Harry: Um, Hagrid, what's that?
Hagrid: That's proof that yer a wizard, 'Arry. The Narrator. Ya see, life is like a game, no, no, life is a game, ya that's right and the wizards are the players. Now, don't go moving no points around til yeh know what yer doing, 'Arry.
Harry Potter and the Munchkins
note is a Life Is A Game fanfic written by Schwepcn. In this Alternate Universe, all wizards are players so discussions of maximizing feats and stats are everywhere, as Hagrid explains to Harry Potter when the boy gains an invisible Exposition Fairy on his eleventh birthday. He quickly puts it on mute.
Harry's Chosen One status manifests as him being the only empowered protagonist alive, meaning he has Mental Time Travel abilities. He can load anytime, anywhere, but owls are his justified save points. Keeping his reloading abilities secret he takes Save Scumming to epic levels with entire years of alternate timelines spent at Brazil and New Zealand wizarding schools. Due to the nature of his power, his is a solo adventure, although Luna is apparently living through all branching paths at once.
The last chapter explains why it was discontinued in 2014 and briefly talks about an uncertain future controlled by The Unfettered Man Behind the Man in What Could Have Been. Due to the lack of real consequences for Harry in the absence of The Chosen Many, or entities otherwise able to care about the real him as an equal, his increasing recklessness was leading towards Sakura Syndrome of uncertain strength and duration, which the author justifiably chose not to dive into.
This fanfic provides examples of:
- All There in the Manual: The school books are comprehensive enough that Dudley's Dungeon Master is able to turn them into a working RPG.
- Adaptational Heroism: Young Dudley and his crew are genuinely helpful.
- Adaptational Badass: Quirrel juggles fireballs and demonstrates how a self-Imperio is Awesome, but Impractical for countering boggarts, so the students will know what the Boring, but Practical stuff is leading to. Sprout passes out axes and maces as Herbology means care and maintenance of a living jungle that would gladly eat you.
- Academy of Adventure: Enforced.Hermione: Half of the Hogwart's experience is putting students in just enough danger that they get action points but not so much that they kick the bucket. Sneaking around the castle, midnight duels, rivals are a great way to action points.
- Character Sheet: The Potter Family Curse and A Mother's Love appear as unexplained perks on Harry's.
- Heel–Face Turn: Dudley realizes that if life really is a game, he doesn't want to be the bad guy.
- Min-Maxing: Personal Optimization aka Munchkinery 101 is all about helping students do this with their lives and ensuring they have the skills to reach their optimum stat growth.
- RPG Mechanics 'Verse: Wizard magic runs on this trope. Hagrid raises the possibility of all Muggles being NPCs...
- Shout-Out: The Escola de Magia do Novo Mundo in Brazil and New Zealand's Eyre Institute of Sorcery are, to some extent, similar to Discworld's Unseen University, down to Eskarina Smith, Ponder Stibbons, and the orangutan who runs a library.
- Eerie, Indiana's Forever Ware are also magical artifacts.
- Stable Time Loop: Time Turners create these. Unfortunately the only one Harry knows of is locked in the Ministry. Chapter 8.
- Sudden Game Interface: Happens to all wizards on their eleventh birthday and generally only surprising to Muggleborns.
- The Bore: Subverted. Professor Binns' class is actually useful as he teaches etiquette among the various magical races, such as what color ink to use when signing forms in order to keep goblins from tearing your arms off in outrage. Once the initial shock has worn off, it's still hard for most of the students to stay awake.
- Astronomy winds up drawing the short straw.
