protagonist, whereas Grimgar is basically a super-wuss somehow leading his band of misfit friends safely (most of the time) through crazy dangerous situations.
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Arifureta has Myuu, therefore I vote Arifureta. :)
