A few of my favriot games

Gratings Fellow fans of Role Playing games and thank you for joining me on this Adventure through the RPG-verse (I just made up a word).

A Blog about Role Playing games would not be complete without the mandatory List of my Favorite Role Playing games and other such things.

Now let me remind you that this is just one man's opinion and you and I might disagree on something. I may find a product amazing and you may find it awful. You might think to your self “But Mike, what about this game....”. Again this is all Perception, in this case mine.

I am just here to educate you on things that I found worth speaking about, you might learn something new, you might agree with me, you might not. I might learn something from you?

That said. Lead on McGuffey

Dungeons and Dragons!
No list about Role Playing can not be complete, or even exists with out mentioning Dungeon and Dragons. It is the first and last word in Role Playing so Thank you D&D for opening this amazing world for all of us to play in.

Do I love Dungeons and Dragons. Yes. Do I play it, do I run it Yes. Do I think it's the best system ever? no.

Best Super Hero Role Playing Games.
The SHRPG genera is actually a lot larger then most people think, while you may only be aware of One or Two Super Hero RPG's there are in fact Dozens of Titles both serious and silly in this genera, dating back to the Birth of Role Playing( Superhero 2024). As for what I think is the best SHRPG.

 

Villains and Vigilantes. One of the oldest Super Hero games on the Market, I have been playing it since the 80's and it still amazes me to this day how this 34 page Simple game has been able to capture the feel of a Comic Book in a way very few other Games have. You can Play Super Powerful Flying Guy and Dark Vigilante Guy together and the system give each of them a Chance to Shine and truly captures the world of Super Heroes To this day still one of my all time Favorite Games and Systems.

Marvel SHRPG.
I am talking the Original Marvell Super Hero Role Playing game now, it had the best random Power Table ever (Stretching and ice powers). A percentile based game that used Words to describe the power level of a character You could have one Stat at Feeble and another at Extraordinary , as apposed to just having a 8 Strength and a 30 Intelligence The fact that powers could be Feeble, while often silly was able to create a world where some Super Powered individuals might have nothing more then the Ability to Boil Water but it worked. Marvel is full of Characters who's powers were, less then Stellar and yet they were as much fun to play as the Characters who could stand Toe to Toe with the Angry Green Guy.

Heroes Unlimited. The Palladium System is a generic RPG System that had it's beginnings in Fantasy and Super Heroes but latter branched out into Horror, Space and of Course its most famous product line RIFTS. It is an easy system to “break” and create truly Epic Character within, but the Systems makes very Little sens. I love Heroes Unlimited but it's very hard to make/convert characters within. I can make a Villain in V&V in under 10 Minutes, it can take an Hour to make one in HU! If the rules were just a Little bit more organized it Could have been an Amazing system, but because of its Flaws and ability to be broken it rates as 3^rd in my Top SHRPG.

The Best Science Fiction/ Space RPG

SF RPG's are the second oldest type of Role Playing and probably the second largest in Sheer Volume of product over the past 40 Years.

Sure there a LOTS of variations on the Theme “Science Fiction” but for the most part, you hear SF you think Space. Despite the popularity of the genre, very few have stood the test of time-Quick think of a SF RPG other then Star Wars/Star Trek? Yeah its hard isn’t it, there are other SF Games but it is very difficult to Compete with a RPG set in a Established Universe like Trek, Wars, Dr Who, Etc.

Traveler:

Often Imitated, but never duplicated. Traveler is one of the very First Space RPG's, it was very simple to learn-A character could fit on a 3X5 card and one of the only games where you could die during character creation. Its Character background Section would be the Grandfather for several other games that would feature a “Life path” section including D&D 5^th . I played a Lot of Traveler and it was a blast! It has been reborn several times, under various different Company, including Steve Jackson’s GURPS. Look for Traveler under its current 2014 Flagship at your Local game shop and take a Gander at one of the Oldest SF RPG's there is.

Raven Star

One of the best Little Sci Fi games you have probably never herd of. I stumbled across this game over 14 years ago in the back of a game Shop. It was a small press indie game, bare bones but just a amazing Little prize.

The game was sort of Shadowrun/Spelljamer in that it combined Sci Fi and fantasy, each fantastic race-Like elf’s- was an Alien Spices, there was a sort of “Magic “ System that had a very “use the Force” feel. I lost my only copy of this game about 10 years ago and am always looking for it. It was Shadowrun/Spelljamer as it should have been

Blue Planet

Another Small press Space Game. This hauntingly beautiful Ecological Story of a game imagined A galaxy where the Characters were explores of a “Water World”. If Sea quest DSV was a RPG, this was it. It was a very elegant game but it's actual rules system was clunky and it spent a Little to much time being “Protect the earth” preachy Still one of the best IMHO.

 Heavy Gear/ Jovian Chronicles

Another Little engine that could RPG that you have probably never herd of. Dream pod 9 has been around since the late 90's and has produced over 200 products for this “Real Robot” Anime inspired game. It combines Role Playing with a tactical Miniature Combat System. The Dream Pod 9 SiloCore System is a D6 system and is pretty damn good. I have always seen product for the game but never met any one who has actually played it. I recently acquired some of the Product and was blown away! What An Amazing story these guys have been telling!

Honorable Mention: Star Wars/Star Trek

Obviously we can not talk about Space games with out a Nod to Star Wars and Star trek. There have been several incarnations of each Franchise as the rights filter from one Company to another and a Star Wars/Star trek RPG has always been in some forum of print somewhere. We grew up on Star trek and any geek over the age of 15 has some connection to Star Wars, it was the movie that changed the world. No matter what version of the Games you find, no RPG library is complete with out One copy of Both games.

The Old West/ Weird West RPG.

There is nothing more American then the Wild West, sure we Love the Magic and the Elf’s and the Dragons, but the Old West is our Mythology, our History! That Said, You would think that Cowboys would be almost as popular as Elf's in our minds but for some reason the RPG's set in the Old West have never caught on.

As for the Weird West,that’s taking the Mythology of the Old West and adding the Steam Punk ideals and maybe some Magic.

Despite all this if you do a Search on line you come up with Two, though there are a few more.

 

Deadlands.

There are several things to Love about Deadlands. Technically a “Steam Punk/Weird west” game, the system was flexible enough that you could run it as either a “realistic Old West' game , a “Spaghetti Western”Old West game or a Full on “there are Zombies in the Mine” Old West Game.

The Original Deadlands RPG system used playing cards instead of Dice to determine the outcome of all things, adding to the amazing flavor and fun of the System. Deadlands has also been made into a D20 System and is currently part of the “Savage Worlds” game line. I love this game and it's system in all its generations.

Tombstone

A tinny, bare bones system, truly more of a tactical Miniature game then an actual RPG and yet there was something about it? One of those small, indie games that somehow managed to truly capture the Feel of a western in a RPG setting. I believe you can find a PDF of the system on line, small, fast, flexible Fun.

Boot Hill.

One of the Original Old West RPG's dating back to the very beginnings of our Hobby. It was a Realistic old west game where Cowboys fought bandits, saved the rail road and rode off into the sunset. As systems ok, it was a bit clunky but still fun to play. Truthfully, one for the history books but when going Gun to Sword against Dungeons and Dragons it came up, short.

Horror Role Playing Games.

There is a Reason why this Genera of Role Playing Games has such a Huge library, we love to be scared. Weather its the Lovecraft Terror of “he who shall not be named”. The Gothic and Sublime Horror of The Classics (Dracula ETC). The In your face Horror of Slasher films. The Goofy horror of Scobby Doo or the More bare Bones Street level Horror of Buffy, there is a RPG system for you.

Stalking the Night Fantastic/ Burro 13

Before there was X-Files, before there was Dresden, before there was Supernatural there was Burro 13. Like many other Small press Role Playing games STNF/Burro 13 has changed publishers more then once but it was one of the First Urban Arcana Horror games I ever played. The system was pretty easy and the Ideas were fun. Monsters did not have names in this Setting, they were classified as “Amorphous Blob #” and then a Number. So vampires were just “Amorphous Blob #12. “ I enjoyed everything about this system, it had feel and play style that reflected how Horror was viewed in the 80's.

Chill/Gothic.

Another Small Press RPG that changed Names and Publishers before vanishing from the Shelves. This was the game that chose to stray away from the Modern Sensibilities of the 80's and rather explore the older, classic style of Horror. Chill/Gothic was a very slow game and very well thought out, the combat system was a bit clunky and character creation was a Little confusing but the atmosphere the game tried to create more then made up for the rule set. By taking modern Horror back to its Victorian Black and White Roots it reminded you that Horror was not about the Guy in the Hockey mask trying to kill you, it was about atmosphere and story telling and Dracula.

It came from the Late, Late, Late Show

A Hilarious Send up of the Slasher films of the 80's. This small press RPG was written with the idea that the Characters “Knew” they were in a Slasher film and as such had to follow certain Rules like, always go downstairs, in your underwear, with out a flashlight and never say “ill be right back.” if the Movie Scream was a RPG, this would be it. Frightening one moment and hilarious the next, each Character had the ability to Once per game. Call in her Stunt Double, Have a hero Moment and Storm off Set, but you had to be careful when and how you used these powers because the GM could turn them against you in abused.

A fun, fast, amazing game system that embraced the fact that horror though frightening is also often Funny.

HIJINKS!

When the dark Rises, when the walls run red, when the monsters come out from under the bed. There is one name on the lips of all, one individual who will stand up against the Horror.! I of course mean Scobby- do.

Sooner or latter someone had to do a Saturday Morning Cartoon Mystery RPG and HIJINKS was the first I was made aware of and one of the best because it embraced this genera with the 3 Bowl of cereal love that all kids have for the Zany Adventures of those Meddling kids. It first was just a Mini Game inside a Dragon magazine but would latter appear as a Small indie game. Almost impossible to find, but if you do see it. Grab it. Put on your PJ's , grab a bowl of cereal and relive those wacky adventures

Delta Green

While most Horror Games operate under the assumption that only a few gifted/cursed individuals are aware of the “Things that go Bump In the Night”. Delta Green takes a more, logical view that after a while someone would notice that these things are out there and do something about it. In this case Delta Green is a RPG about the military taking the fight to the Monsters and Blowing them up! No mystical Mubo Jumbo, just good ol' Guns and Grenades!

Delta Green has appear under a few Publishers over the years, some used a Good RPG system other did not. I am unaware if the game is still in publication as I have not seen the product in quite a while, but if your like me and like the idea of the Military laying the smack down on those Vampires and Serial Killers then this is the game for you.

Buffy!

System wise the Buffy game, if you can find it is relatively a very good system that embraces the inherit TV quality of the Buffyvers and is a lot of fun to play. I loved the Simple Skill System of the Game.
There are other reasons why I love Buffy, but this is not the place to share them. Needles to say I consider the Show to be amazing and the RPG worth owning

 

Honorable Mention. Call of Cthulhu

I am the rare geek who is not a fan of Lovecraft, or the idea of a game where you can make a Character and then have him go insane in the first ten Minuets of the game. I honestly have never enjoyed playing a COC game (though I did like Delta Green) and I enjoy (And have written) Horror RPG's

COC has gone under so many incarnations and para-mutations due to the Public Domain nature of Lovecraft writings The Big Squid is everywhere and its hard to fear Cthulhu when you have seen the Plushy! Still the influence of Lovecraft on so many aspects of Fiction and Media and Role Playing can not be denied! (tentacle monsters anyone?) and the RPG maintains a die hard following and has had so many award winning products that you just can not talk about Horror with out talking about Lovecraft. Go Fighting Cephlopods!

Post Apocalypse.

It's the end of the World as we know it. While the 50's and 60's gave us Atomic Horror, the 70's and 80's gave us the desolation of mad max and other Horrors both Man made and fantastic. Post holocaust RPG's reflected the 1984 feel of the 80's. We had everything going for us and yet we were all awaiting the apocalypse that never came. While having a very large library of RPG's set in this genera, strangely enough most of them are More Arcane Punk/Weird War futures then just Nuclear Wastelands? Perhaps we wanted there to be some magic in our destruction?

The Marrow Project.

There is so much to say about this system and the fact it has withstood the test of time and still exists. Complicated and yet simple with some amazing ideas and of course it had the MARS-ONE which was just the Frelling cool. I could go on and on about how this game changed the shape of the beginnings of Role Playing , but I will just say it was Post Apocalypse Awesome!

Warp World

Warp World was one of the first Weird Wars games, it actually may predate RIFTS. It imagined that the Apocalypse would be more Super Natural then man made and that we would be having to deal with threats Both Nuclear and Weird. Plus it had ODIN as an NPC rock Star, I mean what a awesome idea? I pretty much loved every game that came out of BTRC's early days but this one holds a special honer because of the whole Odin/Rock Star Idea.

Other.

Face it I could do this for days,and I have not even touched on FANTASY (best for last). There are soooo many Role Playing genres that I just cant list every game I loved, so lets focus on the one's that stand out and I feel are truly important mile stones for our hobby?

R Talsorian Games Cyberpunk 2020

Not only is the INTERLOCK system one of the best gaming engines I ever used, this was the Cyberpunk game as far as I am concerned, it captured every aspect of the genera the way it should have be. True Steve Jackson games did get raided by the FBI when they put out GURPS Cyberpunk which is pretty cool, but Cyberpunk 2020 did it first and better! The fast, Violent combat system, the Live fast die pretty esthetics it was everything that was the 80's and the Cyberpunk Future we all wanted.

R Talsorin Games Teenagers From outer Space

There are a Lot of Generic Anime games that have come and gone, but TFOS which featured the Dumb Down version of what would become INTERLOCK captured the feel of Anime in a way that was truly original. Is BIG EYES /SMALL MOUTH a better Anime system? Well it lasted longer then TFOS but TFOS is as close to perfect a game System as I have ever seen and I constantly refer to it and INTERLOCK when I am designing a Game.

GURPS

I have a long standing Love/Hate relationship with GURPS but when it first came out it revolutionized the RPG market. A generic System? Well it had been done before but not as well as GURPS. GURPS was fresh, easy and exciting. It changed everything, soon everyone was jumping on the GENERIC system band Wagon and coming up with ways to create Multi genera worlds. Super Heroes, Giant Robots and elf’s all together! Wow. It was also a point based system which led to some very unusual ways to break . Like the fact you could be a vampire Horse for 0 points?

PARNOIA

Oh my god was this game just amazing, hilarious and so much fun. Everything about Paranoia was amazing, it took the ideas of Role Playing and turned them on there head by embracing the strange silly nature of our hobby. You were so busy having fun with this game that you did not mind when your Character died, after all you had 6 Clones waiting back for you in the vats

List goes on.....But now

FANTASY ROLE PLAYING.

We end where we began, with the genera that started it all. Sure people have been telling stories and playing “lets Pretend” for as long as history, but Gygax and company changed the world when they said “What if we had rules?”

Are any of us in this Hobby who did not get there RPG start with Dungeons and Dragons. Can you imagine the world of 2014 if we did not have D&D. World of War Craft? Nope, would not exist. Magic the Gathering-Gone. Big Bang Theory? Kit would be a Show on PBS. The list goes on and on and on. D&D has effected every aspect of life from Advertising to Movie making to cooking. It gave us a place to play and explore and discover the best versions of our selves that we could be.

So thanks guys.

Ars Magica

Ah, Ars Magica! What can I say about this game that has not already been said. Ever Watch the movie DRAGONSLAYER, imagine that as a RPG and you can begin to get the idea of how different and amazing this game was. I am not the only person who thinks that this was the best fantasy RPG ever made! Sadly things happen, games change as ownership and people change and the game that was became something else, still for a moment in time this was it-The game that got it right.

Record of Lodos War.

Ok not only is Record of Lodos War one of my favorite Fantasy Anime Series, but this Japanese version of D&D is awesome. It had everything our Dungeons and Dragons had but with a Japanese Anime flair that our Hobby so desperately needed in the early 80's. I am unaware if this has been Translated to English, but I had the ability to play it with my Japanese friend Tomoko a Long time ago!

Watch the Anime if you can, its a blast!

And so True believer we come to an end of me talking about stuff I like and why, from this point on these Posts will be less centered on my opinion and more about the History of Our hobby and various products and ideas that need reviewing or disusing and as always I am open to Suggestions and Ideas.

Now, as we put our dice away. I hope I have given you some fresh views into the amazing world of this Hobby that is almost 50 Years Old.

As for my finale BEST ROLE PLAYING GAME EVER!

Well its what ever RPG you are playing at the moment dear friend, that’s the best ONE ever because it is bringing YOU joy.

(though yeah TFOS is pretty damn close).

May all your games....BE EXCLENT!

• In addition, this is a link to a Almost complete list of Known, published Role Playing games. There are a few missing, but it's a good place to start.
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_role-playing_games_by_genre

“Things that go Bump in the Night” is Copyright Michael L Straus/Tiki Joe games 2014.

Any and all products and individuals mentioned in this article are Copyright by there respective owners and I have not received permission to use them, rather I am using the names under the “Public Domain” rules with no intention of making any money off the use of the names.