Testing the Astolfo Effect on newly-released servants in Fate/Grand Order

Abstract

Back in 2021, we wrote an article defining the Astolfo Effect. That is what happens when a pop culture representation of a character (fictional or otherwise) becomes more popular than the original. We named it after Astolfo, one of Charlemagne’s paladins and arguably an obscure character in the works that make up the Matter of France and in later literature related to it (such as Orlando Furioso, in which Astolfo plays an important role). Astolfo only achieved great popularity due to his incarnation in the light novel/manga/anime Fate/Apocrypha and the game Fate/Grand Order (henceforth FGO).