Weirdest RPGs evah

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TristramEvans

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spurned on by this comment..

I wondered if Dallas was some western RPG I missed, like some other company's "Boot Hill" rip off. I googled it. Man. . .I was FAR off. Are there other bizarre gems like this??

dallas.JPG


how about it folks? Weirdest RPGs/RPG premises in history?

My first nomination is probably ....

The Elvira supplement for Chill
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It was just a series of regular, if a bit schlocky horror one-shots, with Elvira doing sarcastic introductions and wrap ups.
 
How about a game where you play busty superheroines and have tables for wardrobe mafunctions and other juvenile crap? Based on the cruddy Femforce comic book.
pic673227.jpg
 
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lol, I wa strying to think of that name of that one. Confused it with Macho Women with Guns. What's most extraordinary about tht one is that existed before pdfs and the internet were a thing: it was published an put in stores.

Oh, which reminds me...

611pPm6y5QL._AC_UL320_SR240,320_.jpg


Ironwood! The only (that I know of) RPG supplement based on a fantasy porn comic...

(cant find a bigger picture online)

This one I actually owned and reviewed for RPGnet years ago...
 
Here's three off the top of my head:
Hunter Planet: I get why it's supposed to be humorous, but it didn't really click for me by itself. As a crossover with Red Dwarf, Paranoia, or even the MIB RPG, it works, but by itself it just doesn't work for me.
HP_cover_sm.jpg

Low Life: Never owned this one. I know some people go in for really odd characters, but playing a sentient Twinkie isn't something I'd necessarily jump into without a few drinks.
low+life+front.jpg

Land of Og: This one could be kinda interesting...
s-l640.jpg
 
Honestly... Chuubo's Marvelous Wish Granting Engine has always seemed too far out there for me.
It also didnt help that it was the latest "big thing" being promoted by everyone for a while.
The whole premise and gameplay seemed too bizarre for me to give it a try. That and the price... 99 bucks for a hard cover. Ouch.
 
How about a gane where you play busty superheroines and have tables for wardrobe mafunctions and other juvenile crap? Based on the cruddy Femforce comic book.
View attachment 3223

From the time I was about eleven years old until twenty or so, I had a group of friends that were all six to eight years older than me. So, when I was twelve, they were all 18 to 20. We all hung out at the local comic book shop two or three days a week. They were the ones that introduced me to Villains & Vigilantes... and yes, Superbabes. Granted, I was 16 at the time and they were all 22 to 24. Being 16 and going to an all boys school, I was all "teehee" when introduced... but the veneer quickly wore off.
 
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The first issue of Dragon I ever owned, #45, had an article on Bunnies and Burrows. I've never actually seen what the original game looked like until now.

I did see this version plenty of times.
231815.jpg


Honestly... Chuubo's Marvelous Wish Granting Engine has always seemed too far out there for me.
It also didnt help that it was the latest "big thing" being promoted by everyone for a while.
The whole premise and gameplay seemed too bizarre for me to give it a try. That and the price... 99 bucks for a hard cover. Ouch.
I think I own that from a Bundle of Holding, but I have never actually looked at it.
 
Can we nominate every Leading Edge movie license RPG?

I remember flipping through the Lawnmower Man RPG and wondering what exactly did PCs do (other than shooting guns. Lots and lots of guns.).

Or flipping through the Bram Stoker’s Dracula RPG looking for stats for vampires and not finding them.
 
Can we nominate every Leading Edge movie license RPG?

I remember flipping through the Lawnmower Man RPG and wondering what exactly did PCs do (other than shooting guns. Lots and lots of guns.).

Or flipping through the Bram Stoker’s Dracula RPG looking for stats for vampires and not finding them.
I'll definitely accept The Lawnmower Man RPG.

Bram's Stoker's Dracula wasn't a weird idea for an RPG. It was just a baffling execution. I guess maybe that does make it weird.
 
Can we nominate every Leading Edge movie license RPG?

I remember flipping through the Lawnmower Man RPG and wondering what exactly did PCs do (other than shooting guns. Lots and lots of guns.)

Ok, you got me, I had no idea there was a Lawnmower Man RPG. Based on the film I assume rather than the Stephen King story?

If I squint I can kind see an adventure taking ideas from the sequel - a cyberpunk landscape, a "god in the machine", etc. But the first film - I'm at a complete loss as to how any RPG material could be derived from that
 
Not familiar with that one, what is it about?

From the website:

There is a place outside of normal existence called the Silhouette Rouge, a place where the conscious and subconscious merge, where the real and unreal are one in the same. The Sarcophagi, creatures lacking memory and identity, are imprisoned within this place. They walk the Silhouette Rouge hoping to divine its secrets for only revelation and enlightenment can grant them release.

Noumenon is a role-playing game of mystery and abstraction. Players assume the roles of the Sarcophagi, strange insect-like creatures trapped within the Silhouette Rouge. During their adventures, players will encounter bizarre entities and explore strange locations. The Silhouette Rouge, Noumenon's setting, is detailed enough to spark the imagination yet open enough to allow customization. In Noumenon, player cooperation is key. Noumenon uses a domino-based task resolution system that enables players to build upon each other's successes.

Transcendence or damnation? The Silhouette Rouge beckons.​
 
Oh man, those ARE gems. I would play Dallas. . . .Especially if you could play the matriarch mom just trying to run an oil business and keep your family from shooting your oldest son.
 
Oh man, those ARE gems. I would play Dallas. . . .Especially if you could play the matriarch mom just trying to run an oil business and keep your family from shooting your oldest son.
You can't make the comment that inspired this thread within the thead itself. You could pull us all into an infinite recursion!
 
Oh man, those ARE gems. I would play Dallas. . . .Especially if you could play the matriarch mom just trying to run an oil business and keep your family from shooting your oldest son.


It actually, perhaps surprisingly, is a very clever and playable game. I cant recall if the mom is one of the characters statted up (she may well be), but you could certainly play her.
 
From the website:

There is a place outside of normal existence called the Silhouette Rouge, a place where the conscious and subconscious merge, where the real and unreal are one in the same. The Sarcophagi, creatures lacking memory and identity, are imprisoned within this place. They walk the Silhouette Rouge hoping to divine its secrets for only revelation and enlightenment can grant them release.

Noumenon is a role-playing game of mystery and abstraction. Players assume the roles of the Sarcophagi, strange insect-like creatures trapped within the Silhouette Rouge. During their adventures, players will encounter bizarre entities and explore strange locations. The Silhouette Rouge, Noumenon's setting, is detailed enough to spark the imagination yet open enough to allow customization. In Noumenon, player cooperation is key. Noumenon uses a domino-based task resolution system that enables players to build upon each other's successes.

Transcendence or damnation? The Silhouette Rouge beckons.​


huh, colour me intrigued.
 
lol, I wa strying to think of that name of that one. Confused it with Macho Women with Guns. What's most extraordinary about tht one is that existed before pdfs and the internet were a thing: it was published an put in stores.

Oh, which reminds me...

611pPm6y5QL._AC_UL320_SR240,320_.jpg


Ironwood! The only (that I know of) RPG supplement based on a fantasy porn comic...

(cant find a bigger picture online)

This one I actually owned and reviewed for RPGnet years ago...

I read that review. Sounds fascinating.
 
Both of these games are by the same author:

Nobilis 1st Edition - this is loved by some. Not me, I just found it bloody confusing! How does one actually play this game?
I have very traditional games like BRP and D&D, and more newer systems like FATE and HQ. But Nobilis was just one step too far for me.
On top of that, the GM is referred to as 'The Hollyshock God' or something like that, it sounds so gaudy.

Chuubo's Marvellous Wishgranting Machine - This is strangely appealing to me to get and have a read. The concept is so unusual - something that feels like Howes Flying Castle meets Second Life, with moments of Adventure Time. Wow that does sound fantastic, but again, how the hell would you play that? What plots would even attract players? I actually dont have it for an educated comment, but first impressions it strikes me as a pretty unique and very odd rpg to have, and I doubt that anyone I know will want to participate in more than one session of it. However if I find it half price I might grab it out of curiousity, rather than utility.
 
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Bram's Stoker's Dracula wasn't a weird idea for an RPG. It was just a baffling execution. I guess maybe that does make it weird.

But why pay for the license?

I guess maybe if they were able to grab the license (including rights to film stills) for less than the cost of doing art it would make sense.
 
Of course you can, she's a Major Character with her own character sheet!
View attachment 3224

well, there you go.

I honestly never watched the show, and only know JR as Major Tony Nelson aka the stupidest man who ever lived. But the game I've held onto for years because it's quite nifty. One day I'll retroclone it as a Twin Peaks RPG...
 
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My brothers and I watched As the World Turns with my Mom after school and got sucked in. Too bad it never happened!

There is a PbtA game Pasión de las Pasiones based on telenovelas, the only reason I haven't checked it out yet is it is an ashcan (aka. beta) and I'd rather wait til they release the full, complete game.

download.jpeg
 
The first issue of Dragon I ever owned, #45, had an article on Bunnies and Burrows. I've never actually seen what the original game looked like until now.

I did see this version plenty of times.
231815.jpg



I think I own that from a Bundle of Holding, but I have never actually looked at it.

I am proud to say that I not only own that one but ran a reasonably long (for me) campaign in it. It plays pretty well, once you get past the silliness of the premise. There's a wealth of animal stories that you can draw inspiration from, and GURPS works well to model a world where you need to survive by caution and guile rather than brute force.

Both of these games are by the same author:

Nobilis 1st Edition - this is loved by some. Not me, I just found it bloody confusing! How does one actually play this game?
I have very traditional games like BRP and D&D, and more newer systems like FATE and HQ. But Nobilis was just one step too far for me.
On top of that, the GM is referred to as 'The Holyshock God' or something like that, it sounds so gaudy.

Chuubo's Marvellous Wishgranting Machine - This is strangely appealing to me to get and have a read. The concept is so unusual - something that feels like Howes Flying Castle meets Second Life, with moments of Adventure Time. Wow that does sound fantastic, but again, how the hell would you play that? What plots would even attract players? I actually dont have it for an educated comment, but first impressions it strikes me as a pretty unique and very odd rpg to have, and I doubt that anyone I know will want to participate in more than one session of it. However if I find it half price I might grab it out of curiousity, rather than utility.

As near as I can tell, you play Nobilis by letting the players stat up their overpowered monstrosities and then have them run around doing bizarre things. Someday, I'd like to test whether it's actually possible to run a campaign that isn't all about "how do we make this even more idiotic?", but I'd need players who were actually willing to take the damn thing seriously for that. :tongue:

As for Chuubo's... eh, your guess is as good as mine, really. I've seen people playing it a lot, so apparently it's possible, but I can never figure out how the rules are supposed to work in practice.
 
I am proud to say that I not only own that one but ran a reasonably long (for me) campaign in it. It plays pretty well, once you get past the silliness of the premise. There's a wealth of animal stories that you can draw inspiration from, and GURPS works well to model a world where you need to survive by caution and guile rather than brute force.

I always assumed it was essentially "Watership Down: The RPG", but I havent read it. I'd be up for that, anyways, but not sure about anyone I game with.
 
General Hospital would have been the RPG to do back in the 80s. Luke and Laura and all that. My mom watched that and of course while we were on school vacations and with one TV in the house, I got sucked in.
 
How about this one?

alma-mater2.jpg

This one has a bit of a reputation. It had a pretty hardcore representation of high school in the 70s (complete with mechanics for sex and drugs) and got banned from Gen Con. Grognardia wrote it up a while ago. Also famous for it's art by Erol Otus. I picked up a copy a couple years ago and the rules were hopelessly convoluted. But otherwise it sounded like an interesting game, if you were down for the mature subject matter. Never played it, naturally.
 
My brothers and I watched As the World Turns with my Mom after school and got sucked in. Too bad it never
Same here, but without our mother. Good times.

There is a PbtA game Pasión de las Pasiones based on telenovelas, the only reason I haven't checked it out yet is it is an ashcan (aka. beta) and I'd rather wait til they release the full, complete game.
This is the sort of thing I can see PbtA actually working for.
 
Noumenon is a role-playing game of mystery and abstraction. Players assume the roles of the Sarcophagi, strange insect-like creatures trapped within the Silhouette Rouge. During their adventures, players will encounter bizarre entities and explore strange locations. The Silhouette Rouge, Noumenon's setting, is detailed enough to spark the imagination yet open enough to allow customization. In Noumenon, player cooperation is key. Noumenon uses a domino-based task resolution system that enables players to build upon each other's successes.
Wow, that's one big WTF after another.
 
General Hospital would have been the RPG to do back in the 80s. Luke and Laura and all that. My mom watched that and of course while we were on school vacations and with one TV in the house, I got sucked in.

I cannot comment on my efforts to develop a hospital drama RPG except to observe that Mythras would be the perfect system.
 
I remember being home with the flu for a few weeks as a kid. I got slowly drawn into watching soaps while lying on the couch. However, by the end of my convalescence, I had already gotten frustrated with the constant reset buttons and unending new complications. It was fun while it lasted.
 
One of my earliest "RPGs" I made was a caveman fighting game called PrehistWAR. It was a straight up brawl game with hit location mechanics and rules for dismembering opponents and beating them with the bloody stumps.
Your character was the cheiftan and your fighters were clansmen. There was certain tribal abilities (like summoning a dinosaur as a finishing move to eat your opponent) and your upgrades were available for points to your fighters.
It was incredibly silly but good for one offs. Trash Talking your opponents could lead to gains. There was no GM, it was straight up "Meeting of the clans to battle it out"
 
I remember being home with the flu for a few weeks as a kid. I got slowly drawn into watching soaps while lying on the couch.
I had a similar experience after getting 4 wisdom teeth pulled when I was a kid. Lied on the couch for a couple of days, and watched a few episodes of The Young and the Restless. It was entertaining. But after the rehabbing was over, it was back to kid-stuff... and playing Dungeons & Dragons.
 
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