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Originally Posted by Ledgem
I liked your post - I thought it was rather interesting. As I was reading it I began to wonder something if we're not making a proper comparison, though.
What are we talking about with "otaku culture"?
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Anime, manga, video games,
and light novels. And with video games, it's primarily visual novels and JRPGs.
That's my take, anyway.
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What defines "western nerd culture"?
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Comic books, video games, anything sci-fi, anything fantasy.
To the degree that western nerds embrace board games and card games, it's because it goes back to sci-fi and/or fantasy. Nobody would consider someone a nerd because they play Monopoly or because they play Poker. But if it's Dungeons and Dragons or Magic: The Gathering...
Again, that's just my take.
It's probably fair to say that "western nerd culture" is a bit more diverse than "otaku culture", but I think they're similar enough to allow for reasonable comparisons.
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Originally Posted by Kirarakim
But then you have popular series like Uchuu Kyoudai and especially One Piece that completely go against this theme.
Both these series are about pursuing dreams despite hardships in the past or despite being older and possibly expected to be settled.
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I wouldn't be surprised if Japan's culture changes considerably in the next 10 to 20 years. I do think that anime shows how individualism is increasingly valued in some Japanese subcultures, and particularly the otaku one.
But for now, the older generations are largely in control in Japan due to the low birth rate of the country in recent years combined with the low levels of immigration to Japan. Simply put, the older generations have sheer numbers on their side.