Let's say you were playing a modern game, about an alien invasion.  What would you want it to be?

An "Independence Day" type game of military and experts fighting a vastly more powerful force?
A "V"/"Conspiracy" game of aliens secretly taking over the world?
A game of playing average joes dealing with the conquest?
A game where you play characters that are uber-powered in some way to be able to face the aliens on an even keel?

A game where the aliens were mindless monsters? Evil geniuses?
Or where they were actually not that bad (ie. they are actually trying to save humanity from itself, want to force humanity to become their vision of utopia whether they like it or not, or are just plain old imperialists that are willing to give humanity a place at the table and lots of potentially good things in exchange for their becoming a colonial tributary power)?

Chat away.

RPGPundit

Likely something along the lines of Alien Nation and V.

There is a greater conspiracy there, which you may or may not be aware of and your typical game revolves around what most modern games do.  However as you go further into the rabbits hole you uncover the greater conspiracy at hand and are likely at a power level where you can start directly interfering with it.

Also would allow some alien types to be PC's that are actually good guy aliens that aren't aware of the conspiracy either.

Anyone remember those X-com PC games where you sent your little group of marines out to examine landed/crashed UFOs and then bring the technology back home to learn from?  I always felt the X-com games were very similar to that old TV show, UFO http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8RfzkhqBLY.  

I think something like that would be a great setting for an Alien invasion tabletop game.  The mystery element of trying to figure out why the aliens are there and how to defeat them would be fun, as well as the strategic military aspects for raids on UFOs.

Something like this :

http://www.elfis.net/elfol4/e4term.html

Regards,
David R

I always thought this was fun.  Not a total kitchen sink, but still a pretty open take on it.

Quote from: TorikoAnyone remember those X-com PC games where you sent your little group of marines out to examine landed/crashed UFOs and then bring the technology back home to learn from?  

Otherwise known as the greatest game of all time. (It was X-com: UFO Defense in America but UFO: Enemy Unknown in Europe, according to Wiki.) I have this sneaking about on my harddrive and every year or two I go back and play through it.

QuoteI think something like that would be a great setting for an Alien invasion tabletop game.  The mystery element of trying to figure out why the aliens are there and how to defeat them would be fun, as well as the strategic military aspects for raids on UFOs.

I've generally thought the same thing. The squads were sometimes the same size as a PC-group and you had different types of missions. Like, ruining an alien scouting mission, protecting a terrorized city, defending your base from a frontal assault, and then invading an alien base to capture an alien officer for interrogation!

All the while, you're slowly gaining new tech and weapons cause you're reverse engineering alien stuff. And you have to make all the countries happy since they supply your finances. If you don't protect a country enough, they'll pull their funding, or hell, they might even enter into an agreement with the aliens!

Oh man, it makes me want to go back and play!

GURPS had a supplement a while back called Black Ops that looked cool and seemed like a great idea. But you had player characters that were experts at EVERYTHING. But it had some of the same ideas as X-com.

We discussed something like this a while back.

Edit: now I'm playing the good old musical War of the Worlds! Ah, HG Wells...

We have learned now that we cannot regard this planet as being fenced in and a secure abiding place for Man; we can never anticipate the unseen good or evil that may come upon us suddenly out of space.

Quote from: kryystLikely something along the lines of Alien Nation and V.

There is a greater conspiracy there, which you may or may not be aware of and your typical game revolves around what most modern games do.  However as you go further into the rabbits hole you uncover the greater conspiracy at hand and are likely at a power level where you can start directly interfering with it.

Also would allow some alien types to be PC's that are actually good guy aliens that aren't aware of the conspiracy either.

That would appeal to me as well.  However, I wouldn't mind an occassional "I just stole one of their spacecraft and now they are chasing me...

Ummm...somewhere between V and Independence Day for me:  a conspiracy-laden potboiler which, halfway through, blows all to hell when the "helpful" aliens show their true, bug-eyed nature and by then, why, you've got no recourse other than to shoot their ugly asses.

Preferably with their own lasers.

As mentioned in Kyle's thread, Xcom was the basis of my spycraft campaign setting.

But more recent spins on what I would like to see would be somewhere near Earth: Final Conflict (Perhaps not the best TV show, but a very nice setup for a game) and Larry Niven's Draco Tavern (the aliens are peaceful, but like humans, not all of us have our best interests at heart, and there's some culture shock.)

Quote from: Dr Rotwang!Ummm...somewhere between V and Independence Day for me [...]

I reckon you just want to see Diana again.

Quote from: Kyle AaronI reckon you just want to see Diana again.

I don't mind seeing some badassery from Micheal Ironside

Regards,
David R

If its going to be Alien Invasion, then I'd want something similar to David Gerrold's War Against the Chtorr series or Larry Niven & Jerry Pournelle's Footfall. I know that there is a GURPS book for War Against the Chtorr, I just don't have the damn thing. Grrr...

How about a game where Earth is contacted, infiltrated, and/or invaded not by one but two different alien groups--essentially we're caught between rival interstellar superpowers?

Oh and of course different Earth factions/countries may ally with different sides, be given weaponry by them as clients, & so forth.

Well I wrote a setting for a Champions Apazine (Haymaker)  called Lunatik Legion, where grey's invade, are uber telepathic and can out maneuver us because they easily read our minds (and have advanced technology.) The catch is we figure out some slightly (comedic style) insane people are immune to mind reading--and outfit them with counter alien technology. Chainsaws, armored bunny and santa suits, tinfoil hats, and so on and send them off to fight for humanity.


So let's just say I like alien invasions with a bit of humor and fun


However if I were playing a game I think it depends on the aliens, out and out war is more action oriented and fun for the combat happy players, while the investigation/infiltration style is suitable for other more contemplative players. A lot for me depends on how it is presented--I like them all, pretty much.