I found an old copy of The Forest of Doom at a flea market this summer.  Fighting Fantasy and Moldvay edition Basic D&D are some of the best fantasy adventure games ever produced -- innovative, influential, immaginative, concise.

Quote from: blakkieNot to split hairs, and I've only read a synopsis of them since I've never even heard of them before (successful?), but exactly how does that rank as an RPG in your eyes when you so readily dismiss so many other games as not being RPGs?

Not that they might not be fun for kids.  When I was in mid-to-late gradeschool I didn't mind Choose Your Own Adventure books, although even then I found their preset branching a decidedly flat experience.

EDIT: To further expound on that last paragraph, it felt any "control" I was given over the outcome wasn't real but instead more a shellgame than anything. There were a small, fixed number of paths and that was it. There wasn't even the illusion of it being open-ended.

As someone has already pointed out, the basic "system" of FF was later made into an RPG (two actually, there was also Dungeoneer which was "advanced fighting fantasy").

RPGPundit

Quote from: RPGPunditAs someone has already pointed out, the basic "system" of FF was later made into an RPG (two actually, there was also Dungeoneer which was "advanced fighting fantasy").

Ok, that makes a little more sense.

There's no better answer.

And maybe no better possible answer.

Oh, and...

QuoteSetting would be very important too. It would need to be intuitive also but not necessarily simple. Something like a cartoon, say Avatar or Fantstic Four. I think it should support no killing but have risk of loss involved; i.e. the bad guy wins or you are imprisoned, etc.

Blah. Fuck this noise. This smacks of an out-of-touch adult that doesn't realize that real kids hate this shit. When I was six, I wanted to stay up late and watch Terminator on HBO, not more cartoon shit. It had blood and gunfire and Linda Hamilton's titties. Kids long to decapitate dungeon orcs more than you or I, believe me. Give them more patronizing G-rated pap and they'll bore quickly.

What everyone seems to have missed is the fact that at lower ages boys and girls feell atracted by different things, IE boys play with action figures, girls with Barbies, girls like to be girlie, and boys manly, I think it's because what they see in adults. Not always but most of the time that applies.
So maybe a 9 years old boy wouldn't like to play a Sailor Moon type of game as much as a 9 years old girl.

Quote from: YamoThere's no better answer.

And maybe no better possible answer.

Oh, and...



Blah. Fuck this noise. This smacks of an out-of-touch adult that doesn't realize that real kids hate this shit. When I was six, I wanted to stay up late and watch Terminator on HBO, not more cartoon shit. It had blood and gunfire and Linda Hamilton's titties. Kids long to decapitate dungeon orcs more than you or I, believe me. Give them more patronizing G-rated pap and they'll bore quickly.

I guess it depends on your definition of children. I have run for a lot of boys and girl (I am thinking mostly under 10 when I say children) and the system has to be lighter the DND. That said, given a more mature child, it would work.

As for my comments on setting, you haven't seen Avatar have you? Also, if your group is mainly pubescent teen boys, you are right on. I usually deal with a mixed group and it helps to come off a little less hard edged. Don;t get me wrong, I am not saying G-rated but you sound like you are advocating soft-porn to pre-teens. I disagree from a number of points. I think you can make an interesting game without the pandering.

However, that could just be me. I have had success with running a fantasy game about magical squirrels stealing nuts from retired archaeologist.

Bill