I don’t think rules lite games are “better” in some abstract sense, but rather is a potential benefit to certain gm and player types.
I think they're better for particular things, but not better in a broad "these are good, everything else is bad" sense. They're a tool in the toolbox. Use what you need, discard the rest.
I personally don’t necessarily have a problem with a rules-medium game, except that I’m usually the one at the table that knows the rules best thus which is tedious.
In a weird way, most people in FKR circles are the same way. They tend to be game hounds. Not just collectors but avid players of many systems with many levels of crunch. But, importantly, they don't see the rules or RAW as somehow holy. They have no trouble pulling games apart, hacking them, putting them back together just to see what happens. They're so familiar with the rules of so many games they realize that a whole lot of mechanics are smoke and mirrors. People who like solid mechanics object, but it's still true. So rather than deal with the smoke and mirrors, cut that out and get down to playing.
Also tedious is the 1001 minute differences among OSR rulesets; just pick one and go. Whether you have 6 stats or 4 or 3 in your booklet OSR game is not going to actually matter that much in play.
Exactly. Now zoom out on that to encompass all RPGs. It all comes down to describing your character's action, possibly using a randomizer, and having the referee describe the outcome. It doesn't really matter what system you're using (if any), it's all a conversation between the players and the referee and the occasional randomizer.
One of my favorite rules-light games is Microlite 20. I'm definitely pitching it to the next DM who asks me to try D&D. Note that the rules seem to be written in a 3e mindset, so you should speak D&Dese if you want to run M20 smoothly. Also, the character sheets (stat blocks to some of you) are blissfully short and sweet.
I remember hearing about that before but it slipped my mind. Thanks for the reminder.
I have had to run a RPG several time for children or beginners who really needed a "rules light" game. But instead of learning a different game, I have always just resorted to simplify D&D on the fly. I did this back in 3e and then again in 5e, which feels much easier to simplify. I just restrict character options and/or use pregenerated characters, and ignore some entire rules areas until I feel the result is simple enough for the current group. Knowing D&D quite well, this is much easier and faster for me than trying to find another game.
I started my kid super-young with RPGs. We played with a badly drawn map on a dry erase board, a few minis, and Fate dice. The rules didn't matter. We just played. Instead of it being cops and robbers ("I shot you!" "No you didn't!") the dice resolved any questions. It's some of the best gaming I've ever had. Cheers, laughing, creative problem solving.