History Main / GenrePopularizer

* ''TabletopGame/{{Pandemic}} Legacy'' popularized the LegacyBoardGame genre four years after ''TabletopGame/{{Risk}} Legacy'' invented it.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Champions}}'' is responsible for creating the point buy system.

* ''Series/{{Vikings}}'' did this for viking fiction, but especially on the screen. Through vikings has appeared irregularly in cinema, the ''Vikings''-series has defined how vikings are realized in modern cinema and more or less established the "viking movie" as a distinct genre with clear tropes and stylistic trappings: heavily tattooed vikings often dressing in Hells Angels-like leather clothing, a desaturated, moody look with green and blue being dominant, psychadelic imagery and magic realism, often in the form of visions. ''Vikings'' and several other films predating the series[note] ''Hammer of the Gods'', ''Vikings - The Berserkers'', ''A Viking Saga: The Darkest Day'', ''Sword of Vengeance'', ''Northmen: A Viking Saga''[/note]] were inspired by the film ''Film/ValhallaRising'' that were the UrExample of using all of these elements. ''Vikings'' built on this and added elements like strange hair-styles, face-paint and using music heavily inspired by "Nordic Ambient". The popularity of ''Vikings'' [[TropeCodifier helped popularize this style]] cementing it's use in the portrayal of the viking age in films like ''Film/TheNorthman'', ''Film/{{Draug}}'', ''[[Film/Macbeth2015 Macbeth]]'' and games like ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedValhalla'', ''VideoGame/GodOfWarRagnarok'' and ''VideoGame/HellbladeSenuasSacrifice''.

* ''Series/{{Vikings}}'' did this for viking fiction, but especially on the screen. Through vikings has appeared irregularly in cinema, the ''Vikings''-series has defined how vikings are realized in modern cinema and more or less established the "viking movie" as a distinct genre with clear tropes and stylistic trappings: heavily tattooed vikings often dressing in Hells Angels-like leather clothing, a desaturated, moody look with green and blue being dominant, psychadelic imagery and magic realism, often in the form of visions. ''Vikings'' and several other films predating the series[note] ''Hammer of the Gods'', ''Vikings - The Berserkers'', ''A Viking Saga: The Darkest Day'', ''Sword of Vengeance'', ''Northmen: A Viking Saga''[/note]] were inspired by the film ''Film/ValhallaRising'' that were the UrExample of using all of these elements. ''Vikings'' built on this and added elements like strange hair-styles, face-paint and using music heavily inspired by "Nordic Ambient". The popularity of ''Vikings'' [[TropeCodifier helped popularize this style]] cementing it's use in the portrayal of the viking age in films like ''Film/TheNorthman'', ''Film/Draug'', ''[[Film/Macbeth2015 Macbeth]]'' and games like ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedValhalla'', ''VideoGame/GodOfWarRagnarok'' and ''VideoGame/HellbladeSenuasSacrifice''.

* The ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' games sparked off the [[GottaCatchEmAll collection]] RPG trend, which can extend beyond Mons and into almost any game where there are [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters tons of party members to collect]]. However, ''VideoGame/DragonQuestV'' (which predated both by several years) had almost no human party members for a good chunk of the game. To round out the player's party, the player would tame monsters that they fought in the wild, convert them to his party, and subsequently use them to fight other monsters. While not officially released outside of Japan until well after the mon trend was established, this was the [[Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei third]] RPG-style video game to feature such a gameplay mechanic, and likely paved the way.

* ''VideoGame/SpaceInvaders'' by Creator/{{Taito}} is the TropeMaker that launched the [[ShootEmUp shmup]] genre, with its vertical view still used in modern shoot 'em ups. In addition to popularizing the shooter and ActionGame genres, ''Space Invaders'' popularized the video game industry as a whole.

* While the JRPG genre has been popular in Japan since ''Dragon Quest'' first began, it was at first very niche amongst western audiences at first. Enter ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'' from Creator/SquareEnix, which became a massive success and catapulted the genre into mainstream popularity outside of Japan. Nowadays, franchises like Creator/BandaiNamco's ''VideoGame/TalesOf'', Creator/{{Atlus}}' ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'', Creator/{{Nintendo}}'s ''Franchise/FireEmblem'', Creator/MonolithSoft and Nintendo's ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles1'', Creator/{{Capcom}}'s ''VideoGame/MonsterHunter'', and even Square Enix's own ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' and ''Franchise/DragonQuest'' have been able to reach levels of popularity that wouldn't have been possible without ''Final Fantasy VII''.

* Any game that has Mons and a collecting mechanic will be considered a ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' ripoff, [[OlderThanTheyThink even if Pokémon wasn't the first game to do so]].

* The ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' games sparked off the [[GottaCatchEmAll collection]] RPG trend, which can extend beyond Mons and into almost any game where there are [[LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters tons of party members to collect]]. However, ''VideoGame/DragonQuestV'' (which predated both by several years) had almost no human party members for a good chunk of the game. To round out the player's party, the player would tame monsters it fought in the wild, convert them to his party, and subsequently use them to fight other monsters. While not officially released outside of Japan until well after the mon trend was established, this was the [[Franchise/ShinMegamiTensei third]] RPG-style video game to feature such a gameplay mechanic, and likely paved the way.

* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' began the "[[StylishAction spectacle fighter]]" genre, with such other entries as ''VideoGame/GodOfWarI'', ''VideoGame/ViewtifulJoe'', ''VideoGame/GodHand'', ''VideoGame/MadWorld'', and ''VideoGame/{{Bayonetta}}''. Some reviewers have even questioned the labelling of ''God of War'' as a spectacle fighter (due to its focus on story and atmosphere, the adventure gameplay and the noted lack of any "score" beyond the amount of orbs), and started calling it part of its own genre, joined by ''VideoGame/DantesInferno'', ''VideoGame/HeavenlySword'', ''VideoGame/{{Darksiders}}'', ''Film/XMenOriginsWolverine'' and ''Franchise/{{Conan|TheBarbarian}}''. Current name for said genre? "[[CatharsisFactor Being God of War]]". This has led to a [[FlameWar degree of hostility between fans of the two archetypal series]]. It's slowly died down, however, with the latest ''[[VideoGame/GodOfWar2018 God of War]]'' game utilizing more ''Souls''-like approach to its gameplay, allowing games like ''VideoGame/Bayonetta2'', ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry5'', and ''VideoGame/AstralChain'' to refine the genre and remind people that more can be done with it [[FollowTheLeader than just copying]] ''God of War'''s formula.

** The ''Franchise/CareBears'' popularized a more [[TastesLikeDiabetes sugary-sweet]] type of toy-driven 'toon than ''He-Man'', ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeARealAmericanHero'', ''Thundercats'' and ''Transformers'', but like ''He-Man'', its popularity has been usurped by ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePony'', especially after its [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic most recent relaunch]] gained a HUGE PeripheryDemographic.

* Two of the very first films to tell a complete story unwittingly created new genres. ''Film/ATripToTheMoon'' (1902) was the first science fiction movie ever made and brought the idea of space exploration to the big screen. ''Film/TheGreatTrainRobbery'' (1903) introduced us to TheWestern.

* ''WesternAnimation/JonnyQuest'' started Creator/HannaBarbera's line of cartoons that feature realistic depictions of the human figure, including the original ''WesternAnimation/SpaceGhost'' and ''WesternAnimation/BirdMan''.

* Tabletop wargames using miniature figures have existed for centuries, especially in the Prussian Army where they were used to train officers in tactics. It wasn't until Creator/HGWells published a book of rules called "Little Wars" (subtitled "[[OverlyLongName A Game for Boys From Twelve Years Of Age to One Hundred and Fifty, and for That More Intelligent Sort of Girl Who Likes Boys' Games and Books]]") in 1913, that the general populace got to play one. Even then, they weren't tremendously popular until Jack Scruby created his line of miniatures, which made the genre burgeon.

* Music/TheBeatles may not have been the first to do pop-rock and [[FolkMusic Folk Rock]], but they certainly jump-started the genre. They could also arguably be considered this for PsychedelicRock, album-based rock, and [[PunkRock Punk]] with songs like "Helter Skelter." Plus, they created the trend for a self-contained band, with the artists playing their own instruments and writing all of their own music.

* While not the first ever Isekai, ''LightNovel/MushokuTensei'' popularized self-published original stories like it in Japan, even in the face of other giants on the site it was published on, Shōsetsuka ni Narō, and the conventions it popularized would be copied endlessly.

* ''WebVideo/Local58'' spawned an entire subgenre of similar horror videos informally known as "analog horror".

* ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory'' was the first [[AllCGICartoon All CGI Film]], and was far more popular than Disney's film released that year, the stunningly [[SoOkayItsAverage mediocre]] ''WesternAnimation/{{Pocahontas}}''.

* ''Anime/SpaceBattleshipYamato'' was not necessarily the first SpaceOpera anime, nor necessarily the first SpaceIsAnOcean anime, but it catapulted the genre & aesthetic into such prominence that every sci-fi anime to feature a large ship as its major setting draws inspiration from it (in the case of Franchise/{{Macross}} and Anime/{{NadiaTheSecretOfBlueWater}}, Cpts Global and Nemo are inspired by Cpt Okita directly)

** 7 years before Gundam was first aired, ''Anime/MazingerZ'' did the same thing for {{Super Robot|Genre}} shows.

* ''Manga/DragonBall'' popularized the FightingSeries and the {{Shonen}} genre as we recognize it, focused on developing as a fighter and the triumph of JapaneseSpirit. Both ''Franchise/OnePiece'' and ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' pay homage to ''Manga/DragonBall'' with their main characters.

* ''Film/TheCraft'' really helped boost the popularity of the UrbanFantasy genre and DarkFantasy aimed at teens; while these genres existed prior to the film, they were pretty niche. The popularity skyrocketed following the success of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' and ''Series/{{Charmed}}'', which first aired in 1997 and 1998, respectively, while ''The Craft'' was released in 1996 (the latter was actually directly inspired by ''The Craft'').

* After UsefulNotes/TheDarkAgeOfAnimation, several television series stand out as being the inspiration for the wave of high-budget high-quality work that would follow in the nineties: Creator/RalphBakshi's ''WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfMightyMouse'' (a low-rated and controversial show that nonetheless inspired a generation of animators) and the one-two punch of ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfTheGummiBears'' and ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales1987'' (which proved that high-budget animation on television could be lucrative).