10 RPGs every gamer should play before they fail their saving throw vs. death

In no particular order are the games that I think everyone should try. And while I'm sure I'll lose geek cred with some folks by including any Palladium products on here, they can go suck it. It is my list.

These are all games that I play or have played on an extensive regular basis, and have a certain amount of intimate knowledge of, and cover several different genres.

Heroes Unlimited - Not only a very fun game, but HU has some of the finest source material available.
Call of Cthulhu - The absolute finest horror RPG of all time. Unbeatable.
Shadowrun - Dirty, clunky fun in an amazing setting. The game (not including 4th edition) has unlimited scope.
Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 Edition - Easy to pick up and play, crunchy as hell, and had more support than any game in history. The definitive D&D.
Marvel Super Heroes - It had wobbly mechanics to be sure, but TSR's MSH game was the answer to any Marvel Zombie's dream on stats.
Mutants & Masterminds - I consider it to be the best superhero system out there. It is also an absolutely superb "generic" system, as well.
Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game - WEG's revised 2nd edition was the benchmark for Star Wars. This wasn't D&D in space - this was pure Star Wars magic.
Star Frontiers - While it is kind of like a "lite" version of Traveller, the special TSR feel that this game possesses is just mystical. I will never stop loving this game.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Other Strangeness - Not only have I never had so much fun during the character generation phase, Palladium's TMNT game was 100% never a waste of time. From characters based on the original gritty comic to fantastic supplements, this game was played and played and played again.
Top Secret/S.I. - A simple, realistic 1980s espionage game that was incredibly based in factuality. While dated now, the game still holds up over time.

Honorable mentions go out to: Rifts, All Flesh Must Be Eaten, Apocalypse Prevention, Inc., and GURPS.

7 comments:

Daniel M. Perez (Slow Bike Miami) said...: Got 7 out of 10. Not bad.; June 21, 2010 5:58 PM
Dane of War said...: I'd be curious as to what those were, Daniel!; June 21, 2010 7:45 PM
Daniel M. Perez (Slow Bike Miami) said...: I have not played M&M (weird, no?), Star Frontiers and Top Secret.

All others I have played to some degree.; June 21, 2010 8:04 PM
greywulf said...: Can't fault any of those. Superb list.; June 21, 2010 10:46 PM
Chicago Terrain Factory said...: Add in something from White Wolf, and you have described my years in College.; June 22, 2010 2:57 PM
Sunglar said...: Wow, I got 9 out of 10! I can die (hope not!) a happy gamer according to this list. The only one I have not played, although I won, is Top Secret/S.I. I can tell we are contemporaries just by that list! This gets me thinking…; June 22, 2010 8:46 PM
Nachtwulf said...: YAHTZEE!!! 8D; June 24, 2010 10:20 PM