History Main / TheMilkyWayIsTheOnlyWay

However, if your ship is capable of crossing the Milky Way in a single day (after all, if we're ignoring the speed-of-light limit, then any other author-imposed speed limit is completely arbitrary), or your hyperdrive can simply [[{{Teleportation}} open a shortcut between any two known locations anywhere in the universe]], then there really is no excuse for this. Bonus points if there is some unconvincing HandWave as to why they don't go to other galaxies. Or a convincing HandWave based on modern physics (i.e. the FTL drive needs Dark Matter to work properly, and it stops working once you try to exit the Dark Matter Halo of your galaxy).

* In ''WebOriginal/OrionsArm'' a total lack of FTL has prevented anyone from leaving the Milky Way yet; indeed, the Terragen civilization mostly occupies the Orion Arm of the Milky Way galaxy alone, with some expansion into the neighboring Perseus and Sagittarius Arms as well. However a message from the Triangulum Galaxy has been picked up and massive telescope arrays have seen planetary scale building projects occurring in other galaxies. The Triangulum Transmission also told of a ten light-year wide object with the mass of ''billions'' of stars and made up of the artificially imploded remains of an entire galaxy headed toward the Local Group of galaxies. Not only is it crossing intergalactic space, it's also coming from an entirely different cluster of galaxies.

* ''LightNovel/CrestOfTheStars'': even with quick and easy travel across the galaxy, humanity has not expanded beyond the Milky Way, mainly because they've never encountered a [[PortalNetwork Planar Space Portal]] that leads to another galaxy. There is one anomalous set of unexplored portals that everyone is pretty sure leads to other galaxies, but the Abh have an ironclad grip on that territory and they're not going to let anyone explore them... at least, not until they are in utter control over the entire Milky Way and can guarantee that human conflict will not spread to other galaxies.

* Played ''mostly'' straight in ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'', with player travel restricted to an {{overworld}} consisting of about a third of the Milky Way (chunks of the Alpha, Beta, and Delta Quadrants; the Gamma Quadrant is only briefly visited in one mission due to the ongoing cold war with the Dominion). [[spoiler:However, the [[AbusivePrecursors Iconians]] traveled to the Andromeda Galaxy after their homeworld was glassed 200,000 years ago, and have the technology to teleport entire {{Dyson sphere}}s full of ships across the intergalactic void.]]

* Literature/TheNightsDawnTrilogy: Upon discovering the sleeping god at the end of the last book, and theorizing that it is capable of intergalactic travel, everyone is shocked. Although FTL travel has been known for more than 500 years, it took several months and hundreds of small FTL 'jumps' for the main characters to travel the 1300 light-years to find the Sleeping God in the first place.
* [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Predictably]], ''Franchise/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy'' is apparently set entirely within [[TheMilkyWayIsTheOnlyWay The Galaxy]]. Despite all the various forms of faster-than-light travel, extradimensional beings, and travel driven by ''improbability''. There is ''one'' point in [[Radio/TheHitchhikersGuideToTheGalaxy the radio show]] where the cast are escaping from Milliways and find themselves headed into intergalactic space -- promptly running for the escape pods. Mind, there were ''other'' reasons not to want to be aboard that ship at that particular time. Although, when the characters are searching for the real power behind the galactic throne, someone says "maybe he rules the whole universe" and this is thenceforth assumed to be true.

* In ''Videogame/EliteDangerous'', the Frame Shift Drive can traverse light-years in seconds, but is limited by two factors; the amount of hydrogen fuel it can burn in a single jump (up to 50LY), and the need to lock onto a sufficiently massive object for the jump. Interstellar travel is easy, but intergalactic travel is impossible as the stellar density dwindles to nothing in intergalactic space. The original ''Videogame/{{Elite}}'' had intergalactic travel, but was dropped in the sequels.

* ''Videogame/AIWarFleetCommand:'' It's only the humans that are stuck in the Milky Way, less because they can't and more because civil war and the AI got in the way before they could get to it. The AI is not so constrained and explicitly keeps most of its forces off-galaxy, and both the Zenith and the Spire explicitly reigned in other galaxies rather than this one before they fell. And even then, in the sequel you have human Marauders using a different sort of propulsion that could possibly let them leave and reenter the Milky Way.

* ''Anime/SpaceBattleshipYamato2199'' technically averts this but keeps it in spirit. The protagonists plan on making a trip to the Large Magellanic Cloud and back to Earth in under a year, but in intergalactic terms that's like visiting a neighbouring country. They initially assume that this trope applies to the Gamilas Empire but get a rude surprise when they learn that the Large Magellanic Cloud is actually their home territory. The audience are also treated to a [[ForeShadowing brief snapshot]] of a second opponent Gamilas is fighting in the ''Small'' Magellanic Cloud.

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* Averted in ''Fanfic/ThereWasOnceAnAvengerFromKrypton''. Stories that take place beyond Earth, such as ''Close Encounters of the Gem Kind'' and ''Eternity in Promise'' explore the regions beyond the Milky Way and emphasize the vast scope of the universe. If anything, the Milky Way is actually widely considered [[NormalFishInATinyPond a cosmic backwater in this series]].
[[/folder]]

* Averted in ''Literature/TheStarOfTheGuardians''. There's a single space station in Andromeda, called "Hell's Outpost." It's pretty much a WretchedHive (hence the name) due to being outside the government's control. It's also pretty often raided by the local life-forms, a race of plasma-based creatures that eat energy.
* Averted in ''Literature/NexusNine'', the Tri-Galactic Union uses the titular [[PortalNetwork Nexus pathways]] to travel between galaxies, and the exploration of Nexus Nine leads them to a whole new one.

* Averted in ''{{Series/Andromeda}}''. The Systems Commonwealth, at its largest, spanned the Milky Way, the Small Magellanic Cloud and the Andromeda galaxy, with its capital, Tarn Vedra, situated in Andromeda. The resident way of FTL travel is independent from normal space, meaning that two systems that are next to each other in FTL may be in different galaxies.

* Inverted by [[TabletopGame/{{Rifts}} Palladium's Phase World]] setting. The [=FTL=] engines used are slowed down by gravity interference from stars and suchlike, meaning that it's often just as fast moving between the closely spaced galaxies as it is crossing the same one.

* Averted somewhat in ''VideoGame/InfiniteSpace''. It's mostly set in the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds, which are almost on top of each other in intergalactic terms. [[PortalNetwork Void Gate]] travel is instantaneous and occasionally intergalactic, but requires having a gate available. Conventional FTL travel between the two galaxies is possible, but dangerous due to SpacePirates and natural hazards. The original colonization of the Large Magellanic Cloud was accomplished by enormous GenerationShips. [[spoiler:The player does travel to the Milky Way at the very end of the game; to the Solar System, in fact.]]

** Averted in ''Series/StargateUniverse'' with the discovery of an ''ancient'' Ancient starship sent out long ago to explore the universe and look for some sort of construct. The ''Destiny'' has so many hyperdrives (of a different, earlier, design) that crossing intergalactic distances is easy, provided there's enough power, since the ''Destiny'' recharges by ''diving into a star'' (and there are none between galaxies), but even then, the lack of living crew meant it could just drift the last few million light-years the old fashion way. There are several gate-laying ships (about half the size of the ''Destiny'') flying ahead of her, planting stargates on useful planets.

* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', the [[OurHumansAreDifferent Imperium of Man]] is prevented from going beyond the galaxy by the Astronomicon (a psychic lighthouse needed for reliable Warp travel) not being powerful enough to guide them that far. The [[SpaceElves Eldar]] are constricted by the infrastructure of their webway tunnels, [[SpaceOrcs Ork]] Warp travel is haphazard and they would probably kill each other out of sheer boredom before the trip was 1/10th done, and the Tau are limited to a form of [=FTL=] considerably slower than true Warp travel. The [[HordeOfAlienLocusts Tyranids]] come from another galaxy, but they probably traveled very slowly between the galaxies. (One book of the ''Literature/HorusHeresy'' prequel series ended with a stinger showing the Tyranids being clued into the Milky Way's location. They don't actually ''arrive'' until ten thousand years later.) What isn't explained, however, is why the [[RobotWar Necrons]] and their C'tan masters went into hibernation after scouring the galaxy clean of most life millions of years ago, given that their inertialess drives (fast FTL without entering the Warp) and immortal shells give them the means to travel to other galaxies even if it takes thousands of years, and the prospect of killing more living gives them a motive. The fifth edition Necron codex {{retcon}}s the whole thing away, saying they just hack the Eldar webway and use their immortality to take longer trips at sub-light speeds. The Necron leader and his personal forces actually did leave the galaxy on a personal quest, but after meeting the Tyranids in the gulf between they turned back.

* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', the Imperium is prevented from going beyond the galaxy by the Astronomicon (a psychic lighthouse needed for reliable Warp travel) not being powerful enough to guide them that far. The Eldar are constricted by the infrastructure of their webway tunnels, Ork Warp travel is haphazard and they would probably kill each other out of sheer boredom before the trip was 1/10th done, and the Tau are limited to a form of [=FTL=] considerably slower than true Warp travel. The Tyranids come from another galaxy, but they probably traveled very slowly between the galaxies. (One book of the ''Horus Heresy'' prequel series ended with a stinger showing the Tyranids being clued into the Milky Way's location. They don't actually ''arrive'' until ten thousand years later.) What isn't explained, however, is why the Necrons and their C'tan masters went into hibernation after scouring the galaxy clean of most life millions of years ago, given that their inertialess drives (fast FTL without entering the Warp) and immortal shells give them the means to travel to other galaxies even if it takes thousands of years, and the prospect of killing more living gives them a motive. The fifth edition Necron codex {{retcon}}s the whole thing away, saying they just hack the Eldar webway and use their immortality to take longer trips at sub-light speeds. The Necron leader and his personal forces actually did leave the galaxy on a personal quest, but after meeting the Tyranids in the gulf between they turned back.

** In ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'', when traveling across the galaxy seemed to take just a few days or weeks, they had the "Great Barrier", a mysterious energy field blocking intergalactic travel. There is at least one species[[note]]The Kelvans[[/note]] that comes from Andromeda, but takes 300 years or so to send a ship across the void (these are the guys with the weapons that turn people into salt cubes and back again), and the Planet Killer of episode "The Doomsday Machine" was believed to be extra-galactic in origin. The Great Barrier turned up occasionally as a plot point in some of the Franchise/StarTrekExpandedUniverse novels, but for the most part, the later series dropped that idea and changed warp speed to TravelingAtTheSpeedOfPlot.

* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', the Imperium is prevented from going beyond the galaxy by the Astronomicon (a psychic lighthouse needed for reliable Warp travel) not being powerful enough to guide them that far. The Eldar are constricted by the infrastructure of their webway tunnels, Ork Warp travel is haphazard and they would probably kill each other out of sheer boredom before the trip was 1/10th done, and the Tau are limited to a form of [=FTL=] considerably slower than true Warp travel. The Tyranids come from another galaxy, but they probably traveled very slowly between the galaxies. What isn't explained, however, is why the Necrons and their C'tan masters went into hibernation after scouring the galaxy clean of most life millions of years ago, given that their inertialess drives (fast FTL without entering the Warp) and immortal shells give them the means to travel to other galaxies even if it takes thousands of years, and the prospect of killing more living gives them a motive. The fifth edition Necron codex {{retcon}}s the whole thing away, saying they just hack the Eldar webway and use their immortality to take longer trips at sub-light speeds. The Necron leader and his personal forces actually did leave the galaxy on a personal quest, but after meeting the Tyranids in the gulf between they turned back.

-->'''Avon''': Was it built to keep humanity in... or something else out? ([[spoiler:It was the latter.)]])

* [[PlayingWithATrope Inverted (or something)]] in Creator/VernorVinge's ''Literature/ZonesOfThought'' series. All technology, including FTL travel, works better as you get farther from the galactic core. This means it's impossible to get to the middle of the galaxy, because your ship will continually slow down and eventually FTL becomes impossible. Intergalactic travel should be possible, except that the outer reaches of this galaxy are controlled by [[AIIsACrapshoot technological [=AI=]s]] who have [[AGodAmI ascended to near-godhood]], and they don't let anyone past them. Also, as one heads closer to the galactic core even at sub-lightspeed high technology begins to break down, computers can no longer function, and once inside the "Unthinking Depths" you'd no longer be capable of sentient thought.

** Both ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' and ''[[Series/StarTrekVoyager Voyager]]'' examined the Delta and Gamma Quadrants, and established a ''mostly'' consistent "100 years to cross the galaxy" rule to explain the lack of intergalactic travel. Trying to not die of Borg attacks or running out of resources (''Voyager'') or survive all out war with TheEmpire (''Deep Space 9'') probably didn't help exploration much either.

* In ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'', the Imperium is prevented from going beyond the galaxy by the Astronomicon (a psychic lighthouse needed for reliable Warp travel) not being powerful enough to guide them that far. The Eldar are constricted by the infrastructure of their webway tunnels, Ork Warp travel is haphazard and they would probably kill each other out of sheer boredom before the trip was 1/10th done, and the Tau are limited to a form of [=FTL=] considerably slower than true Warp travel. The Tyranids come from another galaxy, but they probably traveled very slowly between the galaxies. What isn't explained, however, is why the Necrons and their C'tan masters went into hibernation after scouring the galaxy clean of most life millions of years ago, given that their inertialess drives (fast FTL without entering the Warp) and immortal shells give them the means to travel to other galaxies even if it takes thousands of years, and the prospect of killing more living gives them a motive. The fifth edition Necron codex {{retcon}}s the whole thing away, saying they just hack the Eldar webway and use their immortality to take longer trips at sub-light speeds.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'', of course, takes place solely in [[ALongTimeAgoInAGalaxyFarFarAway A Galaxy Far, Far Away]], with no explanation whatsoever. TheEmpire rules over the whole galaxy, hyperspace travel can launch even small {{Space Fighter}}s halfway across the galaxy in days or ''hours'', and the Rebel fleet hides above the galactic plane at the end of ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' (nicely averting TwoDSpace in the process), but intergalactic travel isn't even mentioned. Franchise/StarWarsLegends proposed numerous and often contradicting explanations, like CasualInterstellarTravel only being possible along pre-mapped HyperspaceLanes, a ''Franchise/StarTrek''-like "barrier on the edge of the galaxy", or the local {{Precursors}} sealing off certain sections of the galaxy to make hyperspace travel more difficult there. Nearby dwarf galaxies such as the Rishi Maze were actually accessible to travelers, but are beyond the frontiers of galactic governments. Because of this, illegal operations tend to set up shop there. Eventually this is dropped when the intergalactic Yuuzhan Vong arrive to mess things up and the [[Literature/OutboundFlight Republic attempt]] to explore other galaxies (the passage only expected to take a few years) only fails because Sidious has it intercepted to kill the Jedi aboard. The ContinuityReboot doesn't bother with any justification at all. Of course, there's also the possibility that their galaxy just happens to have no others near it.

* The ''Literature/{{Foundation}}'' series by Isaac Asimov are all set within the galaxy. In the fourth Foundation book, someone wonders why - all places are the same distance away by hyperspace. [[Creator/IsaacAsimov Asimov]] gives a [[JustifiedTrope pretty good explanation]]: ships traveling through hyperspace are affected by objects with mass that lie along the line that connects the starting and the ending point of the jump. The greater the mass or the distance between them, the greater the effect. This is the main reason why starships in the ''Foundation'' Universe use several small jumps instead of the single long one. And with every jump requiring several days to calculate the new jump coordinates, intergalactic travel would take a long, long time.

** There is[[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-03-29 a footnote]] on why teraport travel outside the galaxy is prohibitively expensive even in the best of times. That said, there is a way to travel to the Andromeda Galaxy and back: the two galaxies are linked by means of [[spoiler:a [[PortalNetwork wormgate]] originally sent [[TimeAbyss at sublight speeds]] across the gap]].
** Once [[DeusEstMachina Petey]] gets control of the core generator he's able to yank ships from one galaxy to another, mostly for his war with the Dark Matter entities of Andromeda. Kevyn explains that it's a function of large masses affecting the fabric of space-time. Anywhere inside a galaxy is easy enough, but anywhere outside is much more expensive. Teraporting from the Milky Way to Andromeda is still quite expensive, but the large mass of Andromeda cuts the cost in half.

-->-- ''Fanfic/Warhammer40000TheMisfits''

However, if your ship is capable of crossing the Milky Way in a single day (after all, if we're ignoring the speed-of-light limit, then any other author-imposed speed limit is completely arbitrary), or your hyperdrive can simply [[TeleportersAndTransporters open a shortcut between any two known locations anywhere in the universe]], then there really is no excuse for this. Bonus points if there is some unconvincing HandWave as to why they don't go to other galaxies. Or a convincing HandWave based on modern physics (i.e. the FTL drive needs Dark Matter to work properly, and it stops working once you try to exit the Dark Matter Halo of your galaxy).

* ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'' has [[https://www.schlockmercenary.com/2005-03-29 a footnote]] on why teraport travel outside the galaxy is prohibitively expensive even in the best of times. That said, there is a way to travel to the Andromeda Galaxy and back: the two galaxies are linked by means of [[spoiler:a [[PortalNetwork wormgate]] originally sent [[TimeAbyss at sublight speeds]] across the gap]].
** Once [[DeusEstMachina Petey]] gets control of the core generator he's able to yank ships from one galaxy to another, mostly for his war with the Dark Matter entities of Andromeda.

* Until Edwin P. Hubble discovered [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cepheid_variable Cepheid stars]] in the Andromeda Galaxy in TheRoaringTwenties it was generally believed the Universe consisted of just the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds, Andromeda for example being considered as just a nearby solar system in formation.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'', of course, takes place solely in [[ALongTimeAgoInAGalaxyFarFarAway A Galaxy Far, Far Away]], with no explanation whatsoever. TheEmpire rules over the whole galaxy, hyperspace travel can launch even small {{Space Fighter}}s halfway across the galaxy in days or ''hours'', and the Rebel fleet hides above the galactic plane at the end of ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' (nicely averting TwoDSpace in the process), but intergalactic travel isn't even mentioned. Franchise/StarWarsLegends proposed numerous and often contradicting explanations, like CasualInterstellarTravel only being possible along pre-mapped HyperspaceLanes, a ''Franchise/StarTrek''-like "barrier on the edge of the galaxy", or the local {{Precursors}} sealing off certain sections of the galaxy to make hyperspace travel more difficult there. Nearby dwarf galaxies such as the Rishi Maze were actually accessible to travelers, but are beyond the frontiers of galactic governments. Because of this, illegal operations tend to set up shop there. Eventually this is dropped when the intergalactic Yuuzhan Vong arrive to mess things up and the [[OutboundFlight Republic attempt]] to explore other galaxies (the passage only expacted to take a few years) only fails because Sidius has it intercepted to kill the Jedi aboard. The ContinuityReboot doesn't bother with any justification at all. Of course, there's also the possibility that their galaxy just happens to have no others near it.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'', of course, takes place solely in [[ALongTimeAgoInAGalaxyFarFarAway A Galaxy Far, Far Away]], with no explanation whatsoever. TheEmpire rules over the whole galaxy, hyperspace travel can launch even small {{Space Fighter}}s halfway across the galaxy in days or ''hours'', and the Rebel fleet hides above the galactic plane at the end of ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'' (nicely averting TwoDSpace in the process), but intergalactic travel isn't even mentioned. Franchise/StarWarsLegends proposed numerous and often contradicting explanations, like CasualInterstellarTravel only being possible along pre-mapped HyperspaceLanes, a ''Franchise/StarTrek''-like "barrier on the edge of the galaxy", or the local {{Precursors}} sealing off certain sections of the galaxy to make hyperspace travel more difficult there. Nearby dwarf galaxies such as the Rishi Maze were actually accessible to travelers, but are beyond the frontiers of galactic governments. Because of this, illegal operations tend to set up shop there. Eventually this is dropped when the intergalactic Yuuzhan Vong arrive to mess things up, and the ContinuityReboot doesn't bother with any justification at all. Of course, there's also the possibility that their galaxy just happens to have no others near it.