In the Firefly thread Spinachcat said that he was surprised there hadn't been an Aliens RPG.

So then, luminaries of the RPGsite - how would you go about designing an Aliens game?

My first gut reaction was "seems a bit limited as a premise, surely a board game is a better idea?"

My thinking is that there's two main models for an Aliens game. One is where you play the Marines, in which case it's just "a bug hunt", and probably quite boardgamey. The other is where you play everyday people in the future, in which case the players are all sitting around wondering when the Aliens are going to turn up.

At this point I thought "that's a bit like a reductive description of Call of Cthulu",  and the lightbulb went off.

So my version of Aliens the RPG would be similar to Call of Cthulu (or at least the common perception of that game) in that it would be geared more about a scenario mode of play rather than a campaign. In other words - it would be set up as a game where you shouldn't expect all the PCs (or even any of them) to live through the whole game. I'd focus on producing a lot of adventures for it to emphasise this way of thinking, and fill the adventures up with maps and handouts and stuff so people felt they were worth paying for.

System wise I'd focus on making it a fast system, so that if you die in the first attack you can either roll up a new PC and jump back in, or alternatively not have to sit around too long before the game ends. You'd also want to make sure that you're tracking things like ammunition etc. to keep the survival horror tension. You'd need rules for weapons breaking too.

Quote from: Grymbok;631934My first gut reaction was "seems a bit limited as a premise, surely a board game is a better idea?"

My thinking is that there's two main models for an Aliens game. One is where you play the Marines, in which case it's just "a bug hunt", and probably quite boardgamey. The other is where you play everyday people in the future, in which case the players are all sitting around wondering when the Aliens are going to turn up.

At this point I thought "that's a bit like a reductive description of Call of Cthulu",  and the lightbulb went off.

So my version of Aliens the RPG would be similar to Call of Cthulu (or at least the common perception of that game) in that it would be geared more about a scenario mode of play rather than a campaign. In other words - it would be set up as a game where you shouldn't expect all the PCs (or even any of them) to live through the whole game. I'd focus on producing a lot of adventures for it to emphasise this way of thinking, and fill the adventures up with maps and handouts and stuff so people felt they were worth paying for.

System wise I'd focus on making it a fast system, so that if you die in the first attack you can either roll up a new PC and jump back in, or alternatively not have to sit around too long before the game ends. You'd also want to make sure that you're tracking things like ammunition etc. to keep the survival horror tension. You'd need rules for weapons breaking too.

Nice. I like your thinking young man.

Did someone not do that already based on the Phoenix Command system, or am I thinking of something else?

Quote from: One Horse Town;631933In the Firefly thread Spinachcat said that he was surprised there hadn't been an Aliens RPG.

It's been done.

http://www.amazon.com/Aliens-Adventure-Game-Barry-Nakazono/dp/0945571976/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1361887455&sr=1-3

Played this back in the day, wasn't thrilled with the system. I'm also not that big a fan of the movie series either so I might not be the best reviewer of it.

You know, with a new system and some fresh writing, it might be worth while to reboot that game.

The Colonial Marines Technical Manual + Hero System = best Aliens RPG.

What about the Cold & Dark RPG? It's basically the Aliens and Dead Space RPG with the serial numbers filed off.

I haven't played it yet, but it seems to use a dice pool system with d8s - just to be a little bit different from WW's Storyteller system, I guess...

A similar themed rpg was Bughunters from TSR. Xenomorphs weren't the primary threat you could face, plus it had an interesting take on the marines (they were clones who retain some memories of the original they are cloned from).

Quote from: Grymbok;631934My first gut reaction was "seems a bit limited as a premise, surely a board game is a better idea?"

There was a board game too. It was a decent little game to play at the end of a long day's RPGing.

The Aliens RPG was indeed a slightly stripped down Phoenix Command IIRC, and therefor too crunchy for me and I quite like crunchy.

Quote from: thedungeondelver;631942The Colonial Marines Technical Manual + Hero System = best Aliens RPG.

I would agree with this. True of many settings IMO, just change the reference book.

My approach.
Ever since Ressurrection, there are at least 2 more kinds of "people" that can be played:
Rogues/ bounty hunters and hybrids.
Oh, and Synthoids (whatever they are called), may be human-like enough to be played, as well.

There is also the tendency of the "Company" to screw their own employees over, if they think it is profitable.
A verrrry good example is several things that Burke does in ALIENS.

So, it may result in a Corporate people vs corporate people, even while most people are scrambling to not get killed by the aliens.

Depending on how one wants to expand it, it may go into the AvP-area, and/or the SPECIES area, as well.

The Phoenix Command version was a crunched up nightmare.
Good setting info. Ripped that right off and restatted everything for D6 and Savage Worlds.
Both systems were a pretty good fit.

Quote from: gleichman;631963I would agree with this. True of many settings IMO, just change the reference book.

I was bitching about Hero System not having a Newtonian physics "model" for acceleration and deceleration in Star Hero (5e) but I was totally wrong - it does and they explain how to do it.  So couple the CMTM with Star Hero + Hero System and you've got a Hard Sci-fi/Military Sci-Fi/Horror game with all the trimmings.

Just use Traveller as the base ruleset. A past issue of the Journal of the Traveller's Aid Society even had the Reticulan Parasite as a creature.