What are the major RPG systems?

[Khayman]

Add to the list:
Rolemaster and its variants --- Spacemaster, and MERP (Middle Earth RP).
Warhammer FRP --- where the prestige class was born, or at least gestated.

In terms of mechanics, I'm hesitant to place OD&D and d20 in the same taxon except at a general level as "D&D". Even though they're ancestral to d20, the range of OD&D/1E/2E/2E+S&P are structurally distinct from d20. (Remember also that there were other variants of the OD&D system, like Tekumel.)

Oh look, I've just become one of those 'splitters' that I so loathe.

 

[diaglo]

Oh look, I've just become one of those 'splitters' that I so loathe.

hate the game, not the playa

i do.

my hat of d02 know no limit

 

[buzz]

Well, don't overestimate the influence, given that these things can and do develop independantly. Given D&D's classed, level based system, the choice to design otherwise is a pretty natural one.

But doesn't it matter that these are the systems that did it first, and have been doing them the longest? Particularly when initially doing so in an era when most games tended to ape the design choices of D&D rather than challenge them?

FWIW, I don't think it's possible to overstate the influence of BRP (esp. in the form of RuneQuest, not to mention CoC) and Champions/HERO. Every "storytelling" game and point-based game, respectively, owes its existence to these two games, IMHO. And let's not forget Tweet's statements about RuneQuest (a game from 1978) being a big influence on his design of D&D3e (a game from 22 years later).

 

[Staffan]

Yeah but GDW went out of business thanks to a lawsuit by TSR.

I can't find the Gygax FAQ at the moment, but IIRC he said something along the lines of "The lawsuit was not what killed GDW. As part of the settlement, TSR paid a lot of money for the rights to DJ/Mythus, as well as buying up all the inventory."

 

[Calico_Jack73]

I can't find the Gygax FAQ at the moment, but IIRC he said something along the lines of "The lawsuit was not what killed GDW. As part of the settlement, TSR paid a lot of money for the rights to DJ/Mythus, as well as buying up all the inventory."

I know... the legal costs are what did it. Sorry if I didn't write clearly.

Edit: Oops... I found this FAQ by Loren Wiseman and it has all the particulars on why GDW went out of business.

FAQ with Loren Wiseman

 

[GrumpyOldMan]

Don’t know whether any of these are ‘major’ systems. It all depends on how you define major.

But, games I’ve played and enjoyed (to a greater or lesser extent):

D&D
AD&D
RuneQuest
Traveller
James Bond 007 (this is/was damn good for James Bond style games, much better than Top Secret)
Call of Cthulhu
Champions
Warhammer
Bushido
Judge Dredd (whatever happened to Judge Ment, and Judge Judge?)
2300AD
Earthdawn
Pendragon (Brave Sir Aaron of Logres, oh how you’ve come so low, stood on by a giant, just a week ago)
Savage Worlds
On my ‘current campaign’ shelves are:
HârnMaster, and
RuneQuest (I’ll try HeroQuest again, I’m sure but….)

 

[Wombat]

We are creating lists of favourite system here, rather than major.

If you are going for the systems that have sold well, you only end up with a handful:

D&D
GURPS
Storyteller

After that you have

BRP
Palladium
Heroes/Champions

Everything else, whether you love it or hate it, is pretty much filler.

Heck, I love Ars Magica to tears, but I would never consider it a "major" system; D6/WEG had its following, but never the real numbers.

There are the Big Three and The Others. That's called marketing.

 

[Thanee]

Not really major, but those seem to not have been mentioned yet:

Silhouette
d6 System
Interlock
Fuzion
Tri-Stat
Deadlands
TORG

Then there are those really minor systems:

Tales from the Floating Vagabond
The Morrow Project
Timelords
Battlelords of the 20th century
Machineguns & Sorcery

...and countless other...

As major I'd count the following:

D20
Storyteller
BRP
HERO
GURPS
Shadowrun
Palladium
Rolemaster

Bye
Thanee

 

[Virtue]

More RPGS

Well you forgot even though they went out of bussiness the awesome D6 Star Wars game bye Wst End games
On a technicallity Green Ronin and the Mutants and Masterminds is a diferent d20 system where the d20 is the only dice used at all
and a recap to make sure i list all that we play
D20
warhammer
Games workshop Inqisitor
Shadowrun
World of Darkness d10s
LARP (We dont play)
Champions

 

[Darkness]

Tri-Stat/BESM is the only relatively important system I haven't seen mentioned yet. (edit - Because I overlooked Thanee's post. )

But yeah, really 'major' are only D&D/d20 and Storyteller; everything else is secondary.