What makes an RPG 'Smart'?
Is it complex rules that reflect real world physics and others sciences while simultaneously remaining accessible and of course playable to a mass audience?
Is Traveller a Smart game?
Is it a clever approach to a genre or setting, nailing the feel and atmosphere of what the game is trying to emulate with the simplest mechanics and fewest moving parts?
Is ALIEN a Smart game?
Is it a game that subtly comments on an aspect of the Human experience under the veil of humor, poking fun at us and we at ourselves by playing it?
Is Paranoia a Smart game?
Yes. Yes to all three. I think each game mentioned above can be viewed as Smart in its own way. There are after all different kinds of intelligence: Creative, Existential, Interpersonal, Logical-Mathematical, and so on.
Fun to muse about this for a time but it still doesn't get us an answer to the question at hand, 'What is the SMARTEST RPG I've ever played or run?'
As a player I think I would have to go with Champions, specifically the oft-mentioned 'Age of Champions/Age of Chaos' campaign run by my dear friend William Corpening. In a world full of powerful foes, the PCs often needed more than raw damage to win the day. Being Smart was more important [in many cases] than being powerful.
As a GM, I'd have to say my Star Trek campaigns, particularly those that utilized the FASA system, were among the Smartest I've run. If I had to choose particular games that were especially Smart I'd have to go with the USS Fedifensor, the USS Odyssey, the USS Renown, and without a doubt, the USS Thunder Bay.
I think of Star Trek RPGing as Smart because it isn't focused on violence, the acquisition of wealth (well, except for the Ferengi), or any such petty or mundane things. It concentrates on, at its core, exploration, discovery, the expansion of knowledge, and the sharing of experiences. The goal is understanding, the reward is peace and prosperity. Philosophies are challenged more than stats or rolls of a die.
AD
Barking Alien
Happy to read your takes on these BA but also glad I skipped it again this year. This is a terrible question. How is an RPG "smart"? Do they mean game most intended for smart people here?
ReplyDeleteI think your answer is about the best anyone could do - go with "campaign" over "rules".
I also think someone needs to try harder when writing up these questions.
You and I are definitely in agreement there Blacksteel. I was really hoping for something more...special....for the 10th Anniversary. I still think they should source questions from participants.
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