From your viewpoint, what is Steampunk?

1. 83

   Catherine Kaneposted 12 years ago

   From your viewpoint, what is Steampunk?
   
   Steampunk is a phenomena that is currently growing and expanding in the science fiction community, and there seem to be a lot of different opinions about what it is and what it should be.
   What is your experience of Steampunk?

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2. 92

   Docmoposted 12 years ago

   Do you ache for the scratchy yet seductive sounds of an old gramophone player? Do you pine for the chuff chuff of a rocking steam engine over the soulless glide of an electric one? Do you care for the clackety clack of a Remington typewriter over the bouncy plastic of your keyboard? Then you have come to the right place... read more

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3. 57

   Dan J Dombrowskiposted 12 years ago

   From the perspective of an outsider who knows very little about 'Steampunk culture',  Steampunk is all about machines and technology that can accomplish sci-fi-esque futuristic results using technology that was available in the 17th-19th century  century, namely things with big, showy copper pipes used to conduct steam.
   
   There's a indie video game that I got as part of the Humble Indie Bundle back around Christmas that I have yet to put much time into called Jamestown. The idea behind it is that the British colonized Mars during the 17th century. It is a top-down shooter similar to 19XX (a 90s arcade cabinet that I have fond memories of). There isn't anything specifically Steampunk-ish about it, but I use it as an example because it has a similar theme: What if folks way back when had access to technology that allowed them to do all sorts of cool stuff like fly around and go to other planets? That seems to me to be the core of Steampunk.
   
   Now, Steampunk is a lot of other things that I am sure I am missing. It is an entire subculture with a million different facets that only people thoroughly ingrained in it really know, but to me, as an outsider, it comes down to one thing: possibilities.

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4. 86

   Dallas Matierposted 12 years ago

   There's a 'steampunk culture', now? Weird... that's the first I've heard of it.
   
   Steampunk is a sub-genre of science-fiction/fantasy, in my experience. Way back when steam was considered to be the future of technological development, with the steam engine particularly, you had writers like Jules Verne writing their science fiction based on what they felt may be possible with steam in the future. Modern steampunk is kind of a throwback to that style - though, it doesn't really count as science fiction, anymore, since we all know now that steam based technology always had limited potential.
   
   Modern steampunk is usually an odd form of alternative history science-fantasy, when it crops up.

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