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I hate to microanalyze the example, but it sounds to me like player knowledge vs character knowledge was a real barrier. It's certainly understandable that a GM wouldn't have spent time detailing the security of the gambling house before play. And just as understandable to assume that the PCs...

Night's Black Agents contains "DVD Commentary" assembled from the playtest sessions. Not sure if that's the depth you are looking for, however.

Gumshoe has two mechanics for auto-success in the form of general abilities and investigative spends. I use the latter a lot for things like changing an NPCs' reaction towards the PCs.

When the PCs have an ultimate goal, and are competent to use a variety of methods to achieve it, they tend to drive what happens in the game. I wouldn't pitch a game without letting the players know that this was the case. Even a sandbox game has "explore uncharted regions" as a presumed goal...

I have some quibbles with your definitions of both things, but this thread isn't the place for them.

What do posters here consider mechanics that foster (or hinder) imagination, for varying values of imagination? I can get inspiration by simply reading a well written game book, but I can't see that being what the OP had in mind.

This examination of a contemporary issue is large part of dystopian science fiction. I agree with her/you that it's not typical, but it does what the best dystopian literature does. I guess "speculative fiction" is a better term that wasn't in widespread use in 1985. I was struggling to name...

If a dystopian setting starts off as an extrapolation from the trends of a status quo, how can it not be considered science fiction? I am struggling to think of one that doesn't fit that model. Of course, that description can arguably apply to all alternate histories, too....

Hogwarts during Harry Potter's 7th year is a good model for an RPG setting, as [spoilers for a 15-year old book] The main characters can remain off-stage until the climax of the campaign.

Secret/Weird History for me as well. Second would be Action Horror - I have difficulty striking the tone for straight horror.

Agreed, although I am happy if skills overlap at various edge points. To delve into the bandit example, having a cooking skill should mean that the act of cooking is important - possibly the designer meant the game should feel realistic, or wanted to emphasize resource management. Or it's tied...

The question still stands.

I understand the frustration, but it doesn't have to be as big a problem as you make it. It depends on how much of the group is familiar with the metaplot, how big the changes are over time, and how much of the setting PCs can change as they go.

I did a game where one PC broke into a security station and was watching the other PC on monitors, stumbling towards an ambush.

What are some other reasons? If the point of extra rolls is to heighten tension, it can be accomplished just as easily using dramatic techniques.

I don't understand how the bandit bbq is railroading as opposed to group improvisation. That said, a GM should not call for a roll unless there are interesting results for success or failure. I think Celebrim implies that the consequences of failure were undefined before the roll was made?

I will say "literary Earth" like Anno Dracula or The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (or Passages, an old 3rd edition/OGL game). I like the ability to meet historical figures as well as fictional ones, and the ability to wind up in dramatic plots. Game wise, that means The Dracula Dossier for...

It depends on what the group enjoys. I have a pretty high tolerance for passive GMing if the players like the fluff. But A GM should have the right to be able to frame scenes to get to interesting stuff as quickly as possible, if it suits their play style and it's disclosed.

I think the original Top Secret was supposed to operate in this fashion. I can't say for sure, since we never did it. I prefer the Die Hard method of gaming, where declining hit points are cosmetic until death.

Villains & Vigilantes had a pretty detailed calculation for a hero's carrying capacity, which determined his base damage. IIRC it required exponents and division, which wasn't too hard in high school when we played. I don't think adult me would stand for that in 2023.