Analysis of the Worldbuilding in Return of the Frozen Player

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Summary

The Frozen Player Returns, also known as Return of the Frozen Player, is a Webtoon created by JerryM and SilSil. Originally published in Korean on KaKao, there are official translations in English, French, and Thai on various platforms. While the English translation, hosted by Tapas, is currently on hiatus, the original publication is going into its fourth season. So, what has contributed to Return of the Frozen Player’s success? The intricate world building!

 

Setting

Comic panel of five frozen people arranged in a triangle with the protagonist in front.

Figure 1: Junho and his party members frozen and on display in chapter 1, Return of the Frozen player, Art by SilSIl.

Return of the Frozen Player starts off with Seo Junho, the main character, facing off against the Frost Queen in the “Final Dungeon” which appeared in Antarctica. Twenty-five years later, Seo Junho and his frozen teammates are on display in Korea when he manages to escape the ice alive. From there, the enormity of the world that has been created for this story is revealed. The defeat of the Frost Queen revealed dimensional elevators in addition to dungeons.

 

Dungeons

“Dungeons are places filled with traps and monsters that ruthlessly attack humans.” That is the definition given in chapter five. The dungeons in Return of the Frozen Player seem to be portals to other worlds with certain requirements for the players to enter with. Dungeons affect their surroundings, making them unsafe to leave alone. The longer they are left uncleared, the worse their effect on the local environment is. This creates areas that are uninhabitable. An example of this is the Frost Queen’s dungeon, which could have frozen the South Pacific Ocean. Conquering dungeons leads to safe areas being established where normal humans can survive.

Dimensional Floors

A picture of glass elevators rising into the sky from the pacific ocean.

Figure 2: Dimensional elevators; Art by SILSIL, Return of the Frozen Player chapter 75

There are a total of ten dimensional floors. During the two and a half decades Junho was frozen, mankind only conquered two of the floors. The first floor is Earth, which is where all of the first story arc takes place. Because Junho is Korean, the majority of the first season is set in Korea while he recuperates and regains his strength by joining dungeon raids. As he grows more powerful, he begins to venture into the other countries to gain experience near the end of the Season.

While Webtoons are comics, they use a mix of language to describe the story parts. Chapters are the same as book chapters, but instead of volumes or books, Webtoons commonly use seasons to describe a collection of chapters.  Season two expands his reach further, with more time in dungeons or other countries than in Korea. In the second half of season two, Junho uses a dimensional elevator to reach the second floor, though he visits the first floor frequently.

 

Society and Structure

Society in Return of the Frozen Player is an interesting mix. The power in the global societies belongs to three general groups, and which group has the most power in a country is often different. First is the Players Association, the organization that oversees the players in general. All players must be registered with the Association and go through a test to ensure they have sufficient abilities. This is to reduce the number of player deaths in dungeon raids. Guilds in Korea have about the same amount of power as the Players Association. Built by strong and wealthy players, guilds offer resources, consistent paychecks, training, and often accommodations to other players in exchange for loyalty and their work.

The guilds’ reputations and the benefits of joining a guild attract players. Going into a dungeon under a guild increases the chances of survival due to equipment, teamwork, and information that can be hard for ordinary players to get by themselves. Governments are the third power, though the Korean government seems to have less power than the Players Association and the Korean guilds.

You can see the influence of these three powers in the way the society is portrayed in Return of the Frozen Player. Instead of the government, the guilds and Players Association are looked to when new dungeons and catastrophes appear. Everyone wants to become a player, and it’s the job that is looked upon most favourably. Auctions, food, clothing and more are designed to cater to players. There are even casinos specifically designed for players!

Creature Creation

Figure 3: Whip wolf by silsil, Return of the Frozen Player chapter 79

The creatures in Return of the Frozen Player are a mix of original creations and those inspired by the real world. For example, an original creature is the Whip Wolf, found in chapter seventy-nine. This monster is a giant canine with three scorpion-like tails that requires several players on the second floor to take down. There are also humanoid creatures. Possibly inspired by Disney’s Elsa in Frozen and the Snow Queen by Hans Christan Anderson, the Frost Queen is one of those humanoid creatures. These bipedal creatures with intelligence suggest that the worlds the dungeons are in once had functioning societies before they were corrupted. This adds depth to the story and leaves an opportunity for more seasons and expansion later.

Rebecca Roth is currently pursuing a certificate of Professional Writing at Algonquin College. She is an avid reader, preferring the fantasy genre. She is an aspiring author with several books in the works to publish in the next couple years.