/lit/ - Literature

>>11337303
The problem with battle of wits as a genre is that it is way too broad to actually consider it a genre. It's more of a trope or trait that's present in a media. Imagine looking for movies/books for the sole purpose of watching a chase sequence.
If we try to define battle of wits, we get different definitions based on who we ask. Light vs L and Holmes vs Moriarty are the real obvious ones where we have two rivals that fight for their ideals by trying to outplay each other. However, if we look at what people have suggested in this thread such as "Kaiji" or "Phoenix Wright", the whole battle of wits thing gets really vague. Sure, Kaiji gets stuck in a gamble where the odds are against his favor, but more often than not, he gets saved either by sheer luck, an external force or a classic "I prepared this beforehand" that death note loves to pull.
And while both Kaiji and Death note are very different types of manga, they still scratch that same itch. If I were to give a clear definition of battle of wits, it would be a medium where the protagonist and antagonist doesn't directly fight each other. No pulling out a gun, or fighting with fists, but instead a psychological thriller where the characters have to scheme to actually get what they want. This is exactly what I mean by saying that battle of wits can't be a clear genre, but rather a trope used in different degrees.
The absolute best way to narrow down media that actually has battle of wits is to research how conflicts get resolved. Let's say we have a detective thriller where a serial killer kidnaps his daughter. Do the detective resort to violence, abandoning his ways and becoming the murderer?Or does he investigate it more properly, following clues etc.? They're both part of the same genre, but the way the protagonist resolves conflicts are extremely different.
This "routine" doesn't always work though. For example, even fucking naruto uses the battle of wits tropes in some of its fights and that's very difficult to discern without actually watching the right parts of the show. JoJo's Bizarre adventure works in similar fashion, where they just outwit each other with their powers.
Detective novels, crime novels (they're probably the same thing), whodunnit's, gambling things, death games, psychological thrillers are all genres that very often resort to battle of wits to keep things interesting. Who the fuck wants to read a fictional book about poker where nobody cheats nor uses special tactics/bluffs to win?
If you want an example/suggestion watch the korean movies "Oldboy (2003)" and "Handmaiden". Oldboy is a chase 'em and beat 'em but still resorts to a battle of wits between the two characters and how it can be implemented within an action movie. Handmaiden on the other hand has no fighting, no violence, just pure manipulation, schemes and whatever else comes with the package. Or you can look up battle of wits on TVTropes.