What RPGs genres are lacking?

[Greg K]

Agreed on the lack of mostly-historic Westerns.
There are several on DTRPG that I've not looked at:
Cowboy World (PBTA, has a chapter on "Going Weird"
Colts & Crooks (the description section is a poem...)
Sidewinder (setting book for Savage Worlds)
Rider (I suspect it's a Traveller/Cepheus retheme, as it's from Independence game.)
Cowpunchers Reloaded (doesn't specify system)

I can't recommend Sidewinder: Recoiled (Dog House Rules) for Savage Worlds enough. There was also a d20 Modern version back in the day,

I will add
GURPS Old West: Revised Edition (Steve Jackson Game): a GURPS historical genre sourcebook for GURPS 3e
Western Hero (Hero Games): a genre sourcebook for Hero System 4e. I think there may be an updated version for the current edition of Hero system.

 

[Lategamer]

17th/18th Century settings that arent flashing blades or pirates

Ive always been fascinated by the history of the British East India Company and its colonisation and rule in India - especially from the perspective of the Mughals. An expert treatment of that would be amazing

The most obvious ones would be Duty&Honour and Good Society. So there's a couple, but not enough for sure. I made a One Page RPG (Chosen Men) for representing Sharpe. Sharpes career started in India (for those who didn't read the book series).

I've kinda struggled to find games that represent India well. I mean, I'm working on a fantasy game where the martial artists and sword saints of the Far East are in conflict with the plainly superhuman exploits we read/watch in the Mahabharata. Yes, playing fast and loose with history, but that's why it's a fantasy game rather than alt-history.

Pulp Heroes is neglected

Goodness, I think pulp is overdone and pretty cooked. I mean, everything from Outgunned to Achtung Cthulhu, from Savage Worlds to the AEON stuff. I mean that's even without mentioning a lot of the older ones (like GURPS).

 

[Tonguez]

The most obvious ones would be Duty&Honour and Good Society. So there's a couple, but not enough for sure. I made a One Page RPG (Chosen Men) for representing Sharpe. Sharpes career started in India (for those who didn't read the book series).

I've kinda struggled to find games that represent India well. I mean, I'm working on a fantasy game where the martial artists and sword saints of the Far East are in conflict with the plainly superhuman exploits we read/watch in the Mahabharata. Yes, playing fast and loose with history, but that's why it's a fantasy game rather than alt-history.

Yeah I've got Duty & Honour and it has certainly has certainly informed my thinking on the era, though I dont get to play it much, But it is indeed getting into the Moghul India side of things thats challenging

BTW Your sword saints v Prince of Rajyapura sounds absolutely brilliant!

Goodness, I think pulp is overdone and pretty cooked. I mean, everything from Outgunned to Achtung Cthulhu, from Savage Worlds to the AEON stuff. I mean that's even without mentioning a lot of the older ones (like GURPS).

yeah I'd consider AEONs Adventure stuff to be pretty old too (20 yrs?), Achtung Cthlhu is well a Cthulhu game which just leaves Savage Worlds, and I'm yet to check out Outgunned so thats on me

 

[Lategamer]

Yeah I've got Duty & Honour and it has certainly has certainly informed my thinking on the era, though I dont get to play it much, But it is indeed getting into the Moghul India side of things thats challenging

Absolutely. without doing disservice to any and all.

BTW Your sword saints v Prince of Rajyapura sounds absolutely brilliant!

Thank you, it's been a heap of work. Hacking that into a YZE shell will be the effort of a lifetime.

yeah I'd consider AEONs Adventure stuff to be pretty old too (20 yrs?), Achtung Cthlhu is well a Cthulhu game which just leaves Savage Worlds, and I'm yet to check out Outgunned so thats on me

That was just the start of it. There's soooo many pulp games. Adventure! is currently in a new edition as well.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Romance/erotica, comedy, procedurals, family drama
These are all pretty common theater/tv genres. There are indeed some prominent indie games like Thirsty Sword Lesbians or Monster Hearts. It's interesting, there's a ton of experience with romance/sex in traditional linear media but basic teen romance like Romeo and Juliet seems to be way more taboo than well, flat out genocide (40k)

I feel like it's the unexplored direction. Whoever figures out a hit in the romance genre is going to unlock a massively untapped audience.

The latest episode of Dropout's Parlor Room is a one-shot of Thirsty Sword Lesbians. There is so much mechanical support for drama and messiness. It's kind of amazing.

 

[Neonchameleon]

I haven't seen much for Pulp Adventure games. There were a couple, way back when, but aside from the WEG D6 versions of BloodShadows and Indiana Jones, I've seen nothing really in the pulp adventure that wasn't Call of Cthulhu. Certainly no Tarzan or Solomon Kane.
Not even the kickstarter modules seem to be going that way.

You've Fate to your left, Savage Worlds to your right - two big (by non-D&D standards) RPGs in their day. Also Outgunned.

 

[Neonchameleon]

Agreed on the lack of mostly-historic Westerns.

That's because the Western is a nigh-on dead genre. I'd say if anything Westerns are overrepresented compared to their place in e.g. modern TV and cinema.

 

[aramis erak]

There's a new Non-Weird non-AltHist west game coming... Hurled into Eternity.
it's card driven, and otherwise OSR sensibilities. Playtest material on an OS/OSR D&D board.
I love his cover art:

 

[Thomas Shey]

That's because the Western is a nigh-on dead genre. I'd say if anything Westerns are overrepresented compared to their place in e.g. modern TV and cinema.

Once you move away from fantasy/horror tinged ones, its not much different from the fact there's relatively few of most mostly-historical games without heavy fantastic injections.

 

[Thomas Shey]

One thing that I would add to the conversation, and may have contributed to this as well, is that just because some TTRPGs exist in a genre doesn’t mean that someone can’t also find the genre lacking or underrepresented in the hobby.

You also have to ask how much visibility matters.