Announcing the BAMFSIES - a RPG awards focused on superhero RPGS

"There's a renaissance going on with supers RPGs right now"

There is?

 

[mikelaff]

The BAMFSIES are a new awards program which is focused specifically on superhero roleplaying games. The description says "There's a renaissance going on with supers RPGs right now - and it's not really reflected in mainstream RPG awards as those tend to be focused elsewhere."

Here's the full announcement:

WTF are the BAMFSIES?
The BAMFSIES are a cheeky and fun RPG awards focused solely on superhero RPGs.
We’re not nearly as serious as the Ennies. We’re probably more serious than the Grammys

WHY should I care?
There's a renaissance going on with supers RPGs right now - and it's not really reflected in mainstream RPG awards as those tend to be focused elsewhere.


So – the BAMFSIES aim to highlight the best in Supers RPGs.


HOW are you doing this?
We've assembled a crack team of judges from the tabletop rpg scene (check them out here)and we’ll be announcing the awards in a show on the BAMF Podcast in January of 2015.


But we don’t want to leave out the most important judge: you.
Visit our Gamer’s Choice page to weigh in on your favorite Supers RPG of the last year.


WHAT'S Going on NOW?
The Hall of Fame is already up and running.
Voting opens for the Gamer's Choice award immediately and run for the next 34 days. (Also -please use the comments section to write-in vote for any Supers RPGs that we may have missed.

WHEN do we find out who won?

In early January of 2015, we'll announce who wins the Gamer's Choice award AND reveal the awards from our panel of judges. We will announce the results here and on an episode of the BAMFcast.
​

 

[Morrus]

I'm no expert, but if a superhero RPG fan tells me it's so I guess I'll believe 'em! They have a list of 17 games for 2014 on their site, so that's more than one a month.

Capes, Cowls, and Villains Foul
Bulletproof Blues
Broken Shield
SUPERS! Revised Edition
Savage Worlds Super Powered Companion (2ndED)
Atomic Robo RPG
Venture City Stories
Valiant Universe RPG
Prowlers and Paragons
AMP Year One
Mutants and Marvels
Artificial Exotics
Icons Assembled Edition
Bash Ultimate Edition
GCore Prime
Cold Steel Wardens
Mutants and Masterminds 3rd Edition

 

[TerraDave]

OK, how many ENWorlders are playing them--outside of Mutants and Masterminds?

Is this the renaissance of supers heartbreakers, or are a bunch of people playing?

 

[ProtoClone]

OK, how many ENWorlders are playing them--outside of Mutants and Masterminds?

Is this the renaissance of supers heartbreakers, or are a bunch of people playing?

Currently not playing, but writing a campaign for Icons loosely based on DC's New52 Earth2.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I've bought and tried many supers games over the decades, and, even thought many have elements I like or even love, I still keep going back to HERO.

 

[Celebrim]

OK, how many ENWorlders are playing them--outside of Mutants and Masterminds?

Is this the renaissance of supers heartbreakers, or are a bunch of people playing?

I've never met a supers group in all the years I've spent playing RPGs. I've met groups that played Top Secret, Chill, Paranoia, Deadlands, Call of Cthulhu, Star Wars, and even RIFTS, but not one single Supers group using any rules set. I know that they exist - I've heard from quite a few on EnWorld - but I'd be really surprised if they've ever been particularly common.

A friend of mine once observed that GURPS was the most popular system no one ever played, because we all owned the books and enjoyed reading the books, but none of us were planning a GURPS campaign and even those that had played one never sustained it. I'm sure that there are exceptions of long running GURPS campaigns, but as a general rule I think his observation that GURPS was more popular with game book collectors than game book players holds true. I know I probably spent more time content smithing with GURPS than I ever did running the games. My cousin who played old school Traveller likewise used to spend a lot of time just random system building for the fun of it. It's a different way of enjoying RPGs than playing them, and I think it's probably more critical to the RPG economy than is realized.

I have, perhaps solely because of my unusual experience, have the suspicion 'Supers' games fall in the same category. I own some supers books myself, but have never actually played nor planned in any detail such a game.

 

[Morrus]

In my own personal experience over the years, I've played a few superhero games, but they tend to be either one-shots of short campaigns (a few weeks) rather than D&D-style lengthy campaigns. I'm not sure why that is.

 

[Boarstorm]

I'm a huge fan of Supers RPGs. And I'd love to run one, but all my attempts to entice players so far have resulted in a resounding "Meh."

I retain hope that it'll happen someday.

 

[Joe Liker]

In my own personal experience over the years, I've played a few superhero games, but they tend to be either one-shots of short campaigns (a few weeks) rather than D&D-style lengthy campaigns. I'm not sure why that is.

It's because the superhero genre does not lend itself to the mechanical advancement of a character. People love superheroes, and people want to roleplay them, but when you try to make it so they can level up, it stops feeling like superheroes.

But, in my experience, RPGs with no "level up" component tend to lack staying power. I understand this is a very broad statement, and of course gamers exist who love games without level-ups, but if you look at the big picture, I think this is definitely a contributing factor.

Also, while I admit that I haven't played every superhero game listed above, I have played more than a few, and I have yet to see one that successfully walked the line between too numbers-heavy (M&M) and too numbers-light (FATE). Marvel Heroic almost got there, but it's way too hard to teach, even if you're one of the few people who actually understands it.

Do any of these Bamfsies nominees fit the bill? I'd certainly be willing to look at a new one if it didn't suffer the same problems I seem to see in every superhero RPG I try.