on Google Preferred Source Google News Link copied to clipboard By Sam Nelson Published Sep 16, 2026, 1:02 AM EDT Polygon Lists Level up with stories of innkeepers, dark lords, and aliens
Sign in to your Polygon.com account Add Us Add on Google Preferred Source Google News Summary Generate a summary of this story Like Like follow Follow followed Followed Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap LitRPG, which stands for literary role-playing game, is one of the newest genres in literature. (The term only emerged in 2013, when it was coined by a publishing house in Russia that was releasing a series inspired by MMORPGs.) The first stories about people trying to advance in game-like worlds by gaining new abilities and facing increasingly dangerous threats were self-published, but they have increasingly received formal book deals based on their proven success. While Sword Art Online and Solo Leveling used the concept for web novels that became extremely popular anime, Matt Dinniman’s Dungeon Crawler Carl is the first English-language LitRPG to become a real crossover hit.
Eight books in the Dungeon Crawler Carl series have now been published by Ace Books, with two more in the works. The story of a Coast Guard veteran and a prize show cat trying to navigate a dungeon as their exploits are filmed for an alien reality TV show is also getting a Peacock series produced by Seth MacFarlane and a tabletop role-playing game . The Dungeon Crawler Carl books are breezy reads, so if you’ve already made it through the series and are looking for more of the same while you wait for the next installment, here are five other LitRPG books you should pick up.
Travis Deverell is often compared to Dinniman for the success of his He Who Fights with Monsters series, which was initially self-published under the pen name Shirtaloon. Deverell’s first book, Outlander , became a New York Times bestseller when it was republished by Aethon Books in July. It follows Jason, a middle manager at an office supply store who wakes up in another world and discovers he has magic powers that seem pretty evil. He needs to quickly figure out how to use his scary abilities for good to face monsters, cultists, and cannibals as an adventurer. Deverell has already written 13 books in the He Who Fights with Monsters series. His second, Adventurer , was published on Sept. 8. The third book, Hero , comes out on Oct. 13, so if you get hooked you won’t have to wait long to continue reading.
A long time ago, Davi was a normal woman, but then she woke up naked in a fantasy realm and was told she was prophesied to save humanity from the threat of the Dark Lord. Davi tried to rally the kingdom's forces, learning magic and combat skills to save them from invaders, but she lost over and over again – each time respawning to start her quest anew. So this time around she’s decided to try playing for the other side and become the Dark Lord herself. That involves figuring out the quickest way to level up her abilities, build an army of orcs, and kill the competition while avoiding mistakes that will force her to go all the way back to the beginning again. Davi is a hilariously unhinged protagonist, offering plenty of commentary filled with nerdy references that baffle her new allies and enemies. Wexler doesn’t focus much on actually gamifying the setting with levels, systems, and…