What GURPS needs... now

trooper6 · 07-12-2017, 04:24 PM

So here is icv2's list of top selling RPGs for Fall 2016:
https://icv2.com/articles/markets/vi...ames-fall-2016

They are:

Dungeons and Dragons
Pathfinder
Star Wars (from Fantasy Flight Games)
Shadowrun 5e
Call of Cthulhu 7th Ed

Shadowrun is doing quite well, and I ended up picking up the rules (I'll tell you why in a second)...and you know what? That is one crunchy game. It's success clearly belies the notion that for a game to be successful it can't be as crunchy as GURPS is because it will scare off new players. I found it way crunchier than GURPS.

So what got me to buy Shadowrun?
The Twitch Streamed Shadowrun Game: CorporateSINs. That stream lasted for over a year and I got all invested in the game watching the great players and GM...so I bought the basic rules. As a matter of fact, most of the games I've bought in the last few years (and it has turned out to be more than I have in a while), have mostly come from being inspired to pick up the game after watching it streamed on Twitch.

What I think GURPS needs now is not a new version of GURPS Lite, but less grognardism in the fan base and more visibility. I think a cool Twitch streamed game with fun players and a fun GM that could show that GURPS is elegant, fun, deep, and interesting...*that* is one of the things that GURPS needs to attract new people.

And because no two GURPS games are alike--in other words, my GURPS and your GURPS are not only not the same, but may not even be compatible--it would be best if there were multiple different GURPS Twitch streams. Maybe one run by a GM who is a member of the Cult of Stat Normalization, maybe one run by someone who love the high point totals and cinematics. Maybe one run by a narrativist, one by a simulationist, one by a gamist.

I'd also like to see a really prestige campaign book. Something like the Dracula Dossier. Something where the campaign book is big and impressive and written by someone like Ken Hite. Something that will attract new people who are excited about running an epic campaign...and since it is GURPS they'll run it in that. Sure, current GURPS people may not care about adventures, but we are talking about new people. I'd want a campaign book awesome enough that it could be nominated for an Ennie or an Origins Award. Something that will generate some good press and put GURPS back in people's minds.

In short, I think the game itself is good. I just think GURPS needs to be put back in people's minds as something cool and fun.

07-12-2017, 04:24 PM	#9
trooper6 Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Medford, MA	Re: What GURPS needs... now So here is icv2's list of top selling RPGs for Fall 2016: https://icv2.com/articles/markets/vi...ames-fall-2016 They are: Dungeons and Dragons Pathfinder Star Wars (from Fantasy Flight Games) Shadowrun 5e Call of Cthulhu 7th Ed Shadowrun is doing quite well, and I ended up picking up the rules (I'll tell you why in a second)...and you know what? That is one crunchy game. It's success clearly belies the notion that for a game to be successful it can't be as crunchy as GURPS is because it will scare off new players. I found it way crunchier than GURPS. So what got me to buy Shadowrun? The Twitch Streamed Shadowrun Game: CorporateSINs. That stream lasted for over a year and I got all invested in the game watching the great players and GM...so I bought the basic rules. As a matter of fact, most of the games I've bought in the last few years (and it has turned out to be more than I have in a while), have mostly come from being inspired to pick up the game after watching it streamed on Twitch. What I think GURPS needs now is not a new version of GURPS Lite, but less grognardism in the fan base and more visibility. I think a cool Twitch streamed game with fun players and a fun GM that could show that GURPS is elegant, fun, deep, and interesting...that is one of the things that GURPS needs to attract new people. And because no two GURPS games are alike--in other words, my GURPS and your GURPS are not only not the same, but may not even be compatible--it would be best if there were multiple different GURPS Twitch streams. Maybe one run by a GM who is a member of the Cult of Stat Normalization, maybe one run by someone who love the high point totals and cinematics. Maybe one run by a narrativist, one by a simulationist, one by a gamist. I'd also like to see a really prestige campaign book. Something like the Dracula Dossier. Something where the campaign book is big and impressive and written by someone like Ken Hite. Something that will attract new people who are excited about running an epic campaign...and since it is GURPS they'll run it in that. Sure, current GURPS people may not care about adventures, but we are talking about new people. I'd want a campaign book awesome enough that it could be nominated for an Ennie or an Origins Award. Something that will generate some good press and put GURPS back in people's minds. In short, I think the game itself is good. I just think GURPS needs to be put back in people's minds as something cool and fun.