Upcoming Superhero RPGs Coincidence or Zeitgeist

[Thomas Shey]

My wife and I were talking about this week's episode and I argued that Invincible is really a very conventional Superman story, just drilling down on two things: 1) How tough Superman's villains need to be to challenge him in combat (which is why the best Superman stories tend to be ones where they attack him through other means) and 2) the consequences of being Superman, including the collateral damage and all the people he cannot save, no matter how hard he tries.

These are things that DC doesn't want to fully engage in -- they don't want to talk themselves out of the Superman business any more than they want to send Bruce Wayne to therapy and let him resolve his issues in other ways -- but yeah, at the end of the day, Invincible is basically Kirkman trying to win an argument in his local comic book shop, plus jokes and a great cast.

Yeah. The thing is, its easy to see Invincible as deconstructionist, but other than that one abandoned convention in combat, its really not (and even that convention is sometimes finessed; I can think of a couple cases where people kept living with damage they probably shouldn't have with what we know about their particulars, they just got to do it after taking gruesome injuries that'd probably wouldn't have occurred outside an Iron Age style comic (which Invincible really isn't).

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Yeah. The thing is, its easy to see Invincible as deconstructionist, but other than that one abandoned convention in combat, its really not (and even that convention is sometimes finessed; I can think of a couple cases where people kept living with damage they probably shouldn't have with what we know about their particulars, they just got to do it after taking gruesome injuries that'd probably wouldn't have occurred outside an Iron Age style comic (which Invincible really isn't).

Oh, I'm not saying it's deep. Alan Moore would have done a lot more with this if he had been in charge. (And indeed, his run on Supreme, while mostly light and breezy, was a lot more thoughtful than this.) I don't think Kirkman competes in the same league by any means.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Oh, I'm not saying it's deep. Alan Moore would have done a lot more with this if he had been in charge. (And indeed, his run on Supreme, while mostly light and breezy, was a lot more thoughtful than this.) I don't think Kirkman competes in the same league by any means.

That wasn't actually a criticism on my part; I watch Invincible, but don't watch The Boys even though there's apparently a lot of quality in the latter, because the last thing I need is deconstruction week in, week out.

 

[MichaelSomething]

It's not a super hero zeitgeist until a Mystery Men TTRPG is made!

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

Needs more Flaming Carrot.

 

[ngenius]

Thanks everyone for all the contributions to this discussion. The main reason I brought up this topic is that I got wind of several Superhero RPGs being crowdfunded within a similar timeframe. Maybe it has been his way for years, but I am just noticing it this quarter. My concern was the dilution of the financing from the target demographics, I for one, am unable to fund them all, and will have to pick and choose. Therefore, I can almost confidently claim no million Dollar funding for this any of these superb projects.

Indominant Superhero Tabletop RPG: Super's Information Codex

Indominant is a superhero system with the flexibility to allow any play style mixed with any Powerset, keeping things streamlined. Combining those with crunchy combat that is tactically rewarding, without bloat, the mechanics foster teamwork and combos!

www.backerkit.com

 

[dbolack]

There are lots of supers games because everyone has OPINIONS on supers. I really like M&M3 but my supers group prefers M&M2 or Hero. I can't stand narrative supers games but lots of people put Masks at the top of the heap. I think it may be the most divisive TTRPG genre.

As an aside: I'm still waiting for that really great superhero cRPG.

Freedom Force?

 

[Wofano Wotanto]

Therefore, I can almost confidently claim no million Dollar funding for this any of these superb projects.

Much as I like the genre, I'm dubious about any supers TTRPG reliably hitting a million through crowdfunding. You're really getting into niche of a niche of a niche territory with supers TTRPGs, and more general-interest projects still struggle to reach seven figures.

Splitting interest half-a-dozen ways sure won't help any either, though.

 

[Reynard]

Freedom Force?

I love ot when people suggest a 25+ year old game as an answer to "I wish the games industry served this need."

 

[Thomas Shey]

Thanks everyone for all the contributions to this discussion. The main reason I brought up this topic is that I got wind of several Superhero RPGs being crowdfunded within a similar timeframe. Maybe it has been his way for years, but I am just noticing it this quarter. My concern was the dilution of the financing from the target demographics, I for one, am unable to fund them all, and will have to pick and choose. Therefore, I can almost confidently claim no million Dollar funding for this any of these superb projects.

Indominant Superhero Tabletop RPG: Super's Information Codex

Indominant is a superhero system with the flexibility to allow any play style mixed with any Powerset, keeping things streamlined. Combining those with crunchy combat that is tactically rewarding, without bloat, the mechanics foster teamwork and combos!

www.backerkit.com

View attachment 399281

Usually, the target audiences aren't exactly the same. A crunchy detail-oriented semi-simulationist system isn't liable to be calling to the same people as a heavily narrative focused storytelling game, and games in the middle may likely be calling out to a third group.