How to Select an RPG system (a chart)

[jdrakeh]

I think I can address many of these in the next update. The prior comment also led me to a few of the other games. But remember it is mostly just for fun... maybe a tiny bit useful to point out a couple of tidbits about each game. Its pretty silly to boil the games concepts and/or mechanics to essentially a couple of bullet points. But that's also part of what (I hope) makes it funny.

If it makes you feel better, reading the comment "A fascist could make it for all I care" about Rifts had me laughing out loud.

 

[Relique du Madde]

The problem with "animeN is that there really are three or four systems for those games if you don't cound those tailor made for mecha. Also alot of anime games are based on licenses which basically comes down to "using/modding X system to play Y"

BESM was once THE anime rpg. I personally consider Mutants and Masterminds is this systems spiritual successor (see below).

Slayers RPG BESM d20 spin off... was pretty much dead on arrival since it came out right before Guardians of Order tanked.

Fuzion (a multi genre point buy system created by Hero and R.Talsorian games) but mostly was adapted for different anime licenses. At once point I concidered this system to be BESMs nemesis.

Mekton an anime inspired mecha game system created by R.Talsorian games.

OAV... Its a multigenre anime system but I have no clue about its specifics.

Dream Pod 9 did Heavy Gear and several other games. These games are often anime based and range from mecha (heavy gear) to space opera (jovian chronicals). Im not sure if their games are all based on the Sillohette System or if only the newer games use that. Also I'm not sure if they are all anime inspired (I never flipped through Tribes 8 to check if that was post apocalyptic Anime, which I assumed it was.)

Silver Aged Sentinels. A super hero game that exists as the evolutionary step between GoO's BESM and Green Ronin's Mutants and Masterminds due to Steve Kenson's involvement in this game.

 

[Korgoth]

Don't forget Sengoku, you gaijin! It's one part workable role playing system (Fuzion), nine parts erudite treatment on life in feudal Japan. It is the book which must be on the shelf of anyone running a game set in the Sengoku jidai.

 

[Relique du Madde]

Don't forget Sengoku, you gaijin! It's one part workable role playing system (Fuzion), nine parts erudite treatment on life in feudal Japan. It is the book which must be on the shelf of anyone running a game set in the Sengoku jidai.

Sengoku? As in that game that killed Bushido: Roleplaying in Feudal Japan and stole its stuff*?


* I think I remember looking through Sengoku and thinking, why does this look familier while not knowing that is was written by the makers/designers of Bushido.

 

[Theo R Cwithin]

A bewildering array of parallelepipeds, too many pointy bits, sharp corners hurt the brain!


An interesting flowchart there, though I note a conspicuous lack of hr-type options like Microlite20 and E6 in the general vicinity of PF/fantasyD20/3-3.5e.

And no Western love?

(Actually, it would be interesting to see similar charts for 1975, 1985, 1995, 2000, 2005, and nowadays. Mighty Morphin' Power animated charts, FTW!)

 

[MichaelSomething]

You must spread some Experience Points around before giving it to indyjoe again.

Your the first person this ever happened to for me!

 

[InkwellIdeas]

Thanks all for the suggestions! I've added many of these, although it is a bit hard to keep up and consider where to add it (and rearrange it to fit.)

I added Mecha and Westerns sections and placed a few games in each, rephrased the "Modern" genre, renamed the "gritty" fantasy sub-genre to "low fantasy," moved it and added Hârnmaster, and added several other games based on comments here and on the linked page.

 

[Olgar Shiverstone]

Where's the path that has you pick Spawn of Fashan?

 

[Arlough]

Do you like drinking while playing?
::|
Yes------------->Can you keep track of dice?
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::|::::::::::::::::|
::::::::::::::::::::::::::Yes::::::::::Probably not
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::|::::::::::::::::|
:::::no thanks-------Ninjas?::::Can you make stuff up?--Yes-->Baron Münchhausen
::::::::::|::::::::::::::::|::::::::::::::::|
Kobolds ate my baby::|:::::::::::::::No
::::::::::::::::::::::::can I?:::::::::::::|
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::|::::::::::Go play quarters
:::::::::::::::::::::Ninja Burger

 

[Dausuul]

You need to have FATAL in a box on its own off to the side, with no way to actually get to it.