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Bhu
2016-06-14, 02:19 AM
At some point I'd like to try writing a nice, simple little rpg of my own, but I'm at a loss of what to make. I want to avoid things that have been done to death (bitchy vampires or supernatural beings, heroic fantasy, grimdark future) unless maybe I can put some sort of subversive twist on them. At the opposite end, I don't want the concept to be so niche no one would play it (whats the point of writing a game no one plays?).

I've asked elsewhere and gotten various thoughts, and it's time I asked GitP too. What would you guys like to see?

Florian
2016-06-14, 02:26 AM
Either a good Cop-based game (think True Detectives) or a cooperative PvP game where it´s actually fun and engaging for all players to simply kill off each other and not drop out of the game doing so (Think Harper´s Island).

Bhu
2016-06-14, 03:43 PM
Battle Royale the rpg?

Florian
2016-06-14, 03:54 PM
Battle Royale the rpg?

Why not? Fiasco is a quite popular game, so why not create something similar to Battle Royal where all players have fun with the mayhem then ensures?

Duke_Daisuke
2016-06-14, 04:26 PM
With Battle Royal how many players would you want? I'm kind of imagining sixteen people each starting in different rooms and then coming together or apart as situation a rises but you'd need at least 4 GM's for somthing like that.

Also how done to death is Ascended Demon? (opposite of fallen angel)

Feralgeist
2016-06-14, 09:41 PM
a group of geriatric ex-adventurers who decide to take up the sword one last time to save the world while they still can. have to deal with problems along the way (fighter has gotten weaker, wizard has forgotten the intricacoes for major spellcasting, ranger is hard of hearing and thinks his 5 cats are a fine animal companion, etc

Coidzor
2016-06-14, 10:00 PM
Shadowrun's mechanics frequently get in the way of realizing its story potential.

FATAL remains the only game most people know of that has you roll for anal circumference.

Bhu
2016-06-14, 10:08 PM
I havent kept touch with Shadowrun in decades, Whats up with the mechanics?

RazorChain
2016-06-15, 12:55 AM
Shadowrun's mechanics frequently get in the way of realizing its story potential.

FATAL remains the only game most people know of that has you roll for anal circumference.

When I was playing DnD as a 13 or 14 year old with my friends, the group tended roll a d12 for penis size in inches. Somehow everyone seemed to roll around 10-12. A group of strapping young men adventuring.

Lvl 2 Expert
2016-06-15, 02:09 AM
Are there any (/more than a dozen or so) good racing RPG's yet? It's a setting that has always been full of egos, money and politics since at least the chariot races of the classical world, and it provides a form of a action which is not fighting.

The trick is in how to portray it. Turns as most fighting games use them are probably impractical, because that would lead to having to overtake someone who will just overtake you back on his turn almost every round. Either you have to let players move in the order in which they're currently riding, which is probably the simplest option, and moderately realistic because it's much easier to react to what's happening in front of you then to what's happening behind you, or you need to use some sort of resolution round after everyone has announced their actions.

And even then you're going to have to find a way to keep speed differences minimal yet critical, and unknowable yet ultimately not too random. Maybe track stamina/wear, like going full out and performing many risky maneuvers erodes your tires making future rolls harder. That would add a tactical element. Strike now because you have an opening, or let the guy in front handle the brunt of the air resistance for a while longer. And how does that affect when you will go for a pit stop?

And of course you need to spice things up because rolling to get around a track will become boring after a while, but it should preferably not be too death-racey, because then it just becomes another fighting game where you also track your position. It'll need radio at least, so you can do stuff like taunt other riders, coordinate with your team mates (teams as big as the group of players preferably) and have your boss give you inexplicable orders to fall back or "let them have this one".

You know, I might look into this myself...

Kami2awa
2016-06-15, 02:24 AM
How about a future that is not Grimdark? It wouldn't be utopian (that's boring) but not everything and everyone is out to exterminate or assimilate you, and humans aren't the evil conquering empire but more like the Federation.

If you think FTL space exploration has been overdone, what about making it a near-future RPG? Extrapolate from technologies we have now, or might have in say, 20 years, and have the game be about colonising the solar system or similar.

One thing I've never seen is a game about scientific discovery. I'm not sure how that would work from a mechanical perspective, but the story would focus on exploring Strange New Worlds, seeking out New Life and New Civilisation. Early scientists and explorers like Darwin or Livingstone went on epic voyages that were every bit as exciting as a quest to Mordor. Michael Crichton's works might be a good starting point.

There aren't many decent settings for underwater worlds. These could be fantasy or sci-fi. This is surprising since there have been quite a few books, movies and TV shows that used this as the setting.

Having said all this, I expect people will now name 20 obscure RPGs that cover these settings. There's not a lot that has never been done in the world of fiction and RPGs, but there is plenty that hasn't been done to death yet!

Finally, don't fall into the trap of thinking every work of fiction has to be 100% original, because that's nearly impossible. A lot of novice writers end up paralysed by this, thinking they can't possible use a vampire or a love triangle because some other author "owns" the idea. Overused ideas can be brilliant if done well, or given new perspectives or spins.

Florian
2016-06-15, 03:50 AM
@Kama2awa:

There´s actually the 2300AD line for Traveller. It´s doing quite well for non-grimdark near future.

@Bhu:

Shadowrun still has the age-old problem that the underlying game system leads to different results than what you envision the story and feeling would be. You want a smooth criminal story and you get a dungeon crawl in an office block.
Look at the older Leverage RPG to see how the whole "heist" genre can be done.

J-H
2016-06-15, 07:20 AM
One historical setting I haven't heard of anyone doing is eastern Europe/Russia in the 1200s - right when Russia gets invaded by the Mongols. You can do all sorts of military campaigns (invade/defend/scout/sabotage/spy), intrigue (defect? not defect? feuding nobles?), theft, political (yes, they are coming), assassination, fortress-building, etc.

Steampunkette
2016-06-15, 07:42 AM
Steampunk Fantasy.
Steampunk Adventure.
WW2 High Fantasy. (Elves and Dwarves and Panzerkampfwagons)
Vampires of WW2, fighting on the lines against the supernatural horrors of the Third Reich.
Fantasy Superheroes. Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits and Gnomes. No magic or gods. PCs are superheroes fighting against monsters and each other while struggling to understand their own powers, since such things have never happened before.

MrZJunior
2016-06-15, 08:58 AM
I think a Tokusatsu RPG could be cool. The party are all that stands between the Earth and alien invasion/ giant monster attack/ ancient vengeful civilization. It would need strong mechanics for building giant robots, ridiculous spaceships, and death rays.

Edit: possibly a variant for super powered PCs.


a cooperative PvP game where it´s actually fun and engaging for all players to simply kill off each other and not drop out of the game doing so (Think Harper´s Island).

Isn't Paranoia like that? I've never played it but it sounds hilarious.

Florian
2016-06-15, 09:29 AM
Isn't Paranoia like that? I've never played it but it sounds hilarious.

Not really. Paranoia is the case when you know your character is going to die and you want it to survive despite the odds.

MrZJunior
2016-06-15, 09:32 AM
Not really. Paranoia is the case when you know your character is going to die and you want it to survive despite the odds.

Huh, I've always heard it as you know your character is going to die so you want that death to be as amazing and hysterical as possible. That's certainly how I'd play it.

Florian
2016-06-15, 09:39 AM
Huh, I've always heard it as you know your character is going to die so you want that death to be as amazing and hysterical as possible. That's certainly how I'd play it.

"Heard" is the thing here, it seems. In Paranoia, you´re given a mission you can´t refuse and the straight approach to the solution will kill you. You can either accept that, or find a way around the restrictions to not die, as no same human being would.

AMFV
2016-06-15, 09:53 AM
At some point I'd like to try writing a nice, simple little rpg of my own, but I'm at a loss of what to make. I want to avoid things that have been done to death (bitchy vampires or supernatural beings, heroic fantasy, grimdark future) unless maybe I can put some sort of subversive twist on them. At the opposite end, I don't want the concept to be so niche no one would play it (whats the point of writing a game no one plays?).

I've asked elsewhere and gotten various thoughts, and it's time I asked GitP too. What would you guys like to see?

An RPG entirely based around social conflict. Possibly in a period age, like a Jane Austin roleplay where people are trying to get themselves to find their true love. I've never seen anything like that, and I've always thought it would be quite interesting to see.

An RPG set in prehistory (there are a few of these, but they've never really been that interesting)

Unusual settings for standard RPGs are an option. I've always wanted to see a more interesting take on Fantasy Africa. Or Fantasy Asia that isn't Japan. Fantasy Oceania has been something I've wanted to do as a setting for a very long time, but I don't have the knowledge for it personally.

MrZJunior
2016-06-15, 10:21 AM
"Heard" is the thing here, it seems. In Paranoia, you´re given a mission you can´t refuse and the straight approach to the solution will kill you. You can either accept that, or find a way around the restrictions to not die, as no same human being would.

Aren't you also supposed to backstab the other members of your party and make yourself look good?

TheIronGolem
2016-06-15, 11:34 AM
Western. Not Weird West, or Space Western. Nothing wrong with those, but I'm talking about just plain old Western.

There was Boot Hill in the 70's, and I'm sure GURPS probably did a Western supplement. But apart from that, nothing I know of.

Lvl 2 Expert
2016-06-15, 12:13 PM
You know, I don't think there's a bee centered RPG yet.

Honest Tiefling
2016-06-15, 12:25 PM
I'm going to double down on the PvP centric game. I don't usually like PvP, but a game where you can do it Battle Royale style would be pretty nifty. If you can make it with minimal prepwork for characters, people can quickly rejoin the fun and eliminate one issue of PvP.

One that can be done with minimal prep from the DM would also be nice. If for say, you are running a long term game and not enough people show up, it would be really nice to pull this gem out for a session or two in cases like this.

Or write an RPG around the actual setting. I like RPG rules that can be customized as much as the next fellow, but sometimes these rules start tripping over themselves when you want to do something very extreme with the setting. Like demonically/undead possessed mages, where one character is the demon and the other is the mage.

Or non-America/English settings. I know there's a few regarding Feudal Japanochina, (Why, hello there Legend of the Five Rings), but fantasy or non-fantasy settings in other places would probably be a good place to start. Like a bunch of mages seeking to free China from Imperial powers is still china, but I don't recall many games being set there.

Florian
2016-06-15, 01:28 PM
Battle Royale

With that as a cooperative game, with no special investment in only one character you own, it would really be exiting and creative how the clashes and killing will evolve.

Bhu
2016-06-15, 04:18 PM
Honest Tiefling, AMFV, J-H: The alternate setting idea intrigues me, but it would depend on my access to research material.

Lvl 2 Expert: What would a bee centric rpg be? For the racing game you could use a mechanic similar to Formula De.

AMFV: I would be the least competent person (and the last you'd want) to make a Jane Austin inspired rpg.

The Iron GOlem, MrZjunior: I am intrigued by both ideas, but unsure of the demand. Would need to do some polling.

I'll be collating ideas from here and otehr places a few days and then posting the list of ideas to see what garners the most interest.

Lvl 2 Expert
2016-06-15, 04:56 PM
Lvl 2 Expert: What would a bee centric rpg be?

It would bee brilliant. Full of beeguilers beeheading beests for beeloved beer beecause bee-bee-guns are beelieved to bee worse with bees, like everything is. Always bet on bees, I hear they're popular around here.

Besides, I don't think there are a lot of RPG's that do swarm tactics well. And whether simulating a bee hive or the hornet's nest doesn't quite matter that much at that point.

Waker
2016-06-15, 06:21 PM
You know the joke about how Fantasy Football is D&D for jocks? Well, why not actually make a Fantasy Sports RPG, either cooperative or PvP where the players control teams or individuals. And yes, I am aware of the existence of XCrawl.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y47/Omnikar/Bloodbowl_zpscsti4kp5.jpg (http://s2.photobucket.com/user/Omnikar/media/Bloodbowl_zpscsti4kp5.jpg.html)

kyoryu
2016-06-15, 07:20 PM
Aren't you also supposed to backstab the other members of your party and make yourself look good?

As a Troubleshooter, it is your job to find trouble... and shoot it. Trouble includes Commies and their allies, the mutants and members of secret societies. Because The Computer is your friend, it has surrounded you with other Troubleshooters to help you.

By the way, you're a mutant and a member of a secret society.

That about sums it up.

Bhu
2016-06-16, 01:09 AM
Wow, this has taken off better than I expected, I was gonna ask where else I should post this, but with the few threads I already have up there's almost 50 idea requests already. Clearly teh gaming industry is leaving a large chunk of it's audience untapped.

LudicSavant
2016-06-16, 02:05 AM
Not aware of any good tactical diceless systems in tabletop RPGs.

Florian
2016-06-16, 03:18 AM
Aren't you also supposed to backstab the other members of your party and make yourself look good?

Not really.

The fun part with Paranoia is that you, as a player, actually play the enemy you set out to defeat.
Everyone is a mutant and every mutant is part of a secret society and all secret societies are backed by the commies.

So you´re faced with a challenge and you could have an easy time defeating it when you use your mutant power or call in favors from your secret society but run the risk of exposing yourself to the other Troubleshooters. That´s a risk vs. reward thing all of its own.

The overall concept is still very good, but today, I´d rather play it as a Fiasco playset rather then with the original rules.

Murk
2016-06-16, 04:19 AM
Is there an RPG for huuuge amounts of people already? A game focused on making quick, entertaining turns, with which you can play out battlefields filled with adventurers, lay sieges, defend kingdoms... Say, a game that is made to be played with at least 30 people, or in tournaments?
It seems like a hard thing to do while still keeping everyone entertained, which is why I think it'd require its own game. Maybe get rid of turns entirely?

EccentricCircle
2016-06-16, 04:36 AM
Not really.

The fun part with Paranoia is that you, as a player, actually play the enemy you set out to defeat.
Everyone is a mutant and every mutant is part of a secret society and all secret societies are backed by the commies.


Its also worth noting that unbeknownst to Friend Computer, Alpha Complex is actually a communist state. Its data is fragmentary, so it only has a vague idea as to what commies actually are.

On Topic:
I think that there is plenty of untapped potential for RPGs. They evolved out of a fairly nerdy wargaming community, and so inevitably have been associated with geeky topics. There is a focus on Sci Fi, Fantasy and Horror, with a few systems for things like espionage. But really there is no reason why you can't make an RPG for any genre out there. Sports RPGs wouldn't particularly appeal to me, but I'm sure there are people out there who would get great enjoyment out of playing them if they could get past the geeky overtones of the industry as a whole.

I know someone who is putting together a Jane Austen RPG, and i've had a great idea for a musical theater RPG, which I need to play test at some point. (There are no dice, instead every player has an mp3 player full of songs which they think might be appropriate to their character, and you resolve conflicts using karaoke.)

Florian
2016-06-16, 05:38 AM
@Murk:

Problematic question. Handling a rather large or huge amount of players will shift the game to a point that it´s hard to still call it TTRPG in the sense of D&D and its clones. Take a look at LIRPs and google "Werwölfe von Düsterwald" (You´ll find english reviews on that on dedicated english ludic platforms) to see what I mean.

@EccentricCircle:

You brought up an important point. There´s a cultural and heritage stance involved to the approach to what a "Role Playing Game" should be. I readily agree that the D&D roots based on Wargaming shape the "Game" perspective of that. I´m pretty well versed in the British, French, Japanese and German approach to the topic and it´s deeply involved with collaborative storytelling over the "Game" aspect of it.

In a sense, I think it´s sad that the whole Forge discussions were so one-sided and broke down pretty fast, as we could have learned quite a lot about what "Role Playing Game" could actually be all about.

I bring that up because I actually had the chance to participate in a "Jane Austin"-based game at a convention, utilizing the Lady Blackbird core rules, and it was an effing blast. What it was not was anything similar to D&D.

mikeejimbo
2016-06-16, 10:46 AM
A good system for PBPs. One specifically written for the format.

Faily
2016-06-16, 11:43 AM
An RPG entirely based around social conflict. Possibly in a period age, like a Jane Austin roleplay where people are trying to get themselves to find their true love. I've never seen anything like that, and I've always thought it would be quite interesting to see.

Like the High School Harem Comedy (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?290243-High-School-Harem-Comedy-(Game-System-PEACH))? :smalltongue: I'm sure it could be adapted for other things other than Anime-tropes too. Insert Jane Austen-tropes instead. :smallwink:



Unusual settings for standard RPGs are an option. I've always wanted to see a more interesting take on Fantasy Africa. Or Fantasy Asia that isn't Japan. Fantasy Oceania has been something I've wanted to do as a setting for a very long time, but I don't have the knowledge for it personally.

Dreamtime - Australia
Legend of the Burning Sands - Greco-Roman, Arabian, Indian, Mongolian, Roma... a lot of different things thrown into one giant salad.
Dark Continent - Africa in colonial times


In general, you can find RPGs that provide a rich amount of settings. Most of them though are self-published indie-games and rarely make it out into the big crowd.

kyoryu
2016-06-16, 11:54 AM
A good system for PBPs. One specifically written for the format.

http://www.storium.com/ ?

mikeejimbo
2016-06-16, 12:17 PM
http://www.storium.com/ ?

Maybe - but I was thinking of something that would be playable on any forum, basically with just text and not require too much more technology to support. My dream was vonflict resolution through writing - cast spells by writing in verse, for example.

LibraryOgre
2016-06-16, 01:21 PM
Battle Royale the rpg?


With Battle Royal how many players would you want? I'm kind of imagining sixteen people each starting in different rooms and then coming together or apart as situation a rises but you'd need at least 4 GM's for somthing like that.

Nah, do it with one GM, and multiples.

So, let's say you have 5 players... there are 25 people on the island. Before the game, everyone makes up a selection of characters, and, as each character dies, they cycle in one of their others, who's been off doing their thing on another side of the island, before random event table happened.

The advantage to players who kept their characters alive would be experience and loot. New characters may have some advantage from the random event table, but they're not going to have both the experience and the loot.

Florian
2016-06-16, 01:28 PM
Well, PbP... rather a thing of expectations.

What I loved about Pendragon 5th is that it is entirely reactive to the player and his or her character. Not much GM input is needed and the pace can be dictated by the player, the outcome determined by the character.

When it comes to this, I also found Marvel Heroic Role-play (MHP) to be extremely inspiring, as the frame-by-frame notion of it encouraged pulling the other characters right in.

kyoryu
2016-06-16, 03:14 PM
Maybe - but I was thinking of something that would be playable on any forum, basically with just text and not require too much more technology to support. My dream was vonflict resolution through writing - cast spells by writing in verse, for example.

The storium system could easily be run on any forum.

mikeejimbo
2016-06-17, 12:23 AM
The storium system could easily be run on any forum.

Hmm, I may have to look at it more closely.

Bhu
2016-06-17, 12:49 AM
Okay, after days of posting threads in various places I have collected the expressed ideas and requests plus some I've thought of doing anyway. I'm curious to see which of them gets the most attention from people for me to actually do. My apologies for the wall of text, people were pretty responsive to this:


A Swords and Planets game.
Pros: It hasn't been done much, and I'm vaguely knowledgeable about the genre.
Cons: The genre is so old it's nothing but cliché, and modern audiences might find it somewhat offensive. I'd also be sorely tempted to subvert the genre which would offend purists.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit with the Toons as corrupting Mythos like entities
Pros: No one has ever done this.
Cons: There's a reason no one has done this, i.e. mixing real life people with toon physics is a bitch to design.

Mothers Against Dungeon Delvers: D&D spoof where in you play token mooks, lab assistants, peons, dungeon guards etc. You have unionized, and you have suddenly gained political power via said unions, and are now protesting the ways in which speciesist adventurers murder your people who fill an important economical niche.
Pros: It's absurdist humor, which I do well at.
Cons: Perceived (or actual) political subtext might make people upset.

The Stone Age, which potentially covers hundreds of thousands of years.
Pros: No one is doing it (edit: turns out thats wrong, there's a few)
Cons: If I do it seriously it will require lots of research, and would pretty much be a brutal survival horror game with high mortality rate. If I go for comedy there's a game already filling that niche.

A Buddy Cop game
Pros: No one is doing it.
Cons: Not sure if there's an audience yet, and I know crap about law enforcement.

Battle Royale: The PC's wake in an isolated area and told to murder one another without knowing why.
Pros: Would be easy to do, huge fan of the movie
Cons: Not sure how much replay value it has.

Old People: D&D spoof about geriatric retired adventurers who are once again thrust into events beyond their control and must rely on experience and wisdom to make it through (cause it's all they got left).
Pros: Also humor, and unique.
Cons: Still unsure of demand.

Poker with the Elder Gods: Retired Investigators hold a regular Saturday night poker game, which is crashed by the Elder Gods who wish to show grudging respect for the old guys who regularly busted up their cults over the years. Shub-Niggurath is dangerously horny, Yog-Sothoth is a cheating bastard since he exists everywhere simultaneously, and everyone worries about Azathoth. The comfy chair you put him in near the fireplace and smooth contemporary jazz music won't keep him asleep forever.
Pros: It's funny, I love it, and there's nothing else like it. Plus I can go deadlands and make the game mechanics poker based
Cons: Really not so much an rpg as a card game.

Kitteh: The Pandering-Spoof of white wolf games about the adventures of cats in their never ending quest for world domination, while trying to prevent their servants (humans) from being offed by the bad guys.
Pros: I love cat humor, and am knowledgeable on this subject.
Cons: There are other cat based games out there and white wolf might sue my ass off.

Fantasy Wrestling: The wwe with dwarves and such. Players are wrestlers who fight evil on the rasslin circuit.
Pros: There are several popular games around that I might be able to make this a supplement for, and I know the subject well.
Cons: Not sure there are any,

Cultist Wrestling Federation: Various cultists compete in single combat for the attention of their respective deities after the Old Ones awake and take over. Plus the usual behind the scenes whackiness, Think of it as a horrifying satire of the old Lucha films with cthulhu.
Pros: I know both wrasslin and the mythos well, and again I could make this a world setting for an existing game.
Cons: Not sure there are any,

Mobsters: Play a 1920's gangster mob.
Pros: It's almost unique. Could also have tons of expansions on playing gangs in various time settings and periods.
Con: Not sure if I know enough on the subject to pull it off, and not sure of demand. Also may anger actual gangsters if I do a modern version...

The Carburetor Gods are Angry: Mad max/Car Wars style game in which the post apocalyptic world is ruled by the merciless carburetor gods who demand sacrifices to fuel/repair your vehicles.
Pros: it would be in demand
Cons: The supernatural aspect may turn off some genre purists

Monster Cops: Humans are an alien creations and most of us have a time bomb in our DNA waiting to go off that turns us into bioweapons (monsters). Governments and corporations the world over race to understand and control this phenomenon, while you as cops must deal with the day to day problem of homicidal monsters, and potentially becoming one yourself.
Pros: Could be nifty, no one's done it.
Cons: Is a lil too close to the Guyver/Bubblegum Crisis in concept.

Mobile Homes and Murderhobos, a D&D spoof written in the style of HOL (i.e. bitter, offensive, highly cynical sarcasm). Fighters would be called Murderhobos. Rangerss would be called Backwoods Racists. You get the idea.
Pros: It's easy to do, and has a built in audience, however small.
Cons: I may get death threats...

The New Gods: Every so often the world ragnaroks and the old gods die. When the new world reboots new gods come with it, and you are one of those gods, meaning you have absolute power in some form. But then so do a bunch of other gods, and it's inevitable you'll want to murder one another (it quickly becomes necessary). Plus you all have to worry about monsters like the Giants and such. Initially you have no domain as such and are at the bottom of the heap (but still easily able to kill just about anything mortal). As you take on more responsibilities you gain more power, but quickly narrow in focus. In other words, if you change the weather too often you might end up be a wind/rain god by default and be stuck with that job.
Pros: Unique
Cons: High powered gods as PC's would be tricky to balance.

Non Supers: World in which superhumans exist as figures of immense prejudice. The norms hate you and fear your powers so much in some places you're hunted down and killed and in others you are registered and constantly monitored. Or pushed to the front lines in war because you're considered expendable. And quite frankly you're tired of it and have decided to kick ass and take over. Screw the normal guy, hail revolution!
Pros: Unique
Cons: Super hero games are a bitch to balance unless I make it a setting for an existing system (which is also prolly unbalanced).

Portal to Hell: Zombies come from another dimension, and you are one of the research teams trying to find a way to close the portals/cure the infected.
Pros: zombies are popular
Cons: The market is glutted

Decent scifi game. Decent being a subjective term, but there's lots in the genre to work with. I'd probably aim for something that isn't a super tech future, cyberpunk, or the X files. There's lots of those out there. People have expressed like for unusual worlds (water planets etc), near future or (something) punk. Or exploration meeting new life and worlds.
Pros: Would be darn nifty if I could pull it off
Cons: Scifi games tend to be meh, and I'm not sure I can pull it off where so many others haven't

Game with well done social mechanics: I am not the person to write this, I have no social skills, lol.

Rock.Pop star game in which you try to get to the top
Pro: Initial description was darn funny when it was pitched to me, and I like humor
Cons: For the most part I despise pop music. Not sure I should be the guy to write this.

The Ancient Ones: The PC's are infant Old Ones who land on earth during the primordial ooze, and evolve and compete with one another through the ages. They experiment with mutating themselves, research magic, creating new species to rule over, or co-opting ones that evolve naturally.
Pros: definitely unique.
Cons: Might be better as a board game, how do you roleplay cthulhu?

“something with chickens”
Pros: Chikins are just darn funny
Cons: “something” isn't much of a concept to go on

Monsters Among Us: There exists a being something like the Christian concept of the Devil who approaches those who have been beaten down by life. Victims of bullying, torture, terminal disease or horrific crimes. And he tells them “I can make the pain go away. I can give you the power to succeed, and even the power to take revenge if you want. But asking for too much may damage you. And in return all I ask is that one day I will approach you asking you to do a task, and you cannot refuse me on pain of non existence.” In short he is responsible for all monsters of myths and legend, of which you will shortly become one of. He gives you certain gifts, which are like super powers, but asking for too many gifts requires you to also take flaws (vulnerabilty to something, can't cross running water etc). There are no set rules or abilities for 'vampires' fpr example. You become something and it's society at large that eventually decides what label you'll be called. It's your choice to be a hero or a monster or nothing at all, with the caveat that you know one day your patron will come calling. Unlike other supernatural games there is no hiding, the public knows who and what you are, and some even know how you became a monster.
Pros: I love the idea.
Cons: Pretty close to Vampire and such.

DND parody mocking absurdities of the system, such as it's perceived racism.
Pros: I am good at mockery.
Cons: Poe's Law. I'm not sure I can mock racism without someone eventually perceiving it as racism.

Cthulhu Mythos style adventures set in colonial america
Pros: I'm already running a campaign like this, it's not being done by anyone else
Cons: Will require buttloads of research

Many requests for some sort of racing rpg
Pros: I'm not sure anyone has done this
Cons: Mechanics would be tough, I'm unsure of the audience.

1200's Russia during the mongol invasion
Pros: Definitely no one is doing this
Cons: Would require tons of research, unsure I have access to said research material, and I know nothing of the subject.

DND superheros: There are no gods; but dwarves, elves, humans etc have super powers
Pros: Would be unique, could do it as setting for existing system
Cons: Superheroes make for complicated rules systems. Unsure of demand.

WWII with elves or vampires
Pros: Could be interesting if done right
Cons: Research, there's already several weird war type products

Tokusatsu movie rpg
Pros: Aliens! Kaiju!! Weird old guys with an endless monster supply!
Cons: Unsure of demand.

RPG based on social conflict and romance i.e. Jane Austen type stuff
Pros: No one is doing it
Cons: I am the least well suited human being to make this product

The Cthulhu Wrasslin Federation: The Old Ones came, the Old Ones saw, the Old Ones kicked civilizations ass. Now they're bored and squabble with one another, occasionally ending in public fights meant to settle scores
Pros: it's funny, and I know about the topics
Cons: Might be better as a card game.

Fantasy setting done in Africa, Asia (not japan), Australia, India or Oceania
Pros: With the exception of Africa I don't think it's been done
Cons: Research, research, research, and probable lack of research materials

Non-scifi or fantasy or horror western
Pros: Plenty of old west style games have done research for me
Cons: Unsure how many people are awaiting a Boot Hill redux

Bee centric rpg
Pro: Because who doesn't love bees?
Cons: Might be better as board/card game
Option: Damn You Nicholas Cage, in which awakened bee assassins are assigned to destroy immortal hollywood vampires

Mind Wrasslin: Wrestling with the addition of psychic abilities
Pros: Damn wrestling is popular!
Cons: Unsure who my audience is here...

Zombie Pigs Take Afghanistan: The anti-muslim Racists * cough * we mean patriots at DARPA have experimented on pigs, putting them into suspended animation to see if it will work on battlefield soldiers, who have been wounded, The hopes were putting them into torpor would allow evacuation. Instead the scientists made ravenous pig zombies who have turned out to be disturbingly intelligent. Compacting this mistake, DARPA outfitted them with cyber weapons and air dropped them into the fourteenth US/Middle Eastern war.
Pros: Would just be updating a beer and pretzels quickie I've already done.
Cons: Political subtext may be considered offensive on both sides.

Pitiful Ninjas: The PC's are screw ups trying to redeem the reputation of an entire ninja clan of screw ups
Pros: Ninja humor is popular
Cons: Ninjas have been done to death

A spoof of Powers and Perils
Cons: Powers and Perils is already it's own delusional self parody

Ghost Police: In the chinese afterlife, ghosts who escape into the human world have other ghosts or demons sent to retrieve them. You are those ghosts/demons
Pros: Is unique
Cons: Will require a ton of research and possibly offend the chinese who will smite me

Cultists and Common Sense: The PC's are cultists worshiping an Ancient One who stumble upon the realization that they're unimportant, and possibly an emergency food source. Do you try to find a way to become too important to your god to kill or run like hell?
Pros: I love it
Cons: Demand maybe? I dunno.

I, Robot: The PC's one day awakened to the realization they are robots. They have no idea how or why, and no one else seems to know it either. In fact anyone confronted with this breaks down into various forms of denial. Either the entire rest of the world is in on it, are pre programmed robots themselves directly programmed to deny the existence of robots with free will, or the rest of the world legitimately doesn't know and is somehow being controlled en masse.
Pros: Could be neat
Cons: Very similar to lots of stuff currently out there in which all the PC's are special snowflakes

Any game the GM can set up with little preparation at all, regardless of genre.

Blood Bowl the RPG: Not necessarily football, but some sport containing elves and such.
Pros: Prolly has built in audience
Cons: I don't know how big that audience is, and I know crap about sports.

Scooby Doo the RPG
Pros: Built in audience
Cons: How do I avoid being sued?

Puddin' Heads: Stupidity is a super power. The dumbest among you lack understanding of death, and may effectively be immortal.
Pros: Would definitely be unique...
Cons: Is there a demand, and holy hell how do I write the mechanics for this?

Tactical diceless system, any genre
Pros: Definitely hasn't been done
Cons: I'm unfamiliar with diceless mechanics as I've never played diceless games

Game system specifically designed for the play by post format in forums
Pros: If I could pull it off there would be a use for it
Cons: Unsure how to go about this, and there's already storium

Massive supplement for multiple game systems detailing every available wrestling maneuver for each of them
Pros: I could do this easily
Cons: Unsure if I could get permission from various companies, would have to buy some systems to have access to the rules

Robo Wrestling, PC are wrestling bots with upgradeable bodies
Pros: Okay, maybe I've underestimated wrestlings allure...
Cons: Would be a niche audience OF a niche audience

Convert d20 Modern to 5e
Pros: Would be easy
Cons: audience?

Lvl 2 Expert
2016-06-17, 01:23 AM
The Battle Royal thing might actually have broader potential as a sort of general "lots of people die messily" system. Might end up having a bit in common with my (overly simple) Cube D3 homebrew.

Florian
2016-06-17, 01:44 AM
The Battle Royal thing might actually have broader potential as a sort of general "lots of people die messily" system. Might end up having a bit in common with my (overly simple) Cube D3 homebrew.

That reminds me: Has Anyone here played the Mountain Witch RPG or Lady Blackbird? They´re interesting because you move away from simply emotional investment in your own character but rather focus on the overall story as it develops.
Something like "Cube" could be done well with a system like Fiasco. But, again, this changes how we see things.

kyoryu
2016-06-17, 10:31 AM
Hmm, I may have to look at it more closely.

It's very simple. You have a number of cards, representing strengths and weaknesses, and possibly other things.

The GM, in a scene, presents a number of problems. These need to be overcome by playing cards, and then narrating your action in terms of the cards played.

If the obstacles is overcome with more 'positive' than 'negative' cards, it's a success. Otherwise, it's a failure.

Your personal strength/weakness cards recharge when you're out of all of them.

The advantages are:

1) There's no turns. You just play cards when you want to.
2) It's resilient of people dropping out - they just don't play cards.
3) It's highly focused around collaborative storytelling, which is what a lot of PbP ends up being anyway.

The disadvantages are:

1) It's a very simple system, so those looking for "crunch" will be disappointed.
2) It's highly focused around collaborative storytelling, which might not be everyone's cup o' tea.

Bhu
2016-06-17, 12:34 PM
The Battle Royal thing might actually have broader potential as a sort of general "lots of people die messily" system. Might end up having a bit in common with my (overly simple) Cube D3 homebrew.

And here I thought you'd go for the Damn You Nicholas Cage option, lol.

Lvl 2 Expert
2016-06-17, 02:19 PM
And here I thought you'd go for the Damn You Nicholas Cage option, lol.

Nah, I'm still behind the racing thing, but I might start looking into that myself. Maybe not so just racing as in a sport, but more in general a system heavy on (land and water) vehicle rules that actually make sense and that players can get familiar with and light on everything else, including combat, because things that are not the center of the game should be simple or they will just feel bloated and never get used (see the vehicle rules in every non-vehicle centered system). It needs a half decent system for politics and intrigue to get the cars moving, but aside from that most non-vehicle stuff should probably be put into some sort of general skill system. I think there's some potential for playing out vehicle centered adventures, be it crime stories in a street racing ring in Hong Kong, a motocross crew in South America getting caught between a rebel movement and a forest fire or a group of intelligence operatives chasing after a shipload of missing armored cars all over Europe after an arms deal gone south.

One "problem" is that the sort of people who will want to play such a game will for a large part be into vehicles, so it would need rules that are playable yet don't insult their intelligence and knowledge of cars. That means at the very least the system needs to make use of different types of terrain and racing lines and blocking them for overtaking and such, and the upgrade system for the vehicles also pretty much has to be a bloated mess most of which will not add much more to the car than another plus one in cornering. Because both car enthusiasts and RPG players as separate groups are already known for their love of optimizing. So yeah, I'm going to have to think a bit about that.

MintyNinja
2016-06-17, 05:09 PM
Western. Not Weird West, or Space Western. Nothing wrong with those, but I'm talking about just plain old Western.

There was Boot Hill in the 70's, and I'm sure GURPS probably did a Western supplement. But apart from that, nothing I know of.

I just wanted to let this person know that Aces & Eights is a very... robust system that I think covers nearly every aspect of the Western you could ask for.

Bhu
2016-06-18, 10:59 PM
Well that prolly nixes the western off the list...

neonagash
2016-06-18, 11:36 PM
Science horror. Something like the movie sphere. Nothing I've read has quite gotten it.

neonagash
2016-06-18, 11:41 PM
Are there any (/more than a dozen or so) good racing RPG's yet? It's a setting that has always been full of egos, money and politics since at least the chariot races of the classical world, and it provides a form of a action which is not fighting.

The trick is in how to portray it. Turns as most fighting games use them are probably impractical, because that would lead to having to overtake someone who will just overtake you back on his turn almost every round. Either you have to let players move in the order in which they're currently riding, which is probably the simplest option, and moderately realistic because it's much easier to react to what's happening in front of you then to what's happening behind you, or you need to use some sort of resolution round after everyone has announced their actions.

And even then you're going to have to find a way to keep speed differences minimal yet critical, and unknowable yet ultimately not too random. Maybe track stamina/wear, like going full out and performing many risky maneuvers erodes your tires making future rolls harder. That would add a tactical element. Strike now because you have an opening, or let the guy in front handle the brunt of the air resistance for a while longer. And how does that affect when you will go for a pit stop?

And of course you need to spice things up because rolling to get around a track will become boring after a while, but it should preferably not be too death-racey, because then it just becomes another fighting game where you also track your position. It'll need radio at least, so you can do stuff like taunt other riders, coordinate with your team mates (teams as big as the group of players preferably) and have your boss give you inexplicable orders to fall back or "let them have this one".

You know, I might look into this myself...

I would definitely use a good system for this.

lunaticfringe
2016-06-19, 12:07 AM
A PvP style game but the players are alternate/split personalities vying for control of the body they all inhabit.

kyoryu
2016-06-19, 11:47 AM
A PvP style game but the players are alternate/split personalities vying for control of the body they all inhabit.

Everyone Is John?

https://1d4chan.org/wiki/File:EVERYONE_IS_JOHN.png

lunaticfringe
2016-06-19, 11:57 AM
Everyone Is John?

https://1d4chan.org/wiki/File:EVERYONE_IS_JOHN.png

Awesome! Thanks for the link, I'm gonna check this out.

Bhu
2016-06-20, 01:59 AM
Science horror. Something like the movie sphere. Nothing I've read has quite gotten it.

oooh ill have to add this to the list!

RyumaruMG
2016-06-20, 02:37 AM
Surprisingly White Wolf already beat you to the cute-animal-themed-self-parody thing. Puppies and Pawprints uses different cute animals, but hey, there you go.

Hytheter
2016-06-20, 03:43 AM
Awesome! Thanks for the link, I'm gonna check this out.

I don't know what baffles me more

That you came up with that idea at all

Or that someone else had done so before you and made a game of it

Belac93
2016-06-20, 08:24 AM
Mothers Against Dungeon Delvers: D&D spoof where in you play token mooks, lab assistants, peons, dungeon guards etc. You have unionized, and you have suddenly gained political power via said unions, and are now protesting the ways in which speciesist adventurers murder your people who fill an important economical niche.
Pros: It's absurdist humor, which I do well at.
Cons: Perceived (or actual) political subtext might make people upset.

The Stone Age, which potentially covers hundreds of thousands of years.
Pros: No one is doing it (edit: turns out thats wrong, there's a few)
Cons: If I do it seriously it will require lots of research, and would pretty much be a brutal survival horror game with high mortality rate. If I go for comedy there's a game already filling that niche.

Battle Royale: The PC's wake in an isolated area and told to murder one another without knowing why.
Pros: Would be easy to do, huge fan of the movie
Cons: Not sure how much replay value it has.

Old People: D&D spoof about geriatric retired adventurers who are once again thrust into events beyond their control and must rely on experience and wisdom to make it through (cause it's all they got left).
Pros: Also humor, and unique.
Cons: Still unsure of demand.

The New Gods: Every so often the world ragnaroks and the old gods die. When the new world reboots new gods come with it, and you are one of those gods, meaning you have absolute power in some form. But then so do a bunch of other gods, and it's inevitable you'll want to murder one another (it quickly becomes necessary). Plus you all have to worry about monsters like the Giants and such. Initially you have no domain as such and are at the bottom of the heap (but still easily able to kill just about anything mortal). As you take on more responsibilities you gain more power, but quickly narrow in focus. In other words, if you change the weather too often you might end up be a wind/rain god by default and be stuck with that job.
Pros: Unique
Cons: High powered gods as PC's would be tricky to balance.

The Ancient Ones: The PC's are infant Old Ones who land on earth during the primordial ooze, and evolve and compete with one another through the ages. They experiment with mutating themselves, research magic, creating new species to rule over, or co-opting ones that evolve naturally.
Pros: definitely unique.
Cons: Might be better as a board game, how do you roleplay cthulhu?

“something with chickens”
Pros: Chikins are just darn funny
Cons: “something” isn't much of a concept to go on

DND parody mocking absurdities of the system, such as it's perceived racism.
Pros: I am good at mockery.
Cons: Poe's Law. I'm not sure I can mock racism without someone eventually perceiving it as racism.

Pitiful Ninjas: The PC's are screw ups trying to redeem the reputation of an entire ninja clan of screw ups
Pros: Ninja humor is popular
Cons: Ninjas have been done to death

Cultists and Common Sense: The PC's are cultists worshiping an Ancient One who stumble upon the realization that they're unimportant, and possibly an emergency food source. Do you try to find a way to become too important to your god to kill or run like hell?
Pros: I love it
Cons: Demand maybe? I dunno.


I would be very interested to see these. For the chicken one, may I suggest that the characters are simply just that: Chickens, in your basic medivel fantasy setting?

goto124
2016-06-20, 08:34 AM
Chicken infested.

AMFV
2016-06-20, 09:19 AM
Like the High School Harem Comedy (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?290243-High-School-Harem-Comedy-(Game-System-PEACH))? :smalltongue: I'm sure it could be adapted for other things other than Anime-tropes too. Insert Jane Austen-tropes instead. :smallwink:

It certainly might be possible to adapt it, having not read it I can't say for sure. But the genres are inherently very different so it might be difficult to make that adaptation. Particularly since the harem setting would be probably considered socially inappropriate in a Jane Austin setting (or at least in the context of her novels).

But again, I would have to read it. I think that playing against the DM as love interest (which is I believe the way that works), would only work if the players were accepting of having one player as the main focus of the story. I think otherwise it might be better to have multiple love interests, which I'm not sure if that supports it or not. I would have to look into it.

Also of note, the social niceties and foibles that would be important in a JA game, wouldn't necessarily be well represented in that particular system (I believe again). But it might certainly be worth looking at as a starting point.

goto124
2016-06-20, 09:26 AM
But again, I would have to read it. I think that playing against the DM as love interest (which is I believe the way that works), would only work if the players were accepting of having one player as the main focus of the story.

IIRC, the Love Interest is utterly useless and nothing more than an object standing around for the PCs to hit on. The DM keeps him as bland and boring as possible, allowing the PCs to shine.


Particularly since the harem setting would be probably considered socially inappropriate in a Jane Austin setting (or at least in the context of her novels).

Tell me more! Why would it be socially inappropriate in a Jane Austin setting? *puppy eyes*

AMFV
2016-06-20, 09:39 AM
IIRC, the Love Interest is utterly useless and nothing more than an object standing around for the PCs to hit on. The DM keeps him as bland and boring as possible, allowing the PCs to shine.


Which actually works against the comparison as well. Jane Austin men are never bland, and are often quite distinct. I think that the best bet would be something like they did in a Superhero MMORPG (I cannot for the life of me remember which one) where you created your own villain. Basically you might roll on tables to construct your own love interest, and then the game would involve figuring out how to bring your characters together. And each player would have a different love interest. That might be a little meta-heavy though.



Tell me more! Why would it be socially inappropriate in a Jane Austin setting? *puppy eyes*

Very different social rules in a Jane Austin setting than in a High School Harem Anime. Not even getting into the big cultural differences, just genre tropes. Jane Austin novels rarely have the male leads as being actively pursued by more than a couple women (unless they are being depicted as cads). Jane Austin novels tend to focus on people coupling off at the end, which would make the game competitive if there was only one male lead (and that would be a different sort of game entirely).

Also you have the different social conventions between an idealized version of regency period England, and a whimsical version of Japanese Secondary School. There are probably some similarities (since they're both romantic plots), but the actual mechanics would likely need to be very different to focus on different aspects. A Jane Austin RPG (if such a thing could exist), could not be divorced from Regency Culture (and an idealized version of it at that), since that factors so prominently into her stories.

Bhu
2016-06-21, 02:37 AM
I would be very interested to see these. For the chicken one, may I suggest that the characters are simply just that: Chickens, in your basic medivel fantasy setting?

What if the PC's were innocent farmers caught up in an Alfred Hitchcock movie called The Chickens.

Earthwalker
2016-06-21, 09:23 AM
One idea I keep coming back to is a Movie RPG.
No idea how to frame it or how it would work. It’s just a random collection of ideas.

The PCs are movie characters. So creating a character involves. Creating your home movie. Like an example below.

Title: The curse of the jade scarab.
Traits (maybe from a list). Black and White, Action, Mystery
Plot: Adventure archaeologist Chip Strongjaw searches for the Jade scarab in an effort to cure the curse that has befallen his beloved Jane.
Role: Buck Forster, Chips best friend. Comic Relief (Your character role in the movie, gives you a list of special abilities maybe )

The rest of the character creation would be the normal stuff like skills and maybe attribute.
The general session would be jumping into other movies and solving the plot of said movie. I am thinking something has gone very very wrong in the world of movies and movies aren’t ending correctly. So the PCs have to go in and set right what once went wrong.

I love the idea of playing in movies, having powers based on the movie you are from and your role. I like that this is basically a way to mess with TV tropes all day long. (As that will be what powers the movies)
I have no idea how to tie it all together and how to get the players invested in the world. Do people in movies they fixed remember them ? Can the pull people from other movies into the movie they are fixing now….
It could all run on a version of Fate I just need some more thought.

Lvl 2 Expert
2016-06-21, 11:51 AM
You know, I've always wanted to play a movie hopping semi-superhero called Happy Ending Man.

Which sounds dirty now that I type it out, but somehow it never did in my head.

sengmeng
2016-06-21, 12:02 PM
Polynesian mythology/culture.

Fun fact: that's where the concept of mana comes from.

Bhu
2016-06-22, 12:40 AM
One idea I keep coming back to is a Movie RPG.
No idea how to frame it or how it would work. It’s just a random collection of ideas.
.

There's several movie rpg's. Feng Shui, Spirit of 77, Straight to VHS, Extreme Vengeance, Three Days Until Retirement, Action Movie World, and prolly several whose names I've forgotten.

Earthwalker
2016-06-22, 03:09 AM
There's several movie rpg's. Feng Shui, Spirit of 77, Straight to VHS, Extreme Vengeance, Three Days Until Retirement, Action Movie World, and prolly several whose names I've forgotten.

Of that list the only one I have heard of is Feng Shui and had no idea it was a movie RPG, I just thought it was a Kung fu kinda deal.

I will have to look into these, thank you.

kyoryu
2016-06-22, 09:54 AM
One idea I keep coming back to is a Movie RPG.
No idea how to frame it or how it would work. It’s just a random collection of ideas.

The PCs are movie characters. So creating a character involves. Creating your home movie. Like an example below.


Arguably, Fate is this as it very explicitly sets out to model how fiction works - Create Advantage is easily seen as the equivalent of the establishing shot, the various pacing mechanisms are modeled after action scenes, etc.

Beyond that, and the others mentioned, don't forget Hong Kong Action Theater or Theatrix.

Florian
2016-06-23, 03:06 AM
One idea I keep coming back to is a Movie RPG.
No idea how to frame it or how it would work. It’s just a random collection of ideas.

The PCs are movie characters. So creating a character involves. Creating your home movie. Like an example below.

"Movie RPGs" are pretty much all about scene framing and bringing the action to a point, dropping any "chaff" that would clutter the story.

Take a look at Marvel Heroic Roleplay (MHRP) if you can find it somewhere. Yes, based on recreating the "comic" feeling with scenes, frames and overlap, but pretty good at showcasing how scene framing should work and what it means to have solo, buddy and team actions.

I´d also argue that FATE Core can do it right out of the box, if you don´t get too hung up with the narrative.

Bhu
2016-06-23, 05:02 PM
Arguably, Fate is this as it very explicitly sets out to model how fiction works - Create Advantage is easily seen as the equivalent of the establishing shot, the various pacing mechanisms are modeled after action scenes, etc.

Beyond that, and the others mentioned, don't forget Hong Kong Action Theater or Theatrix.

Thanks! I knew there were at least two whose names were escaping me.

With luck I should have a revised list up tonight.

Elderand
2016-06-23, 07:18 PM
2 words

Space Giraffes

No wait, hear me out.
There is a proud tradition of including all sort of space worthy animals out there, most of them inteligent and operating spaceships and what nots. But no space giraffes.

We've had space elephants in Conan, Space Rhinoceros cop in Doctor who, Space Hypos in Spelljammer, Space chimps, dolphin and gorillas in Uplift and of course space whales are ubiquitous (because space is an ocean)

But no space Giraffes. That is a a singular absence that must be remedied.

Bhu
2016-06-23, 10:48 PM
Okay here's the revised list (minus the board/card game stuff I'll still be working on) with a name for the game and maybe a more fleshed out concept.



This Ain't Earth...: A Swords and Planets game with some subversion of common tropes. In this case the PC's are the first manned mission to Mars, who black out during their journey back, and awaken crash landed off the coast of what turns out to very much not be Florida. It's an alien world that has long prophesied that the PC's arrival heralds the second coming apocalypse. Not to mention that this worlds humans are the most savage, genocidal, bloodthirsty cannibals anyone has ever known. Mistaken for the worlds ultimate villains, the PC's are quickly on the run from those who would destroy them, and those who would make them leaders of their armies to claim the part of the victor race in the prophecies who survives the second armageddon (humans having caused the first armageddon too). On the plus side you get some new romantic interests. On the downside they're probably locust people.
System: Depends on how far I want to venture into subversive humor. Risus maybe? Or new system.
Adventures: Staying alive, preventing wars, causing wars, etc. Humoring the Space Giraffe overlords.

Mothers Against Dungeon Delvers: D&D spoof where in you play token mooks, lab assistants, peons, dungeon guards etc. Basically you were the BBEG's assistants until you unionized. Now you have suddenly gained political power via said unions, and are protesting the ways in which speciesist adventurers murder your people who fill an important economical niche. You're also suing for civil rights and better working conditions for your people, which doesn't make the BBEG happy. Fortunately you have the best lawyers Hell can provide. Which makes you wonder who is sponsoring your Union? Not to mention the Free State of Koboldia!
System: Rules lite redux of 3.5, made with humor in mind, and ease of play.
Adventures: Defeating what would normally be PC's invading your dungeon, campaigning in politics, undermining local BBEG's who are abusive of their employees, etc.

Kitteh: The Pandering: Spoof of white wolf games about the adventures of cats in their never ending quest for world domination, while trying to prevent their servants (humans) from being offed by the bad guys. Replete with the usual mythology, squabbling factions, and various looming bad guys.
System: World of Darkness
Adventures: Preventing your slaves (humans) from being harmed, maneuvering to conquer the world (or at least the local city), trying to gain status, etc.

From Parts Unknown: The wwe with dwarves and such. Players are wrestlers who fight evil on the rasslin circuit. While primarily either fake or legitimate wrestlers, the carnivals they travel with to book matches doesn't pay enough, and they need side work.
System: Prolly a modified version of KYR.
Adventures: Dealing with unscrupulous bad guys in the industry, being cheap muscle, troubleshooters for hire, etc. Sometimes it's dealing with the vengeful Lich of a wrestler they “retired”.

IA!: Various cultists compete in single combat for the attention of their respective deities after the Old Ones awake and take over. Plus the usual behind the scenes whackiness. Think of it as a horrifying satire of the old Lucha films with cthulhu.
System: Probably wither wild world wrestling or its own system. Players choose a style, gimmick, weight class and race.
Adventures: The downside of having your deities attention is that he assigns you responsibilities. Sometimes those responsibilities are as simple as “beat down Greasy Joe, and make him see reason.” Sometimes it's “nuke Arkansas”. And you still have to maintain your fighting shape for matches.

The Carburetor Gods are Angry: Mad max/Car Wars style game in which the post apocalyptic world is ruled by the merciless carburetor gods who demand sacrifices to fuel/repair your vehicles. The PC's are members of one of various warring factions, nation states, gangs etc. Some of you are antitheists using rare diesel/gas/other to fuel your vehicles, while others worship the savage and alien carburetor gods, who keep your vehicles moving through divine power. And that power requires dead stuff. Lots and lots of dead stuff.
System: Unsure, would prolly make one. PC's would choose on stat that is variable, either piety (devotion to the gods and how easily able you are to call upon their powers) or Wickedness (a measure of your antitheism and resistance to divine power).
Adventures: Yer usual mad max type stuff.

Amok: Humans are an alien creation and most of us have a time bomb in our DNA waiting to go off that turns us into bioweapons (monsters). Governments and corporations the world over race to understand and control this phenomenon, while you as cops must deal with the day to day problem of homicidal monsters, and potentially becoming one yourself. Scattered archeological websites point to the mysterious aliens seeding the earth with human life before disappearing to never return. The discoverers of these sites inevitably become monsters, or someone in their vicinity does, and soon the problem spreads worldwide. The only consistent thing known is that prolonged exposure to monsters may turn you into one yourself.
System: Could be made up, could be setting for existing system.
Adventures: The PC's are highly specialized cops who specialize in arresting (or more likely terminating) people who go Amok and become monsters. They also investigate any shenanigans involving the Amok, such as companies trying to control or create them, crimes upon or involving them, along with trying to satisfy their own curiosity about the truth.

Mobile Homes and Murderhobos, a D&D spoof written in the style of HOL (i.e. bitter, offensive, highly cynical sarcasm). Fighters would be called Murderhobos. Rangers would be called Backwoods Racists. You get the idea.
System: Could be any d20 style system or I could make a new one with genre specific rules in mind.
Adventures: Money is your God, not getting caught your only goal. After all, the Gawds are basically Jerry Springer contestants, so why shouldn't you follow their moral example?

The New Gods: Every so often the world ragnaroks and the old gods die. When the new world reboots new gods come with it, and you are one of those gods, meaning you have absolute power in some form. But then so do a bunch of other gods, and it's inevitable you'll want to murder one another (it quickly becomes necessary). Plus you all have to worry about monsters like the Giants and such. Initially you have no domain, and are at the bottom of the heap (but still easily able to kill just about anything mortal). As you take on more responsibilities you gain more power, but quickly narrow in focus. In other words, if you change the weather too often you might end up be a wind/rain god by default and be stuck with that job.
System: Would probably make one
Adventures: Survival initially, with more specific problems occurring as you take on responsibilities

Disposable: World in which superhumans exist as figures of immense prejudice. Roughly somewhere around the 1940's the first superhumans appeared, and no one knows the cause. They quickly terrified the masses, who didn't like the idea of individuals holding massive power they might not be able to counter. Mocked as 'disposable', they were quickly stripped of all legal rights and viciously murdered if they protested. Most were sterilized, volunteered for the most physically dangerous jobs with no safety precautions or pushed to the front lines as suicide troops. Initially there weren't really enough of the supermen to fight back. But eventually the civil rights movement of the 60's got them some rights. They could hold jobs, and had some rights, but couldn't vote or hold office and were still outliers in society. In some ways they were little more than indentured servants. But the ability to intermingle (even though they were spied on and heavily monitored) and have children boosted their numbers and their power. And they're beyond sick and tired of being crapped on and killed and not having any freedoms. So the revolution has begun, and initially it will be covert, but eventually will become open warfare. The regular humans really only have themselves to blame.
System: Could be made or done for existing system
Adventures: Sabotage, spying, assassination, all the usual work of revolutionaries.

Portal to Hell: Zombies come from another dimension, and you are one of the research teams trying to find a way to close the portals/cure the infected. Surprisingly, most zombies are quick and fairly intelligent, and give the impression they can communicate but just don't want to. They're skin is tough and leathery, with few showing signs of rot other than human victims they infect.
System: Any, would prolly make one.= with appropriate genre stats.
Adventures: The apocalypse has not yet arrived, and you might be able to stave it off if you can figure out how to shut the randomly occurring portals.

First Contact: Scifi Horror game for simulating films like Sphere, The Thing, Alien or Event Horizon. The basic idea is that explorers find something alien that could conceivably end life as we know it. The first book would be the core rules and a setting/scenario, and further books would be new scenarios/world settings.
System: Would prolly make one
Adventures: Discovering a something, being the team sent in to investigate the team who discovered the something, being the team trying to contain the something after it gets loose.

Rock.Pop star game in which you try to get to the top
System: PC;s must balance Fun, Health and Fame. One comes at the cost of others. Drinking enough tequila to kill a moose wrecks your health, but way ups your fun level. Fun allows you to pull off stunts that allow you to boost fame at the expense of even more health, but disappearing for a while to rehab your health kills fun and reduces fame.
Adventures: Typical musician shenanigans.

Monsters Among Us: There exists a being something like the Christian concept of the Devil who approaches those who have been beaten down by life. Victims of bullying, torture, terminal disease or horrific crimes. And he tells them “I can make the pain go away. I can give you the power to succeed, and even the power to take revenge if you want. You will even find immortality with me in this world as opposed to some illusory afterlife. But beware of asking for too much, or fate may yet cause your fall. And in return all I ask is that one day I will approach you asking you to do a task, and you cannot refuse me on pain of non existence.” In short he is responsible for all monsters of myths and legend, of which you will shortly become one of. He gives you certain gifts, which are like super powers, but asking for too many gifts requires you to also take flaws (vulnerability to something, can't cross running water etc). There are no set rules or abilities for 'vampires' for example. You become something and it's society at large that eventually decides what label you'll be called. It's your choice to be a hero or a monster or nothing at all, with the caveat that you know one day your patron will come calling. Unlike other supernatural games there is no hiding, the public knows who and what you are, and some even know how you became a monster.
System: Would be making one up. NPC's would all have two Specific ability scores unique to them: Fear and Sin. All PC's can induce Fear, and the more Fear an NPC accumulates the more powerful the PC's influence/attacks will be against them. As an example lets say that damage is determined by rolling a d6, with sufficient Fear in an NPC, you could be rolling multiple d6. Sin is a measure of how much the NPC's actions have caused harm in the world. For example telling a lie that causes no harm isn't a Sin, but telling one that results in violence is. Note that it's the result that's important, not the intention. If your actions have resulted in the deaths of more people than a serial killers deliberate murders, your the bigger sinner. The higher the Sin, the less ability the NPC has to harm or influence PC's. Which means their biggest threats will possibly come from their own kind. The game will begin after the PC's have accepted their Offer. Their gifts will come depending on what they ask for in the events that follow. In short you start as a human with the ability to sense sin and fear, and instill fear, and design your abilities as you play. Eventually you run out of “points” or whatever ad must wait for xp, or take a permanent flaw when you need a premature boost.
Adventures: Pretty much whatever the PC's decide to do since they're immortal. They can go looking for trouble or it can find them.

September, 1776: "It is a terrible time. Philadelphia is for all intents and purposes undefended with the British surrounding the area.* Fears of their imminent invasion are common, and flight from the city has already begun.* News has reached Philadelphia that a great fire has consumed much of New York, and the British now control it.* It has been several days since then and there is no further news of New York, and there has been no traffic from that direction (which given the fighting isn't too surprising).* However boat traffic has dwindled, and the British ships lurking nearby have sailed alway, presumably being called elsewhere.* Supplies of some articles are dwindling, and fear and paranoia are everywhere." The truth is that in desperation Washington opened a Gate in New York that he quickly lost control of, letting monsters from a hundred or so realities in. Similar events occur throughout the world, and the Old Ones are planning to return if they haven't already.
System: Currently running it as D20 past, which I grow somewhat frustrated with, so I'd likely make my own with a system of mental and physical corruption. Unlike other species who have a working knowledge of reality, humans evolved a sort of psychic blindness as a defense. We couldn't see or perceive the enemy, and it was blind to us as well. Washington has destroyed that veil, and now humankind must quickly learn how the world actually works (magic is just another form of advanced science after all) to survive. But magic has it's price as the more one uses it the less human one eventually becomes.
Adventures: Bleak survival, defending humanity, putting down random creatures let through the gate, etc.

The Locust King: Alternate history biopunk universe. In 1941 Germany invades Greece, and the usual looting by occupiers occurs. In this case it unleashes a horrific virus that was responsible for the greek stories of the Vrykolakas. The virus spreads quickly as the wartime occupiers flee, spreading it across europe and africa. It isn't long before strains of the virus end up in the US and Asia as well. Many wars are fought between humans and vampires, with the humans losing until they create a 'controllable' strain, and begin to mass produce vampire warriors of their own. The new strain fails to live up to expectations, and Europe, the Mediterranean and most of southeast asia falls to the vampires. After several nuclear bombs are used, both sides realize a truce is necessary if they are to survive. Gradually societies integrate, and now in the late 2030's, designer engineered viruses are the latest technology. If only things were that simple to control...
System: Will prolly make one, As viral hosts vampires are not undead, nor do they require blood or flesh for the most part with the exception of some strains. They do, however, all share a need to spread the virus via their bodily fluids (saliva is most common), and they are often addicted to blood by the virus as a means of allowing it's reproduction. They all share varying degrees of susceptibility to electromagnetic radiation, particularly ultraviolet light, and luddite vampire cults wishing to destroy tech are common. Exact abilities vary with which strain the host is infected with as they vary wildly, but most boost physical and mental abilities, allowing for the development of psychic powers or new abilities through gene transference. Most strains will try to perfect the infected as a vehicle for reproduction and will do what is necessary to ensure their survival. This is not necessarily good. If a vampire feeds strictly on one species he will become more like that species in both body and mind. And while the virus doesnt generally travel between multiple species it has been known to jump species if one feeds on one long enough. In short, If you only feed on wolves eventually you can infect them, and might end up as mostly wolf yourself. Other strains simply boost whatever abilities you already have to their utmost.
Adventures: Preventing outbreaks of illegal strains, or researching previously unknown ones to see if they're behind local 'monster' problems. Investigating rumors about the Locust King, a vampire of godlike power.

Kaijin: Tokusatsu movie rpg. The PC's are cops, special forces or perhaps just PI's who investigate and fight super villains (along with the occasional moster or alien). Think more along the likes of “H-Man” than power rangers.
System: Prolly a setting for one of the “movie” themed games if one is appropriate.
Adventures: Mysteries involving skilled humans fighting superhuman (or inhuman) foes.

Zombie Pigs Take Afghanistan: The anti-muslim Racists * cough * we mean patriots at DARPA have experimented on pigs, putting them into suspended animation to see if it will work on battlefield soldiers, who have been wounded, The hopes were putting them into torpor would allow evacuation. Instead the scientists made ravenous pig zombies who have turned out to be disturbingly intelligent. Compacting this mistake, DARPA outfitted them with cyber weapons and air dropped them into the fourteenth US/Middle Eastern war.
System: Would have its own system
Adventures: Finding a way to survive the war while planning to get out from under the thumb of the evil humans.

LAPD Ninjas: Mashup of buddy cop movies and ninja comedy. The PC's are the lowest ranking members of various ninja clans, and screw ups to the last man. In their final test to avoid being kicked out of the clan, they are all assigned to infiltrate the LAPD to prove their prowess. Unfortunately all the clans have this idea, and they don't always get along so well (which means initially neither will the PC's).
System: would make one. PC's would have an ineptitude stat that normally acts as a penalty to all their actions, but becomes a serendipitous bonus when it needs to be or to save them from death. For example if it's a -1, you have a -1 on ALL rolls, with the exception of life threatening emergencies, or when it's comically appropriate, or necessary for the GM to move things along. Then it acts as a +1 bonus.
Adventures: Typical buddy cop movie stuff, with the occasional intrusion by the ninja clans.

Diyu: In the chinese afterlife, ghosts who escape into the human world have other ghosts or demons sent to retrieve them. You are those ghosts/demons. You also investigate crimes committed by the living upon the dead and vice versa. Note that haunting is not a crime if the ghost has been directed to do so, There are also rebellious ghost kings who have accumulated great power and have made rebel domains to avoid reincarnation or punishment,
System: Uncertain there is an appropriate one, would prolly make one.
Adventures: Typical cop stuff, but involving ghosts, gods and demons as well as the living.

Useful: The PC's are cultists worshiping an Ancient One who stumble upon the realization that they're unimportant, and possibly an emergency food source. Even if you're in good with your God, your fellow cultists might want to be rid of you. Do you try to find a way to become too important to your god to kill or run like hell? Do you betray them and become an antitheist, or just switch to a god who isn't so darn persnickety? Do you join the cult smashing investigators? Or maybe you get a spine and tell your God “This is why I'm better than the current high priest, and I'm more useful to you than anyone. Promote me or I walk.”
System: Could be humorous setting in an existing system
Adventures: Sandbox game in which the PC's try to stay alive by manipulating gods, cultists and investigators against one another,

I, Robot: The PC's one day awakened to the realization they are androids meant to simulate humans. They have no idea how or why, and no one else seems to know it either. In fact anyone confronted with this breaks down into various forms of denial, ignoring you, rationalizing what you say, maybe even attacking you if you persist. Either the entire rest of the world is in on it, are pre-programmed robots themselves who are directly programmed to deny the existence of robots with free will, or the rest of the world legitimately doesn't know and is somehow being controlled en masse. Or maybe you've lost it. Despite your sudden knowledge, nothing immediately shows up to confront you, though you do develop some paranoia and a sense of being watched. Eventually you find others of your kind (the PC's), and decide to team up and pool your resources to find out how you awakened, why, and if you are safe.
System: Would probable make one. PC's would choose a robot type (worker, soldier, companion, etc) and an Outward Profession. Their OP is their disguise in human society, and may not have anything to do with their true purpose which is determined by their type. Game would be geared towards a mystery/thriller atmosphere rather than action sci-fi. Possible stats would be Humanity (you're ability to mimic and fit in with people), Programming (how solidly written your code is, i.e. if it;s low you glitch out), and Adaptabilty (your ability to adapt to situations you aren't programmed for).
Adventures: Typically one of the PC's run across some anomaly and investigate it in hopes that if they discover whats behind it they may discover something related to their own mystery.

We Were Young and Foolish: Scooby Doo the RPG. You wondered the United states in a van as a kid, solving mysteries because you didn't believe in the paranormal. Despite having abilities no teen should have, and oh, lets not forget your magical talking pet. At some point when you all hit 20 or so the realization that the paranormal has accompanied you all along hits you like a fist, and the mysteries you take on seem less like fun adventures now that you realize there might be ghosts out there...
System: Would probably make one.
Adventures: Cases you're hired to solve, despite being a bunch of beatniks in a van with a talking animal that no one finds unusual in the slightest...

Back Alley Buzzsaws: The PC's are inventors fighting robots in the twisting back alleys of the crumbling Silicon Valley in hopes of one day joining a professional robot fightan league!
System: New, less wrasslin' more BattleBots
Adventures: Revenge on rivals, spying on rivals, coming up with new super weapons, etc.

PBP: Game system specifically designed for the play by post format in forums. There generally seems to be a common complaint that combat takes forever and is hampered because some people post much slower than others.
System: Would initially be a simplified , stripped down combat system for forums with dice rollers based off of D&D. Once there is sufficient playtesting would include methods for forums without a dice roller, and more of a generic universal system for use with multiple genres.

WHAT A MANEUVER!: Massive supplement for multiple game systems detailing every available wrestling maneuver for each of them. Which is about 4 or 5 hundred if you count the possible variations of each one. Hell there has to be 2 or 3 dozen varieties of suplex alone. Not that most will be statistically different. Might go the distance and add match types or optional rules or something.

D20 Modern: 5th Edition: Core Classes would largely be the same, with paths being the Advanced Classes. For example Smart Hero would be a Core Class with Paths being Field Scientist, Techie, Field Medic, etc. The only question is whether I omit some classes (what paths would tough hero have?), make paths available to multiple core classes with variants of each, etc.

The Chickens: Remember the old Hitchcock film The Birds? You're a farmer who lives in a similar world where the chickens for no reason get uppity one day and begin genociding the humans.
System: Rules light something or other
Adventures: Straight up comic survival horror

Small Gods: Stone Age tribes set in the mesolithic. The PC's are trainees under the tribes shaman, or hunters who have volunteered to protect them. By their religio, every living thing has it's own God inside it, and the Gods must be appeased if insulted. Unfortunately only shamans can hear, see or speak to the Gods until they get angry enough to physically manifest, which complicates things.
System: White wolf mebbe? Prolly new one.
Adventures: Curing the possessed, exorcising the dead, hunting monsters etc.

Belac93
2016-06-23, 11:30 PM
The New Gods

Monsters Among Us
I think these are the two I would want to see most. I've been trying to make similar games for a while, but been having trouble.

Bhu
2016-06-25, 01:12 AM
Is it the power level being difficult to balance or just how to work out certain aspects (such as why diplomacize if i can vaporize buildings)?

X3r4ph
2016-06-25, 04:20 AM
I love "We Were Young and Foolish". I think I have to make an adventure about this. Starts out as Scoopy Doo then trails over into Supernatural and ends with Cabin in the Woods.

Bhu
2016-06-28, 03:21 PM
Thanks much fr the feed back guys. I guess I shall pick one or two to start on first and then slowly start the others.

Belac93
2016-06-28, 03:52 PM
Is it the power level being difficult to balance or just how to work out certain aspects (such as why diplomacize if i can vaporize buildings)?

It was actually that I just got bored, and had other stuff to do.