Lowell Francis over at Age of Ravens has started to put up his list of top 100 rpgs. Here are mine...
Didn't make the top 100, but I think are still relevant: Fuzion, Everway, Empire
of the Petal Throne, Metamorphosis
Alpha, Jorune, Dark
Conspiracy, Talislanta, Fudge, The
Whispering Vault
100) Chill - Never played but was made by Pacesetter, a company I like, and has good buzz.
99) SAGA - Never played but has good buzz.
98) Tunnels
& Trolls - Never played by a forerunner of the modern rpgs.
97) Chivalry
& Sorcery - Never played but an early big name.
96) Behind
Enemy Lines - Have it, never played. I like the concept of a WW2 rpg so this is good material for me to check out.
95) Gang
Busters - Early rpg that showed a different genre.
94) Cyberpunk
2013 - Never played but have a few books that I've adapted for my Shadowrun games.
93) Dying
Earth - Have but not played yet. Am curious about a setting based on the writings from which Vancian magic was adapted.
92) Unknown
Armies - Have it, never played, but seems to be well liked by those who do play it.
91) Phoenix
Command - Intricate combat system, too intricate for me to play but good to study.
90) In
Nomine - Interesting setting. have it but not played.
89) Villains
& Vigilantes - My first non-D&D game. Clumsy rules but can be fun.
88) Firefly - Love the setting and adventures. Don't like the rule set.
87) Immortal - Good setting, complex rules. My wife tried running it but we didn't get very far.
86) Fringeworthy - Never heard of it before seeing it mentioned on Age of Ravens. Looks interesting.
85) Underground - Looks cool and fun. Never got it when it first came out.
84) Castles
& Crusades - Just recently got the rule books. Only checked them over and haven't made up my mind yet.
83) ICONs - I love superhero games. Have the rules but not read them yet. Not sure about the random character generation as that is something I tend to not like.
82) Pendragon - Well liked and has been around forever. Do not have the rules yet.
81) FATE - Really popular right now. Not sure its something I would like, but I should check it out anyway to see what the buzz is about.
80) Runequest - Another old time game that influenced later rpgs. Never played it.
79) Labyrinth
Lord - A good solid retroclone.
78) Call
of Cthulhu - Was huge while growing up and still has a lot of fans. Never played it, but it can not be ignored.
77) HarnMaster - Always been curious about this one. I have a version of the rules but haven't rad them yet. Reports say it is highly detailed and well constructed.
76) Twilight
2000 - Played but don't have it. Not bad and the setting is good. Rules might be too complex.
75) En
Garde! - I really like swashbuckler games. I do not have this one but am curious. Also its an early rpg.
74) Godlike - Superhero game in WW2. The rules are difficult to get through for me.
73) Burning
Wheel - Curious about this one. Do not have it yet.
72) Ghost
Dog - Have it, never played. The setting is better than the rules.
71) DC
Heroes - Have a bunch of the books (and there a lot of them released over the years). Its a superhero game so I have it, but I prefer other systems.
70) Space
Opera - FGU space rpg. I have a soft spot for the FGU games. Do not have it.
69) Mercenaries,
Spies and Private Eyes - I also like pulp and this works well for that.
68) Dune - Love the fiction books. Not really a good adaption but I got it anyway. Never played it.
67) Star
Frontiers - Played it. Fun but I couldn't take it serious.
66) GURPs - Have it, played it. I don't really like it, but its affect and standing in the rpg community can not be ignored.
65) Pathfinder - Have the starter set. So many people like it. Not for me (not a huge fan of 3E etc) but it changed D&D and the rpg industry by successfully challenging the 100-pound gorilla. While I will probably never play it, I do get a lot of their Adventure Path books because they are fun to read.
64) The
Fantasy Trip - I have it and played it long ago. Not a bad system, but not great. However, I have a nostalgic soft spot for it.
63) Agone - Just picked this up and it looks interesting.
62) Heroes
Unlimited - Superhero game so I have it. Palladium so its hard to worth with.
61) Champions - Superhero game so I have it. Pretty good. It also changed the way some people look at rpgs with its innovations.
60) Aces
& Eights - I really want to like this but it seems...daunting. I will have to sit down and rad the rules carefully at some point.
59) Hackmaster - Silly, complex, looks fun. Its a through-back, not sure if its worth the effort but I do like the concept.
58) James
Bond 007 - Famous spy game that is well liked. Do not have it.
57) Psiworld - Have it, never played. A solid attempt to create an rpg based solely on psionics.
56) Palladium
Fantasy - Early strong game, but with Palladium rules.
55) Star
Wars d6 - Played it, do not have it. Solid game.
54) Justice
Inc - FGU pulp...soft spot entry.
53) Leverage - Loved the show, not a fan of the Cortex system. Might convince myself to try it again because I loved the show and concept so much.
52) Fireborn - Liked the concept, haven't been able to finish the rules as they can get complex.
51) Amber
Diceless - Have it, played it. Not a huge fan of diceless games but the setting is strong for me.
50) Legacy:
War of Ages - Highlander knockoff, love Highlander so I got it. It does a good job of potraying the setting but is overall weak.
49) Rune - It is one of my "in the mood for" games. It is all about raw violence and not much else.
48) Brave
New World - Superhero game. Have all the books but never played it. It has depth but its not my go-to superhero game.
47) Lace
and Steel - Loved the setting. Rules were more complicated than they needed to be but it looked like it might be fun. Have it but never played it.
46) Bushido - Played once, have all the books for it as I went and searched for the ones I didn't have. Complex but in a good way.
45) Mutant
& Masterminds - Superhero game. I have almost all the books including 3rd party books. Never played it and probably never will as I find the system too complex for my needs. However, I really enjoy them
44) Star
Trek (FASA) - Have all the books and played it a few times. It was fun without being too complex.
43) Hercules
& Xena - Underrated in my opinion. Sure the series were camp but the game didn't have to be. Have it but never played it, though I might some day.
42) Rifts - Have some of it, never played. Not a fan of Palladium games, but I might just try this one sometime soon.
41) Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles - Have it, played it, used it for a Gamma World game. Yes, its Palladium which I generally dislike but I had fun with this.
40) Toon - Have it, played it. Its a "in the mood for" game. Does it genre well.
39) Mage - Played it, liked it. Unbalanced the way we ran it.
38) Lord
of the Rings (ICE) - Huge LotR fan so I played it of course...many times. Have the newest version from Cubicle but haven't read it yet.
37) Paranoia - Have it (went and looked for it). A lot of fun. A "in the mood for game".
36) Top
Secret - Played it a lot. Was fun but it's been some time since I played it so I don't remember much of the rules.
35) Dresden
Files - Have it, haven't read it yet. I will use it to determine if I like the FATE system.
34) Earthdawn - Have some of the books. It has a diligent following so I am curious about it.
33) Houses
of the Blooded - I like this style of game, though the rules are a bit too narrative for my tastes. I will likely look at it again and give it an honest try.
32) The
Riddle of Steel - Good combat and magic system. I have tried adapting the system to run in other games/settings but always end up going with the default rule set of the other setting to save time.
31) Space
1889 - Love the setting. Rules were okay, not great, not bad. Have all the books but haven't run it yet.
30) Grimm - I so want to run this. Need to find a group of players who would "get it".
29) Traveller - Grand-daddy of science fiction rpgs. Have a bunch of the books from scattered editions. Never played it.
28) Elric! - Loved the books and it looks like this would fit seamlessly with the books from a play-style approach. Almost ran a game a few years ago but we went with something else instead. Maybe someday.
27) Warhammer
Fantasy - Another early days of rpgs entry. Have most of the 2nd edition, just need to run a game someday. Slightly intimidated by the setting as it has a lot of depth.
26) Marvel
(TSR) - Played it like crazy back in the day. There are other superhero games I prefer now, but gosh-darn-it we played it a lot.
25) 13th
Age - Solid system. Just have the core rulebook. Not likely to play it as a system anytime soon, but there are a lot of good ideas in there.
24) Fantasy
Age - On order. I have the Dragon Age Set 1 and 2. Never played them but they look like a solid system. Needs more support.
23) Werewolf - Ran a bunch of good games in Werewolf.
22) Scion - Have the books, love the concept. Will run it someday.
21) Deadlands - Ran it a lot. A lot of fun was had by everyone. Solid game.
20) Warhammer
40,000 - Have the rogue Trader books. Good game but need to run it.
19) Lords
of Creation - Nostalgia. Love the concept of the books. I want to run it so bad but other games keep getting in the way...and the system is not the best.
18) Flashing
Blades - Never ran it but it is a very good system that does a lot. Also the adventures are solid. Another game I want to run badly.
17) Fading
Suns - Ran it and it was a lot of fun. The setting has some good depth. Its a shame it wasn't supported more...or more people liked it.
16) Gamma
World - My wife runs a mean game of Gamma World. I love playing in her Gamma Worlds games. We also played it a lot in "the old days" and always had fun with it.
15) Changeling - Love the concepts and setting. I love the faerie tales genre. Have never run it but once I find a group that understands the genre I will.
14) Savage
Worlds - Awesome game that I only have 1 issue with. have run a few games with the system and designed even more with it.
13) Feng
Shui - Ho boy! Awesome game. Stoked that I have the 2nd edition as the first was so much fun.
12) GUMSHOE - Some good ideas here and the books are well written. I've run Ashen Stars and have Mutant City Blues and Trail of Cthulhu. I like what they did with investigation tasks but the rest of the system is lacking.
11) Numenera - Have the books, including the Cypher System Core Rules. I like the core die mechanic of player-facing but character generation and growth I find to be unduly scattered. I know it popular so I'm trying to get a handle on it.
10) Ars
Magica - Deep and rich game setting. Haven't run it yet for fear the magic system will be too complex for my current group.
9) Vampire - Have run many a good campaign with this system. I prefer the 2nd edition rule set, if no the setting as much. It was also a game changer in the rpg field when it first dominated the industry.
8) Timemasters - Fun game. I have all the books, but have not run it.
7) Doctor
Who - Ran it successfully. The system is a bit stilted but the source books are top notch. Its here more for my love of Doctor Who rather than being a good system.
6) Shadowrun - I love and hate this game. Love to play it, hate to run it. Currently running it and so far it is going well.
5) Rolemaster/Spacemaster - Played this many times, both in Middle-Earth and in a couple of my home brew settings. I love the concepts and execution though my players tend to find the math daunting.
4) Legend
of the Five Rings - Have all the 1st edition books and ran a good, long campaign. Excellent rule system and excellently written sourcebooks.
3) 7th
Sea - Similar to L5R, I love the system and setting. My wife ran an fun campaign with it.
2) Dungeons
& Dragons - No matter what else I play, I always eventually come back to running D&D. Call it nostalgia or because it is the 100-pound gorilla and everyone else is playing ir, I keep going back. Also, I happen to really like 5E so far. Plus its the game that started it all.
1)
Masterbook/TORG/Indiana Jones/Shatterzone - My official favorite system. I love the elegance of Masterbook. It has a bunch of front-end math, but once in place runs fast. I also loved running TORG and my players still ask every once in a while when I'll run it again. But really, Masterbook is awesome.
