History Main / NeoAfrica

[[redirect:AfroFuturism]]

[[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/BlackPanther http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wakanda.png]]]]

For whatever reason, Africa seems to be the one place in fiction that never gets better as time goes on. On occasion, fiction decides to shake things up. Africa doesn't necessarily get better, but it catches up technologically. What happens when a third-world region like Africa advances technologically but has no reduction in widespread poverty?

{{Cyberpunk}}, and lots of it. It's hyper-cynical, hyper-dystopian themes [[DiscreditedTrope became difficult for audiences to take seriously after a certain point]] when applied to most locations, but combine it with a seemingly never-ending RealLife dystopia like Africa, and that problem is all but eliminated. Not to mention Africa is also an ideal place geographically to build a SpaceElevator.

Despite this application of the setting, and probably due to the stereotypes of Africa's climate, CyberpunkWithAChanceOfRain is not so common with this trope.

Interestingly, it does not specifically have to be Africa; India and the Middle East have been done on occasions, and the words "Asian Century" are essentially synonymous with this Trope.

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!!Examples:

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[[folder: Comics ]]

* Wakanda, home of the ComicBook/BlackPanther, is more scientifically and technologically advanced than the Western world, and has been for a long time. In addition to their most famous product, the rare metal vibranium (which ComicBook/CaptainAmerica's shield is made out of), they have a cure for cancer.
* ''ComicBook/{{Elephantmen}}'': The eponymous Elephantmen were created and trained by [[MegaCorp MAPPO]] at a huge lab/base somewhere in Northern Africa.
* The ''Pan-African Judges'' comics set in the ''Comicbook/JudgeDredd'' universe.

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[[folder: Literature ]]

* ''Literature/TheEarTheEyeAndTheArm'' takes place in [[UsefulNotes/{{Zimbabwe}} Zimbabwe,]] in the year 2194.
* In ''Literature/{{Otherland}}'' the PostCyberpunk applies to everywhere in the world, but notable is that Renie and !Xabbu are from Durban, South Africa.
* Jon Courtenay Grimwood's ''Ashraf Bey'' books are set in an alternate universe North Africa. As cyberpunk as it gets.
* The Watekni subculture in a TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture Kenya in Creator/IanMcDonald's ''Chaga''.
* ''Zoo City'' is a {{Cyberpunk}} novel with fantasy elements set in South Africa. It has an endorsement from Creator/WilliamGibson himself and has the same kind of grey market protagonist that Gibson's novels favor.
** Averted in some respects though, as Africa outside of the slums seems to be doing better, and the series is set in an AlternateUniverse after the 90's, the story taking place around 2010.
* Nero Manson's novel ''Literature/SexDrugsAndViolenceInTheFuture'' portrays Africa as a nightmarish hell hole where rape and child soldiers are commonplace.
* Creator/AlastairReynolds's novel ''Literature/BlueRememberedEarth'' is a subversion. While not everything is perfect in the African countries, they've become new economic and technological powers and the overall tone is quite optimistic. A PostCyberpunk sensibility is present, but it's mostly set dressing.
* Most of Creator/NnediOkorafor's books take place in a technologically updated future or alternate universe Africa that is also a MagicalLand. Some examples are ''Literature/ZahrahTheWindseeker'', ''Literature/TheShadowSpeaker'', and ''Literature/WhoFearsDeath''.
* Averted in Raphael Carter's ''The Fortunate Fall,'' a PostCyberpunk novel set in a 24th century where everywhere but Africa is a third-world crapsack. Africa, on the other hand, is the hypertechnological promised land where, in an inversion of the "one drop" rule, only those who prove via blood test to have African ancestry are allowed entry. And did we mention the possibly real/possibly cyber versions of the Egyptian gods?
* In [[Creator/IsaacAsimov Isaac Asimov's]], ''Literature/IRobot'' universe, the Tropic Region (a unified Africa, South America, Latin America and Mexico) eventually becomes Earth's primary economic driver, while Europe sinks into a sleepy backwater that's more of a retirement community writ-large than anything else.
* Averted in ''Literature/AlienInASmallTown.'' Set in the 24th century, only a brief section near the end of the book is set in [[UsefulNotes/{{Zimbabwe}} Zimbabwe,]] but we learn that Earth's capital city is located there, and it seems to be a generally good place to live. Tendai grew up here, and he shows his wife Indira the country's [[AncientAfrica ancient stone cities,]] wildlife preserves, etc. Notably, there is a monument to all who died in the AIDS plague of our own time, and to those who died under "the vile 21st century tyrant Mugabe."

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[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* The South African/Canadian sci-fi series ''Series/CharlieJade'' involves [[AlternateUniverse three different universes]] in its storyline. One of them, the "Alphaverse", is dystopian and completely cyberpunk, including [[CyberpunkWithAChanceOfRain lots of rain]]. Its counterpoint is the ecotopian "Gammaverse" ([[NotSoDifferent unpolluted, but rife with political corruption and social engineering]]). The neutral one is the "Betaverse", which is our own early 21st century world. The whole series takes place in the Cape Town region and very little info about the rest of the world is ever given. According to the series's script, both the Alphaverse and Gammaverse are supposedly [[AlternateHistory alternate histories]] of the Betaverse, with a divergence occuring shortly after WWII or during the early UsefulNotes/ColdWar period.

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[[folder: Tabletop Games ]]

* The ''TabletopGame/{{Trinity}}'' roleplaying game subverts this; Africa is a leading force in 22nd century Earth, though not without its problems. It helps that Africa managed to avoid the worst damage of the Aberrant War, and the more modern Europe and North America got hit hard.
* ''TabletopGame/TranshumanSpace'' has a lot of preppy PostCyberpunk, but one of the biggest themes is that the degree of penetration is horribly uneven and the full benefits of the Fifth Wave of technological advancement are only available to the richest parts of the world. Africa is not one of the richest parts of the world, and it's straight {{cyberpunk}} if you're ''lucky''.
* While ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' is primarily focused on North America (especially Seattle), Africa receives no small amount of attention, with both the setting's worst WretchedHive and its most advanced space port (and SpaceElevator) being situated on the continent, along with several other places of note.

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[[folder: Video Games ]]

* ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'': New Mombasa, Kenya is a high-tech city and spaceport. At least when ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}'' begins, before there's lots of StuffBlowingUp. The horrible nature of the place is brought up in ''VideoGame/Halo3ODST'', when we learn that TheLeader of the police is a DirtyCop and molester.
* One of the campaigns of VideoGame/EmpireEarth 2: The Art of Supremacy takes place during [[TwentyMinutesIntoTheFuture the "Synthetic Age" (202X-204X)]] (featuring things like nanotech enhanced soldiers and giant mecha) in Africa, and deals with the poor native taking up arms against the exploitative [[MegaCorp megacorps]]. It ends with Africa becoming a technologically advanced world superpower.
* Played with in ''VideoGame/DreamfallTheLongestJourney'' and its sequel ''VideoGame/DreamfallChapters'', which takes place in a {{Cyberpunk}} future where most of Africa has risen as one of the world's leading economic superpowers following several economic collapses and crises in Europe and America. As a result, most African countries is consistently portrayed and described as peaceful, idyllic, and prosperous; a stark contrast to the run-down and polluted, borderline dystropic Europe.
* The People's African Union is one of the factions colonizing space in ''VideoGame/CivilizationBeyondEarth''. In-universe, it's said to have come about as part of a sub-Saharan renaissance, and has an AI focusing on the [[BioPunk Harmony]] affinity and eschewing the [[CyberPunk Supremacy]] affinity. However, while they're likely to make and keep alliances and their faction bonus is a boost to food production, their leader is a stern ReasonableAuthorityFigure who, behind [[NiceGuy his jovial front]], harbours a measure of resentment over how the the African people were exploited and humiliated by foreign powers in the past few centuries, and is determined to make sure that never happens again. A faction of BewareTheNiceOnes, basically.
* ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' has the city of Numbani in the West-African savanna. It is a gorgeous, technologically advanced metropolis built after the [[GreatOffscreenWar Omnic Crisis]] and is one of the few places where humans and [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots omnics]] live side by side in peace, working together to create a Utopian Africa. As a result, it is unofficially known as "The City of Harmony". Certain characters have special dialog on the location, ranging from admiring its peace (Lúcio) to rage and disgust at the idea of tolerating omnics (Torbjörn).

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* Averted in ''Literature/AlienInASmallTown.'' Set in the 24th century, only a brief section near the end of the book is set in [[UsefulNotes/{{Zimbabwe}} Zimbabwe,]] but we learn that Earth's capital city is located there, and it seems to be a generally good place to live. Tendai grew up here, and he shows his wife Indira the country's [[AncientAfrica ancient stone cities,]] wildlife preserves, etc.

* ''Literature/TheEarTheEyeAndTheArm'' takes place in Zimbabwe, in the year 2194.

* Averted in ''Literature/AlienInASmallTown.'' Only a brief section near the end of the book is set in UsefulNotes/Zimbabwe, but we learn that Earth's capital city is located there, and it seems to be a generally good place to live. Tendai grew up here, and he shows his wife Indira the country's [[AncientAfrica ancient stone cities,]] wildlife preserves, etc.

* Averted in ''Literature/AlienInASmallTown.'' Only a brief section near the end of the book is set in UsefulNotes/Zimbabwe, but we learn that Earth's capital city is located there, and it seems to be a generally good place to live. Tendai grew up here, and he shows his wife Indira the [[AncientAfrica ancient stone cities,]] wildlife preserves, etc.