I like it, within reason. If you yell “falcon punch” every time you punch someone, it’ll get old fast. Same thing if you call out every move because everyone yells, “falcon punch, insert famous kick name here, left uppercut, roundhouse kick, turkey kick, slap!” with a single sentence of explanation in between.
Anyways, I like it with magic, but I think long chanting is dumb so I practically never use it or write it so that it’s only used in hyper specific scenarios.
(Also as someone (forgot who) stated, sometimes stupidly long names can be fun. But only sometimes)
I would say you need a mix between them. However, shouting the abilities can make the battle's fluidity better in the reader's head. Yet, you don't always need to say every single ability.
Of course, this is in a normal setting. If the abilities need a chant or something, then that's that. You can also see that they are saying the ability name in a "spell language," and it's instantaneous.
It boils down to a matter of preference and what's better for the fluidity and visualization of the text.
Seems to be a pretty common troupe. Personally I find it kind of corny. From personal experience I don’t think you’d have enough time to think about something like that while fighting.
See it in a bunch of stories, so curious about what you think.
Its a cultural thing. You don't see many Western stories have people shouting out attacks. While in Eastern stories, they go overboard with it.
You don't see gangsters shouting "Point Blank Glock!", it is much cooler to just pull the trigger. While in Eastern story, especially in North Asia, you have things like "Seven Star Heaven Splitting Force!", which ended up just being a front kick, it adds hype.
It just depends on what you prefer. For me, I like to use both.
In my stories, speech has power, it is a way for characters to hype themselves up. And mixing in with my magic system, it became the comfirmation of power.
But i will add a minor detail.
Its a question of "time period/generation".
Its like "dense protag".
Clearly its unlikeable idea. But clearly at the previous generation of animes/mangas/novels, there were dozen and dozen of them.
Similarly, shouting the name of the ability is kinda a invented idea that script writers/authors thought of, but at that time, they didnt have enough data from audience/spectators/readers to prove if its corny or not.
--------------------------------------------------
Edit : As i wrote this post........ i suddenly remembered multiple things that can help defend the reasoning behind "shouting outloud the name" idea (despite even myself finding it corny too) and proofs that its not AS BAD as "dense protags" idea, and in fact, show it can be a very good idea not corny. And explain why the trope will never discarded by the times.
unlike "beta dense jp protag" discarded by the times
, where for example in the JP LN "I Want To Play Happily In Another World Because I Got A Heavenly Castle" was one among the very last LN using this trope, and causing a very harsh backlash from readers that fking disgusted by the trope after years and now having lot of choice of reading CHAD mcs, like CAUTIOUS HERO protag.
1) Already said it, question of gen, and ideas werent sure was is good idea or bad idea
2) IMPORTANT. Its to explain to the spectators !
AND unlike now, where most/all readers know about fantasy, isekais, mage, dragons, xianxias, and even "systems". Previously, lot of people doesnt know about it or the new background view of the author.
For example, fireball. Shouting "FIREBALL !!!!!!" is corny now. But before it wasnt. BECAUSE unlike now, a simple fireball was cool and new to see. HECK people didnt even know "what is a fireball". There wasnt "PURGATORY FIRESTORM" spells or "DESINTEGRATION LASER BREAM OF DEATH !" kind of very op effect, happening left and right and be common with ton of series.
And To pick a classic one, Harry potter also shout the names. We dont know about "wizards". And seeing magic happen because of saying something is badass ! but also help to explain to tell that "each effect" is due to a "spell specific".
AND if all this spells happened WITHOUT ANY SHOUTING AT ALL, that would be very very very too op like a god among mankind. (Btw i never saw the latest HP movies and i seem to have glimpsed trailers they could launch beam spells without words, which is facepalming maybe)
Classic scene, wingardium leviosa, was 2001 !!!!! in first movie.
Magic was/is preconceived idea its by words, bc if not, its no longer magic but "superpower" of the mind and clearly the wizards could control earth or Voldemort could eradicate muggles in just 1 day.
You could say its a "necessary nerf"
3) IMPORTANT
Which was said by jp and chinese author(s)
with very logical reasonings to keep using the trope of shouting the names of stuff in a series. a) It help visualize and use the spell. Common trope. As the spell basically need mana AND visualization, shouting fireball, help to imagine fire. b) WARN ALLIES
One fantasy series, once said that screaming the spell, is helpful to warn allies about its use. SURE it alert the enemy, but the benefits of warning allies of it > alert enemy, or is already alerted anyway, as it look at you. c) Its badass. Not sure if its question of you or bc your age, but for lot of kids/teens/grown-ups still have the secret craving to shout loud a spell name and it happening. I for one, sure would love to shout "FIRESTORM" while flying and instantkill burn a group of 50 orcs in a flaming tornado. OR replicate "EXPLOSIOOOOOOOOOOONNNNN" of konosuba.
But again, it depend on individual, which is normal but also the topic of age and no longer liking childish things.
But for age, like jp/chinese authors said about "a woman is forever 18/a man is forever a young man in his heart", even if they/we/I turn old, if i turn 90 i wont say to my close ones that i crave this "childish craving idea" but nonetheless still would want to do it if by luck i became a old person isekaied into fantasy world. d) TV shows, lets say super hero ones, like power rangers.
Its to catter kids and its badass for them.
But also to "waste/filler time" for the spectators, like a long transformation scene. Bc sometimes it is a harduous task to filler in the past, without be obvious.
To take a example very bad : BORUTO
I stopped watching animes for years, but by randomless i watched a random episode of it on youtube. Where boruto+himawari help a spirit stuck in a jar or something. Guess what. The jar is thrown in the air = 2s. Reaction of chara seeing the jar in the air = shocked face for 2s. Screaming to someone to catch it = 3s. Running scene to catch it = 3-4s.
But in short, to explain that creating "filler" is not easy sometimes and "shouting skill names" was one method. cough kamehameha coughcough
I don't mind it. Witty/Shitty one-liners are still preferable, tho.
I know most shounen series use it to identify the characters, since almost always nobody uses the same tech/skill/ability. It's as much trying to hype the readers as it is remembering them who is actually fighting.
MC: Mystletainn Kiiiiick!!!
*Chansaw noises intensifies*
Enemies: THATS NOT A FUCKING KICK!! *gurgle as their whole bodies being split open by a chainsaw*
Personally I think it's fun to add them. Adds more flavor in the battle. Imagine if the moves they used is [The Goal of All Life Is Death], or [Arrival of Dragon Snake With Dust Fog And Explosive Soul Wind] or [Shocking Departure of Year Dream Wave and Dang Hun Sound]. The more mouthful the names, the cooler they are. I have yet to see a move with a paragraph length, but I hope to see it one day.
In Jujutsu Kaisen's case, the logic is that if your enemies know how their moves work, the more potent it is. You can see characters explaining their moves towards their enemies, which is a pretty cool trick since you can't easily counter curses.
I've seen abilities with names that are like a full-ass poem. In Bioshifter by Thundamoo (which is on Royal Road), and I think in The Harvester, by idk off the top of my head, on SH.
Personally, I think the long names have to actually be used tactfully to have any real impact, the physical effect of the move either needs to match the hype of the name, or subvert it souch that the simplicity is what's terrifying. Or it not, and being a joke. But it can't be overused, the long names moves should be an 'oh shit' moment for whoever it is up against, something to stop at all costs before it goes off, otherwise it doesn't really hold any weight and it feels just, awkward, clunky.
I'll choose option 3: It depends. For magic I like having incantations. For natural abilities I like just having it be described as a natural reaction during the attack. For instance, I write a lot of dragons. Their breath doesn't require an incantation or "FIRE BREATH!" or anything. Because it's natural to them. However, a mage using it would indeed require an incantation (I usually use latin or bastardized Gaelic in 3-5 word incantations).
along the same lines, a warrior using a flame enchanted strike would only be required to chant the incantation to imbue the fire magic to his sword (though I usually make it a lasting spell, so he can cast it at the start and not need to recite it each attack).
My idea is that magical abilities need to be shouted as a sort of incantation to their spells, but other forms of combat like sword or hand-to-hand don't need them. So Mages or other magic types in my fictional cannon are forced to shout their spells in part to balance them in combat due to how powerful and versatile their attacks can be.
I would assume it's a forum of expression of what they're harnessing in order to perform the ability, but for me, I find it cheesy and not needed. In books, it's cooler (for me at least) to describe what the person is feeling and concentrating on to cast the ability/power. Showing is better than just telling.
My theory is it's a safety thing. You want to minimize friendly fire, so shouting fireball allows everyone else know what you're doing and stay away from the monster.
Also if you only have a limited number of times you can use the spell it helps whoever is in charge keep track of things ( implies healer is either in charge or shouting the heal spell).
Seems to be a pretty common troupe. Personally I find it kind of corny. From personal experience I don’t think you’d have enough time to think about something like that while fighting.
See it in a bunch of stories, so curious about what you think.
And well
there i explained
beside the "edgy" part and the "culture" part
there are valid reasons for it
The tldr version explanation : its like a soldier, screaming "CLEAR" before firing a rocket (because being behind it, can kill someone)
Screaming FIREBALL, can alert your allies of your intentions And 2nd reason : is because it help for the skill/spell itself
As you know, some manga tell "magic is about imagination". WELL, screaming FIIIIIIIIIIREball is useful to think of "fire" for the fireball
because like one rare manga mentioned, unlike us modern people, THEY (aborigen isekai) don't have computers/good realistic drawings. So unless they train by looking at the fireplace for like HOURS, its kinda hard for them to train their brain to picture images in their brains.
When you can do it without incantation then ofc you are a archmage
As for "celestial cutting wave" in xianxia/wuxia, its more about "momentum", to pressure opponent. But nowadays, its more common to 4th wall mock it by MC "Its stupid of everyone to scream the attack loudly" And for superheroes "megaton punch".......well its pure edgyness, which is hasbeen indeed. Like ironman or a superhero flaunting his money/playboy, or heroes saying "hasta la vista baby", "you are fired", etc, now in 2024 wouldnt be as much appreciated.
In short its also a question of "era". 20 years ago, matrix1 , its badass to see NEO dodge bullets. But now, its meh compared to Avengers.
