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Terracotta
2016-09-28, 06:12 PM
In the game I am running now I have decided not to include some characters with computer and technology focused powers. There is no more room. However, I am very fond of them, particularly the leader, and am thinking of GMing a game in the far future that is either hacker-focused or set entirely in cyberspace.

I know Shadowrun has systems for these kinds of things but most of the stories I've heard have been talking about how clunky or awkward it is to integrate with the rest of the system. Mostly I'm curious see what other people have done with it and other systems.

Has anyone here ever played or run a hacker-focused game, one set in cyberspace, or one where interaction with computers was central to the campaign?

Brookshw
2016-09-28, 06:38 PM
Personally I despise shadowrun's hacking and most hacking based minigames because they tend to separate the party. If you use SR I'd drastically reduce the range where you can hack or give everyone a basic avatar and ability they can use. Many d20 systems have toned down hacking which tends to be less dividing of attention. Don't recall cyberpunk's handling anymore.

Grod_The_Giant
2016-09-28, 07:45 PM
Personally I despise shadowrun's hacking and most hacking based minigames because they tend to separate the party. If you use SR I'd drastically reduce the range where you can hack or give everyone a basic avatar and ability they can use. Many d20 systems have toned down hacking which tends to be less dividing of attention. Don't recall cyberpunk's handling anymore.
If you did want to run a game with a lot of "enter the matrix" style hacking, I'd make it something the whole party can get in on. Give everyone at least some free hacking powers, or give the hacker the ability to pull his friends into cyberspace with him (and contribute once there), or have everyone control an AI avatar in cyberspace... something like that. Just like how everyone in a D&D game has to be able to fight, so everyone in a hacking game has to be able to hack.

Terracotta
2016-09-28, 11:45 PM
This is consistent with what I have heard about Shadowrun and is consistent with my own experience.

While Shadowrun tends to get the most mentions in this sort of conversation I'm also thinking that it might be more interesting to have the players ONLY exist in cyberspace. Something akin to Tron or Reboot where are the characters are artificial intelligences.

Mostly that's because I just ran a game in a gritty urban campaign so I'm less inclined to jump directly into a gritty cyberpunk environment.

--

I probably won't be making this game any time soon, but I do want to build up some ideas in my head if/when I decide to run this thing.

Grod_The_Giant
2016-09-29, 08:20 AM
While Shadowrun tends to get the most mentions in this sort of conversation I'm also thinking that it might be more interesting to have the players ONLY exist in cyberspace. Something akin to Tron or Reboot where are the characters are artificial intelligences.
Well. In that case you shouldn't have any problems with deckers-vs-non-deckers.

GungHo
2016-09-29, 12:28 PM
While Shadowrun tends to get the most mentions in this sort of conversation I'm also thinking that it might be more interesting to have the players ONLY exist in cyberspace. Something akin to Tron or Reboot where are the characters are artificial intelligences.
Don't let them know they're AI. Don't let them know anything else is a simulation. Keep it going for as long as you can. Don't give away glitches in the program until you're halfway in. Don't drop the hammer until they actually "escape" into "another dimension" and they realize the Funyun & Dew-smelling squid people they are looking at are the end users.

Ezeze
2016-09-30, 04:12 PM
Don't let them know they're AI. Don't let them know anything else is a simulation. Keep it going for as long as you can. Don't give away glitches in the program until you're halfway in. Don't drop the hammer until they actually "escape" into "another dimension" and they realize the Funyun & Dew-smelling squid people they are looking at are the end users.

The "It was all a dream" ending? :smalltongue:

Recherché
2016-09-30, 05:23 PM
Can't say I've played anything similar but it sounds awesome. There's a webcomic called "Not a Villain (http://navcomic.com/)" that might have some inspiration for you. It's set in a combo of meatspace, an mmo, and cyberspace with characters moving between seamlessly.

As far as systems this seems like it might be a good fit for Fate or Fate Accelerated.

GungHo
2016-10-05, 09:53 AM
The "It was all a dream" ending? :smalltongue:

Not ending. Midway. "It was all a dream" implies that there's nothing you're going to do about it because you've already "escaped" and dealt with the problem. Midway and the story isn't over. They can try to escape the machine. They can meet their makers and thank them... or punish them for not realizing they were playing god every time they highlighted self-aware programs and callously hit "delete". It doesn't have to be Skynet, but it can certainly be Tron.