...and what games do you hope to see next decade?

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Raleel

The Lemon LeCroix of Mythras
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I'll start here. I want a really good Romance of the Three Kingdoms game. Something no less crunchy than Cortex Prime. I would love Mythras, but there are other options here as well, but it's something I struggled with due to the volume of the material. I don't think it's really been done justice, and with too many fancy mechanics.
 
Does it count that I know I’ll see it next decade? Cuz I’m super hyped for Aberrant and Adventure 2nd edition.

oh, I know. I hope the next Trinity Continuum game in the docket is Aegis!
 
I want to see more games that break up the cadence of how RPGs are played. More stuff like Shinobigami for instance. Which has a completely different assumed structure from "GM describes location/situation, you react, say where you are going, GM describes location/situation, you say what you do, etc."

Also more games that break up the structure of conflict from D&D assumptions of repetitive actions. Things like Anima Prime for instance that has a build up and release kind of style in combat.

I just want to see more different things that FEEL different.
 
Well, I am definitely looking forward with hope for the new Dune RPG. I don't know what it will be like yet, but when the hype starts to build for the new movies, I'll probably go for it anyway.

I have some big hopes for the new lines based on the Pendragon mechanics - the Magician one, the Greek warrior one and Samurai.

The Design Mechanisms' Casting The Runes and Chaosium's Rivers of London look interesting.

Beyond that, I'm mostly interested in expansions of games I already have, in all honesty.
 
Looking forward to the Labyrinth game when it comes out
 
I'll start here. I want a really good Romance of the Three Kingdoms game. Something no less crunchy than Cortex Prime. I would love Mythras, but there are other options here as well, but it's something I struggled with due to the volume of the material. I don't think it's really been done justice, and with too many fancy mechanics.

A hundred times yes.

I used Prince Valiant for this with reasonable success, but I would absolutely snap up a good system dedicated to this.
 
I'd settle for any mecha game that fits what I want out of a mecha game... so far everything has a flaw or two that bugs me.


I'd love to hear you expound on that...what ones have you played and what were the flaws for you? Better yet, what would ideally the *perfect* mecha RPG do/consist of?
 
I'll start here. I want a really good Romance of the Three Kingdoms game.

Paul Mason's Outlaws of the Water Margin RPG comes pretty close to accomplishing that for me.
 
I'd settle for any mecha game that fits what I want out of a mecha game... so far everything has a flaw or two that bugs me.

Hearts of Wulin, Masks, and Urban Shadow finally nailed the genres of wuxia, supers, and urban fantasy for me. I am confident that PbtA can do the mecha genre too, but so far it’s been noticeable absent from the system. I could do Robotech with Impulse Drive but really want an Evangelion style game.
 
I'd love to hear you expound on that...what ones have you played and what were the flaws for you? Better yet, what what ideally the *perfect* mecha RPG do/consist of?

Here are the things that I want out of a mecha RPG:

1. The game is built around every player playing a mecha pilot. I find that games where this isn't the case, if you want to run a straight mecha game with everyone playing pilots, the mechanical difference between your pilots becomes less than it should be, because the expected mechanical difference of the system was built around the idea of one person playing a pilot, one person playing a bridge bunny one person playing a commando, etc.

2. Pilot stats should matter in mech. A lot of games do this thing where they just have you make your mech as an entirely different character basically. I hate this approach because it means you can't really have "standard" mechs. The example I always give is that yes Heero Yuy has Wing Gundam, but if he jumps into a Leo, he is still going to kick your ass cause he's Heero Yuy. To do that in games where you just stat your mech completely separately you basically have to restat the Leo to account for Heero's skill.

3. Mech combat should feel different than personal combat. If it plays exactly the same only with bigger numbers, it's not very interesting. One of the things that I think I do like here is things like damage being done differently. Like destroying systems/parts of the mech as it gets damaged.

4. Lack of godstat syndrome. In games that tend to fill #2, there is one stat that is infinitely more useful than all others for mech combat. Usually the dex variant.

5. Fairly streamlined without being so streamlined that mechanical choice seems nonexistent.

6. Actually just be not clunky. I know this one is subjective but you know, it is what it is :tongue:.

7. Not feel tacked on to another system that doesn't really work well with mecha/vehicles.

Games I've played:
Robotech (Palladium). Fails 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6
Robotech (Savage Worlds) Fails 1, 4, 7
Mekton, Fails 4, 5, 6
BESM, Fails 1, 3
Remnants, Fails 2 (A game I actually do like, if I get the urge to specifically run its setting I'd probably play it, and that isn't that farfetched, its a pretty cool/open setting)
Battle Century G, Fails 2 (still a good game for very specific types of games)
Silhouette (Jovian Chronicles being my favorite), fails 5. Probably the closest to perfect for me I've seen so far.
Mecha by Chris Perrin, Fails 5 (and surprisingly the first game that fails it in the TOO streamlined way)

Games I've read but not played:
Mecha Hack, Fails 2, 5 (TOO streamlined)
Tiny Frontiers: Mecha vs Monsters, Fails 2, 5 (too streamlined again)
Tears of a Machine, This one Fails 2 in like the opposite direction somehow. Mech stats are nonexistent That said, it's a really good and interesting game that is really badly written. Like the mechanics are all neat but the man needs an editor, both the writing type and the rules focused type. Would love to run this one (It is basically Eva with the numbers filed off)

Games that I've read but my brain rejected for reasons I can't readily remember:
Cthulhutech
The Aegis Project

And then there is a game like Bliss Stage which... has a multitude of problems (that could be fixed through kind of desquicking some of the worst stuff from the author), but would only really work for running its very very specific concept.
 
I’m not the OP, but yes:
View attachment 14055

They are my second favourite series of game books after Lone Wolf. Like LW, they had character progression between books. You picked Ninja specialisations for your character and gained more as the series progressed.
Same here. Though I'd say they were my favourite over Lone Wolf because the combat system was based on picking what kung fu move you would do next.
 
I’m currently looking forward to the Zorro game because I love the character and I’m looking toward to seeing what Gallant Knight Games is going to do with this new “second edition” of the West End Games’ D6 system they are working on.
 
I could really use an official 5e Modern of some sort, the D&D 5e equivalent of D20 Modern. It would function as a comforting way to transfer players to new genres while retaining some of that hard-earned system mastery.

Failing that, the definitive modern action game, the one that is broadly recognized as the best bet for modern action needs.
 
Ooh, ooh, or 5e Historic books, like the old TSR ones. Dumb as they may be, I have a soft spot for what they were trying to do.

WFiIWIC.jpg
 
I just want to see more different things that FEEL different.

Me too.

I want games that are more than a group of people wandering around killing things. Don't get me wrong, I like wandering and killing things. Then getting stuff that makes me better at killing things. But I own over a dozen solid options for doing that. So, I don't feel compelled to buy new books on killing things in 95% the same way.

Maybe a streamlined version Amber rpg. Intrigue focused. Maybe a game that is both cooperative and competitive, where pvp is expected but there is a larger goal to that prevents total party destruction.

I'd also like a truly cooperative game. Most rpgs are largely people taking turns to shine on their turn while others watch or play with their phone. I'd like actions to interact more so players pay more attention to other players' actions.

Maybe different goals and setups. Like a dating simulator where you are trying to impress come and make others look bad. Maybe a game about keeping the band together though you have to solve mysteries along the way. Maybe games with even bigger choices in them, like boosting or impeding magic, which affects the rest of the game.

Though I think the biggest thing would be shorter books. I think the model of "read this tome to reach the level of noob" is nearing saturation. I want more games of "here's the page of rules, take 5 minutes to make a character, now lets do stupid stuff for the rest of the evening." Though I realize the financials favor selling shelves of tomes to a a smaller number of customers over getting a couple of bucks and hoping for larger sales.
 
I'd like to see a game based on myth and legends that actually plays like the myths and legends, not just D&D in a bear skin or toga.

Not just good research either, I mean GURPS has already done this from that perspective. Needs to be based around a system that encourages the proper behavior and allows the players to play very powerful but flawed / cursed heroes. Since this is what I'd like to see, I'd prefer something not too light but also not too crunchy.
 
I'd like to see a game based on myth and legends that actually plays like the myths and legends, not just D&D in a bear skin or toga.

Not just good research either, I mean GURPS has already done this from that perspective. Needs to be based around a system that encourages the proper behavior and allows the players to play very powerful but flawed / cursed heroes. Since this is what I'd like to see, I'd prefer something not too light but also not too crunchy.
Well, there is King Arthur Pendragon, which certainly is designed towards playing Knights in authentic ways, and is apparently going to have its rules adapted to playing Greek heroes sometime soon.
 
With Wolves of God scheduled to release in 2020, I'd say the next decade is looking pretty good for me. I hope to see more RPGs that explore historical periods rather than high fantasy. There's a few good ones kicking around, but so much room for more.
 
I’m not the OP, but yes:
View attachment 14055

They are my second favourite series of game books after Lone Wolf. Like LW, they had character progression between books. You picked Ninja specialisations for your character and gained more as the series progressed.
There was also one book in the Fighting Fantasy gamebook series set in the same setting (Orb): Talisman of Death

Talisman of Death

By the way, in case any Way of the Tiger fans don't know, they republished the series a few years ago and added a couple new books. Book 7, Redeemer, which finishes the series (it originally ended on a cliffhanger), and Book 0, Ninja, which is a prequel.
 
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I'd also like a truly cooperative game. Most rpgs are largely people taking turns to shine on their turn while others watch or play with their phone. I'd like actions to interact more so players pay more attention to other players' actions.
I was surprised when I actually tried D&D B/X as written. It has group initiative rather than the standard individual initiative. I'd always viewed it as just a way of making the game simpler, but it does help everyone to be more involved and act as a team, when you say "What is everyone doing?" rather than isolating everyone in their own individual action. You get more creativity and teamwork.
 
I was surprised when I actually tried D&D B/X as written. It has group initiative rather than the standard individual initiative. I'd always viewed it as just a way of making the game simpler, but it does help everyone to be more involved and act as a team, when you say "What is everyone doing?" rather than isolating everyone in their own individual action. You get more creativity and teamwork.
I always use group initiative. I never go around the table individually but instead ask the group what they're doing for the round and let them all declare actions before we start resolving. It seems to prompt them to coordinate a lot more and my players really like the freedom of a more open turn order.
 
Well, there is King Arthur Pendragon, which certainly is designed towards playing Knights in authentic ways, and is apparently going to have its rules adapted to playing Greek heroes sometime soon.
I would like The Design Mechanism to release Mythic Greece and I hope new licenses they are taking on don’t delay that.
Why must you guys always find new things for me to wreck my budget with? :argh::tongue::sad::hehe:
 
Games we hope to see:

Flashing Blades (Revised): the same rules with a couple of minor errors corrected, with more reader-friendly layout (for instance, new chapters starting on new pages) in a larger typeface (because I'm getting old), with all the supplemental material from the modules integrated into the core, plus all the adventures appended to the end, in a durable hardcover with the original art still in place. :clown:
 
With Wolves of God scheduled to release in 2020, I'd say the next decade is looking pretty good for me. I hope to see more RPGs that explore historical periods rather than high fantasy. There's a few good ones kicking around, but so much room for more.
Kevin says he’s got a series of those planned. Spread out over the next decade or more.
 
GURPS Girl Genius is my perennial answer to questions like this, though at this point it's largely out of habit. I haven't even been following the comic since the timeskip.

Somewhat more imminently, I'm looking forward to Hellenistika, Ken Hite's post-Alexandrian Greek Historical Fantasy setting for 5E*, which is supposed to be hitting Kickstarter next year, maybe as soon as next month.

*Or possibly 13th Age, but I think the commercial version is 5E.
 
Well,if we are talking wishlists...

Some BRP stuff first...

Mythic Greece
(Mythras) needs to happen, with a line to support it, not just one book.

More Gloranthan stuff for RuneQuest. I can't get enough of the setting.
I would also welcome a RQ-lite book, that streamlines the rules down somewhat with a simplier character sheet, yet retaining the core RQ/BRP system. On the Chaosium FB page, this was something that John Wick said he would be interested in developing. However it was more of an off-hand comment than anything else. I'ld just like to see it happen.

I would like to a rule set for BRP (like MagicWorld, perhaps with a better name), one that has a old school dark classic fantasy setting. Think of Dungeon Crawl Classics-meets-Forbidden Lands. Now that would seriously kick some butt.

Leaving BRP behind and moving on...

Some more relases for 13th Age would be welcome,, it''s a great version ofa 'D20 fantasy'.
I like the mechanics better than D&D 5E, it kinda feels like D&D + Fate; and I prefer the setting way better than Forgotten Realms or Eberron.

I would also like to see Evil Hat return to making more products for their house system of Fate Core, as the majority of the recent products has been for PbtA. Also they need to change their presentation - keep the digest sized hardcover books, but put some decent high quality art in it, rather than just the pulpy juvenile art often used in Fate - otherwise everyone thinks Fate Core is just a generic system suited to Pulp Adventure, which really sells it short.

I would also welcome a line of books for Talislanta The Savage Land, now that the core book is released.

And, just as a personal wish, I would love to see the Ghostbusters game re-released as a hardcover book, just like the WEG Star Wars was repulished as a a limited edition slipcase.
 
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I could really use an official 5e Modern of some sort, the D&D 5e equivalent of D20 Modern.
Troll Lord games recently did a kickstart for 5E Amazing Adventures, which might do a lot of what you are looking for a game to do. The 1E of AA was similar to C&C and clearly had a "pulp" vibe to it, but the newer edition is supposed to be more of a universal system that can be played in pretty much any era. (The kickstart is done, but books aren't out yet. I did some playtesting and liked it. I ran a modern-day Harry Dresden style game.)
 
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