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<blockquote data-quote="Umbran" data-source="post: 6671044" data-attributes="member: 177">Not in terms of fictional genre, no. But it is more than just marketing.&nbsp; There are &quot;genres&quot; of game - not of fiction, but of *game* - like &quot;rules lite&quot; is a genre, or &quot;narrative game&quot; is a genre.&nbsp; A &quot;universal game&quot; has features that fictional-genre-specific games do not, and vice versa.&nbsp; The &quot;generic&quot; games thus form a group (or genre) of their own.&nbsp; You are still making a genre choice here, it just isn't about the fictional genre.Quibble over words.&nbsp; Take a toolbox of some given size.&nbsp; I can fill it with job-specific tools, and make it an electricians toolbox, or an auto-repair toolbox, or a carpentry toolbox, or a plumbing toolbox.&nbsp; I can also make it a &quot;homeowners&quot; toolbox, with a few tools for each of those. The generalist toolbox may be fine if you aren't doing anything too deep into any particular area.&nbsp; But, let us not kid ourselves that the well-outfitted generalist's box is as good a toolbox for plumbing as a well-outfitted plumbing-specific toolbox would be.We are still left with a question of what you are trying to do before we ask the question of what the person is trying to do.&nbsp; If you have a simple leaky faucet, maybe the generalists box will do.&nbsp; If, however, you're installing a whole new bathroom, that generalist's box just isn't going to cut it.&nbsp; Until you ask the question, you can't know that the generalist-box will be &quot;best&quot; for them.It doesn't help when, to be honest, the &quot;generic&quot; games are usually not nearly so generic as they claim to be.&nbsp; GURPS is a fine example here - &quot;Generic&quot; is part of the name.&nbsp; But, in its design, it is fairly rules-heavy, and kind of gritty.&nbsp; It does not do fast-moving, epic high-action very well.&nbsp; I find its attempt at Supers... kind of laughable, I am afraid.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Umbran, post: 6671044, member: 177"] Not in terms of fictional genre, no. But it is more than just marketing. There are "genres" of game - not of fiction, but of *game* - like "rules lite" is a genre, or "narrative game" is a genre. A "universal game" has features that fictional-genre-specific games do not, and vice versa. The "generic" games thus form a group (or genre) of their own. You are still making a genre choice here, it just isn't about the fictional genre. Quibble over words. Take a toolbox of some given size. I can fill it with job-specific tools, and make it an electricians toolbox, or an auto-repair toolbox, or a carpentry toolbox, or a plumbing toolbox. I can also make it a "homeowners" toolbox, with a few tools for each of those. The generalist toolbox may be fine if you aren't doing anything too deep into any particular area. But, let us not kid ourselves that the well-outfitted generalist's box is as good a toolbox for plumbing as a well-outfitted plumbing-specific toolbox would be. We are still left with a question of what you are trying to do before we ask the question of what the person is trying to do. If you have a simple leaky faucet, maybe the generalists box will do. If, however, you're installing a whole new bathroom, that generalist's box just isn't going to cut it. Until you ask the question, you can't know that the generalist-box will be "best" for them. It doesn't help when, to be honest, the "generic" games are usually not nearly so generic as they claim to be. GURPS is a fine example here - "Generic" is part of the name. But, in its design, it is fairly rules-heavy, and kind of gritty. It does not do fast-moving, epic high-action very well. I find its attempt at Supers... kind of laughable, I am afraid. [/QUOTE]

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