Is grappling hook/ ODM overdone/ overused in purely written novels?

[NotaNuffian]

It is fun to see Spiderman swing in the concrete jungle, it is cool to see Levi using his ODM like a god and it is awesome to see Rico Rodriguez with limitless grappling hook length mod to zip around in Just Cause.

But is it well done in written novels?

I ask this because while I read through the post done by @ThisAdamGuy , I got a brief flashback to a chinese novel that did the grappling hook poorly ie the author turned it into flashstep for his character.

When technically, grappling hooks can be used to pull user towards object, pull object towards user, use it to swing around etc.

But as I wrote this down, I wonder if the tool can be effectively shown in written novels.

Ps. I still think the slash harken got done dirty once the FLOAT system got intro-ed in Code Geass.

 

[CharlesEBrown]

The issue, I suspect, isn't so much whether it's well-done or overdone - it's that this is something that shows the American origin of comic books. It is just kind of silly in most European countries to even consider this as a mode of transportation; you need to get to the Middle East or farther East to find cities with enough buildings for it to make sense - or go much farther south to Africa to find jungles where it is plausible (c.f. Tarzan).
In those cases, it makes more sense to be something like ... is it Scorpion in Mortal Kombat? The guy with the chain whips that he uses to drag himself or his foes around? Which is likely what that Chinese author had in mind.

 

[NotaNuffian]

The issue, I suspect, isn't so much whether it's well-done or overdone - it's that this is something that shows the American origin of comic books. It is just kind of silly in most European countries to even consider this as a mode of transportation; you need to get to the Middle East or farther East to find cities with enough buildings for it to make sense - or go much farther south to Africa to find jungles where it is plausible (c.f. Tarzan).
In those cases, it makes more sense to be something like ... is it Scorpion in Mortal Kombat? The guy with the chain whips that he uses to drag himself or his foes around? Which is likely what that Chinese author had in mind.

Basically a concrete jungle.

I mean, I think the grappling hook will suck as a transport in rural america or even just the suburbs.

No high point to swing from.

 

[CharlesEBrown]

Basically a concrete jungle.

I mean, I think the grappling hook will suck as a transport in rural america or even just the suburbs.

No high point to swing from.

It was something I never even considered until I picked up a game book called Kingdom of Champions and it flat out declared it. Outside of maybe two cities in England, Spider-man's webs would be useless for transportation.
Superspeed or flight, however, would be far more useful than in a lot of American cities.

 

[NotaNuffian]

It was something I never even considered until I picked up a game book called Kingdom of Champions and it flat out declared it. Outside of maybe two cities in England, Spider-man's webs would be useless for transportation.
Superspeed or flight, however, would be far more useful than in a lot of American cities.

Once you have flight as transport, the third and last dimension is unlocked and it simplifies all fights.

Grappling hook and even superjump is flight lite/ flight with heavy constraint.

 

[AYM]

It's one thing with grappling hooks, but it's another if you're using it dynamically.
In theory it would add another layer of complexity to fight sequences. As a method to include aerial combat, you're elevating pun intended ground-based battles with an extra dimension. But it also means you need to set a solid foundation for the surroundings and keep track of possible grappling points. Unlike visual media where viewers can see how the string flies, where it attaches, how the pilot swings, etc. you need to clearly build these clear enough for the reader to understand.
The less foundation you place down, the less strategic and more abstract those movements become. Which makes your fights no different from a sword god who hits people very good and defeats 99 enemies instantly with god swordsmanship. Your three-dimensional movement is nothing more than a gimmick rather than something that could be explored.

 

[Juia_Darkcrest]

One of my MCs has tentacles from his armour (Slime Armour from eminence in shadow anime) and I use it to grapple, spear, and spiderman at times.

a standard grappling hook has uses, but is limiting if the only thing they can use it for is swinging around. But if the character needs to infiltrate anywhere, or even climb a tree or cliff, its a cool device to have available, just limited.