Space RPGs compared

[GypsyComet]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by PVernon:
IIRC, and it's a long way back, Rocky Russo and Scotty were contracted to do the ST game by Paramount for Publication by Heritage to go with a line of ST figures that Heritage was doing for Paramount. Something happened and the figs were not released...
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Funny. I have clear memories of seeing those in stores. In fact I own a set of Skorr (from the animated season) and remember considering (but never buying) the Phylosians and others...

 

[Artikid]

Well..
Ratings
Top ranking
Classic Traveller
MegaTraveller (excluding typos)
2300 AD

Middle Ranking
Cyberpunk 2020
Alternity (could have been better)
Space 1889
Star Wars (got somehow worse every edition)

Low Ranking
Space Frontier
Space Opera (one session, ugly mess)
TNE (typos excluded)
Spacemaster (Oh my...!)
Buck Rogers (D&D in space!)
Shadowrun (hardly SF at all)

 

[Artikid]

Oooops, I forgot to ask, anybody played Ringworld?

 

[PaperPusher]

I don't think anyone's mentioned Universe, by SPI.

Some odd mechanics, but actually very innovative, I thought. Very interesting character generation system, incorporating homeworld type (and native environment skills), background education (which helped to determine characteristics, after some "seed" values were obtained), and career choice, of course (which determined skills).

Also spun off a space combat system called DeltaVee, which a friend showed me briefly, but I was never able to find since.

Some similarities to other SPI RPGs of the era (i.e., DragonQuest), as I recall, but overall, relatively unique.

Anyone remember this one?

 

[GypsyComet]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Artikid:
Oooops, I forgot to ask, anybody played Ringworld?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

PLAYED Ringworld? Sadly, No. I'm the only GWE ("Great White Explorer") in my local game community, so it was tough to interest anyone else in playing...
Mechanically it is a Chaosium Basic RolePlaying game (ie. percentile below a skill that climbs with experience), and is one of the first games after Traveller to explore the whole prior service concept. It can be surreal to generate 200 years of prior service, though...

Others not yet mentioned:

Twilight Imperium: The RPG -- rather lackluster mechanics and space opera alien races, and written with the "we know more than you do, and will feed it to you $20 at a time" attitude that prevented me from buying the first supplement...

Fading Suns -- Aaaannnnngggsst Iiiiinnnn SSssspaaaaccceee! Smells like White Wolf but isn't. Has a little more potential than most WW stuff, too, but is badly hampered by first impressions...

Mekton -- (various editions) despite a slightly underdeveloped set of mechanics, you can freely ignore the giant robots and use the design rules for anything from motor-scooters to dreadnoughts...

 

[Emperor Cleon]

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by PaperPusher:
I don't think anyone's mentioned Universe, by SPI.

Some odd mechanics, but actually very innovative, I thought. Very interesting character generation system, incorporating homeworld type (and native environment skills), background education (which helped to determine characteristics, after some "seed" values were obtained), and career choice, of course (which determined skills).

Also spun off a space combat system called DeltaVee, which a friend showed me briefly, but I was never able to find since.

Some similarities to other SPI RPGs of the era (i.e., DragonQuest), as I recall, but overall, relatively unique.

Anyone remember this one?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Yeah, I had Universe (actually I still have bits and pieces of it around here somewhere). The DeltaVee space combat game came in the Universe boxed set.

 

[Artikid]

Mekton...
Universe...

Anime Role Playing is not my "forte" but I like Talsorian mechanics.

Sad but true, while Battletech's background is a lot better than most anime, the game can be very slow compared to Mekton...( a mecha combat in Mechwarrior can take too much time for an RPG session)

Universe... my big brother had a copy, created a character but never played it so I don't really know. I can remember quite clearly it had no psionics or aliens to speak of. Fine for a Hard SF campaign, a bit lame for a Space Opera...

 

[MT++]

Basic Role Playing wasn't bad. It really did work for Ringworld (I still don't know what happened to my copy, I have to stop moving, 9 times in 11 years)

Universe was clumsy, like SPI's other dog, DragonQuest

Remember Star Frontiers? I had a lot of fun with that. But then again I was still young and naive
Buck Rogers game? (both the lame D&D version and the superlative free form)
Blue Planet? With the hear tearing out first edition and the silly new one (I have a great idea to increase sales to women, the animal human hybrids will be dolphins, whales and cats! Gotta have cats)

 

[Murph]

What do you all think about Space Opera? Especially Space Opera starships?

 

[Gallowglass]

I have a huge soft spot for Space Opera: it was a ludicrously complicated, completely ad-hoc system and required at leat two people familiar with the system (and with copies of the rules) to run a combat at a vaguely reasonable pace. But to my adolescent soul (somewhat intimidtaed by the LBB's stark simplicity: "What, you mean I have to make it ALL up? Ulp!!"), SO's cartoonish blend of Star Wars and EE Doc Smith was hugely appealing. I played it for about five years, and then drifted away as I rediscovered the LBB's and MT, after a brief side trip through Other Suns.

I liked the Spaceships an awful lot. For an SF setting emphasising feel over plausibility, it was one of the few genuinely well designed bits: they seemed to have decided on a feel (Naval engagements in space, but with visuals from Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica) and duly produced them. There was NO SCIENCE underlying the system, (Transgravitic Interphase Subspace Anomaly drive? Brannon Braga would be proud of that piece of techno-babble...

) but it was entertaining to play as part of the role-playing game.

[This message has been edited by Gallowglass (edited 03 July 2001).]

 

[Secrect Cow Level]

Some of the sci-fi games I've played/read:

STAR FRONTIERS - Lots of fun even if the game is rather simplistic. The Volturnus modules are still the most fun of any sci-fi modules I've ever read or played (although I recently picked up a copy of TWILIGHT'S PEAK on Ebay and I'm really looking forward to running it!).

ALTERNITY - I've never played it but I do like the system. Some of the rules seem a little more involved than necessary, but the races are really great (much better than the Aslan or Vargr but I've ranted about that on another post...

TRINITY - A comic book crossed with BABYLON 5 crossed with 2300 AD, but WW pulled it off well I thought. Good psionics rules and again, great aliens (more info on them would have been nice).

STAR WARS (WEG) - I think this is one of the most fun games ever created. The system is fast and easy and really captures the feel of the movies. A pity that they lost the license to WotC, which brings me to...

STAR WARS (WotC) - I haven't played it yet and I've only skimmed the rulebook (I got it for a song on Ebay!). It seems ok but I never really thought that d20 fit STAR WARS too well. I'll have to try it and see for myself.

WORLDS BEYOND - I originally bought it for ideas to use in a MEGETRAVELLER campaign I was going to run, only to discover I liked it much more! It had fast,simple rules and a TRAVELLER feel to it. Plus the artwork was MUCH better than anything found in any of the MEGATRAVELLER books (and I owned them all!). As a result, I sold all my MEGATRAVELLER stuff and proceeded to work on a WORLDS BEYOND campaign that I never got the chance to run. All my friends wanted to play at the time was AD&D, MERP, and Star Trek.

STAR TREK:The Role-Playing Game - The old FASA version was great (IMHO) and a favorite of my gaming group as well. I didn't think too much of the LUG version although the task system reminds me very much of MEGATRAVELLER, which I feel had a great task system and I believe should be the system used in T5 (assuming we ever see T5, which is doubtful).

GAMMA WORLD - My first sci-fi game and still on of my all time favorites. Bash it if you must, but my friends and I always had fun playing it and it will forever hold a special place in my heart.

TRAVELLER:The New Era - I enjoyed TNE's setting a lot but the rules were a nightmare to learn and use (ROLEMASTER is simplisity itself by comparison!). It took me a MONTH to figure out how to conduct space combat and the fuel consumption equations still cause me to wake up screaming!

MEGATRAVELLER - A great task system attached to a combat system more complex than necessary. Overall very good but more examples in the rules would have been nice and more published adventures would have helped a lot as well.

T4 - A good idea very poorly written. The supplements sucked. Mileu 0 could have been really fun but the written support material was terrible and boring to boot!

CLASSIC TRAVELLER - Last but not least is Classic Traveller. I owned The Traveller Book as a lad but never really read it. If only I had, I'd never had to have looked all these years for a great sci-fi game to play. You can do ANYTHING with these rules. At long last my friends and I have a really good sci-fi game to play!

 

[phydaux]

snip

Star Trek, Adventure Gaming in the Final Frontier. Copyright 1978. Published by Heritage Models, Inc.

snip

God! I didn't think anyone else ever even heard of that game! My cousin and I used to play back in '79. The rules were just enough that you could take the included characters (the original Trek crew) and play the included sample mission. If you tried to do anything else, the game just fell apart. Played it and loved it, though.

 

[Murph]

Anyone have any comments on Space Opera by FGU? Especially the ship design section.

 

[Gatsby]

OKAY, OKAY! Murph likes Space Opera! We get it!

I got the Space Opera stuff (having LOVED Aftermath and Daredevils! What else..?... they had---Bunnies & Burrows, Gangster, Bushido, did they have Villians and Vigilantes?)

Star maps were 3D...loved Akaisha Outstation module...I'll have to find the old stuff to remember the starships...

Gats'

 

[TJP]

Space Opera, eh? I remember when I started reading the first book in the box I was very exited. The introduction was very good IIRC (very thorough at least). Got to character generation and got lost. Remember trying to figure out why on earth they had several pages of rules for passing objects between two characters and what's the difference between fatigued and winded in the middle of character generation. And don't get me started on those scientific research rules or them psionic spell lists.

However, I got lots of ideas from this game, so I really don't want to bad mouth it. The equipment list from the second book was a favorite of mine. As a consistent and playable game system Space Opera failed, but it had its moments. The damage/wound rules were something I tinkered with for a long time. As well as reading those world descriptions and piecing them together with physical data.

Murph, you asked about those Starship rules. Gotta get back to you, I have to refresh my memory. All I remember now is that there were several firing tables for space combat (what were those weapons called, novaguns?) and some kind of modular ship design system. I don't recall of being impressed by the ship design nor ever using its starship battle rules. Oh well, have to check them out.

 

[Murph]

Pretty much no changes, but can we get some more input on this?

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Murph:
I would like to compare Classic Traveller (and other versions) to other classic SRPGs out there:

Traveller Pretty clean rules, some glitches that were covered/fixed by Mercenary, High Guard, Scouts and Merchant Prince. Striker/AHL adds a good, not perfect combat system. The Universe is well defined, consistent, and offers multifaceted adventure possiblities.

Space Opera (FGU) More complex than Chivalry and Sorcery, very complex character generation system that bogs things down, decent armor/combat system, excellent psionic system. Ship design rules similar to Book 2, ship weapons are fantasy. Published Universe is interesting, had promise, but tried to cover literally EVERY Space Opera type universe. Played it, went back to Traveller.

Gurps Decent idea growing out of The Fantasy Trip/Melee system. Adequate if not spectacular ship design system. Tried it, went back to Traveller.

Star Wars Never played it, so I cannot comment.

FTL 2448 Big, complex, an outgrowth of the Bureau 13 system by Rich Tucholka, poor ship design rules, excellent star mapping, complex combat rules, very good psionic rules. Got the books, never played it, but used it as a suppliment. Recommended.

Other versions of Traveller- Yuck. Megatraveller should have been a cleaned up Classic system, the Imperium should not have been killed off. The New Era- Dreck, just Dreck.

2300AD Great star mapping, poor character/combat system. No psionics, Interesting history, Silly 7.7 ly limit on star drives. Had great promise and it blew it. Played it, went back to Traveller

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

[Blue Ghost]

I'd like to add that the upcoming GURPS Prime Directive (i.e. GURPS Trek) looks like a real winner. With the ability to add GURPS Traveller to a Star Trek environment, or vice versa, some fun situations can be had. Similarly GURPS Traveller has access to all the other GURPS material out there on the market, which makes for some rich adventureing.

I played the old FASA Trek RPG a handful of times. My group just wasn't smart enough to figure out a lot of the clues and traps. They were more of a hack-n-slash collection, than genuine RPers. Which made for some very interesting Trek adventures.

On that note, has anyone played the newer Star Trek RPG? What's it like?

 

[Nurd_boy]

Other Suns....

a number-crunchers game <we had to use a PROGRAMMABLE claculator to keep the formulas staright>...our game was run by a professional programmer.

ship maintanence was calculated by hours of operation!!..realistic, but a book keeping night mare!!

 

[Solo]

I think that DUNE by Last Unicorn has not been mentioned.

I've never played it (it's sat on my shelf the last 6 months or so) but I will...

Uses the same basic system as Star Trek by Last Unicorn. No supplements availalbe, nor will there ever be with WOTC buying Last Unicorn and losing the rights to the DUNE universe.

 

[Solo]

Oh, yeah, forgot...

Transhuman Space.

Really, really well thought out. The technology is realistic within the time frame the game covers (the next 100 years). The history is good (though a bit too "liberal" in some places.) Basically it's what 2300AD should have been sans the starships (a flaw in my opinion.) The only major flaw is that it uses the GURPS system which I personally dislike.