Thread:HoundTheDestroyer93/@comment-25808351-20170821013859/@comment-28144855-20170827040749

The problem in any story with linear power progression, even if you start strong is that eventually it reach ludicrous levels, especially in long running shows. You need to show progression to the hungry audience, and what's the easiest way? Introduce a more powerful villain and have him beat either the previous season/arc villain or the main hero until the latter recives a boost and wrecks him. Then the next season just repeat it all over again. Even in RPs that's the case, no matter if you strated OP or not, it eventually gets there.

The thing that happens is known as powercreep, that if left unchecked, ruins the show/game.

Many card games, the likes of Yugioh suffer from this, also anime. People want to see over the top action scenes that surpasses the previous ones and so on. That way the majority of the characters become obsolete really fast, as Hound is suggesting.

Now, in the show that is set into the 'real or living' world that is a bit harder to manage but is doable. In shows like SAO, Overlord and such, where the world and everything in it is basically controlled and determined by damn ONES AND ZEROS I see no excuse for it. instead of growing too fast and become untouchable, a more balancing factor would add more abilities/skills that are all about equal and made to contrast each other (skill A has an advantage over B but sucks against C, yet B beats C and so on) and not limit them to the MC.

Then as Hound said you can make more characters relevant, making it a group effort and so on...

Doc is also right, you can go one (or more) arcs focusing the heroics and the plot on character development and heroics of his deeds, or his journey towards a different goal than pure beat the main villain action, without eliminating said action but adding it as an extra, an eye candy for the audience.