[Suzerain of Sheol]

I suppose it's a matter of preference. The classic argument against that is "why would want you to read about what you already know?" but there's pros and cons to both types of stories.

Though, I rather like being challenged by books, so sprawling alien settings that ask me to trust the author and be patient while learning new details appeal to me. If a book is too simple, I tend to get bored and end up thinking it's not worth my time. But the complexity has to have a purpose. Making a story inaccessible for the sake of making it inaccessible is stupid and tasteless. There has to be a reason behind it.

Anyway, fantasy as a genre is useful for externalizing abstract conflicts, sort of turning traditional modes of literature inside-out. I find it can present themes a bit more vividly thanks to this, though it requires a skilled author to take a fantasy story above simple entertainment (which is what this thread is really about.)