This is meant to be a non-exhaustive list, in stream-of-consciousness order.
Dedicated systems
- Traveller (in its many incarnations throughout the past nearly 50 years and derivatives such as Cepheus, Hostile)
- 2300 AD (now a setting for Traveller)
- Cyberpunk (2013, 2020, V3.0, Red)
- Paranoia
- Eclipse Phase
- Lancer
- Star Wars roleplaying (different games by different publishers: WEG d6, d20, FFG NDS)
- Warhammer 40K
- 3:16: Carnage Amongst the Stars
- Shadowrun
- Apocalypse World
- Coyote & Crow
- SLA Industries
FATE based systems
- Bulldogs!
- Mindjammer
- Nova Praxis
- Diaspora
- Atomic Robo
OSR/d20 based systems
- Stars Without Number
- Starfinder
- Mothership
- CY_BORG
Year Zero
- Mutant: Year Zero
- Alien: The RPG
- Blade Runner: The RPG
- Coriolis – The Third Horizon
GURPS
A host of modules and supplements named after the subgenre, GURPS-style. GURPS Transhuman Space, Cyberpunk, etc.
Other systems
- Star Trek Adventures (Modiphius 2d20)
- Dune: Adventures in the Imperium (Modiphius 2d20)
- Rifts (Palladium)
- Robotech (Palladium)
Solo friendly
- Stoneburner
- Ironsworn: Starforged (PbtA)
- Hostile (Cepheus/Traveller)
Out of print/No longer developed
- Firefly RPG (Cortex Plus)
- Serenity RPG (Cortex Classic)
- Battlestar Galactica RPG (Cortex Classic)
- Gamma World (D&D)
- Space Opera
- Other Suns
- Albedo
- Space Master
- HARP SF
- Blue Planet
- Ringworld
- Living Steel
- High Colonies
- Jovian Chronicles
- Heavy Gear
- Justifiers
- Star Frontiers
- Universe
- CORPS
Have a suggestion to improve this? Your favorite game missing? Leave a comment.
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For solo players, Ironsworn: Starforged is a must.
Done and thank you!
Strong recommend for Stars Without Number. It’s a great hard sci-fi system if you leave out the optional psychic stuff.
What makes it interesting is that it’s very lethal. A level 5 party can easily get murdered by a group of level 1s if they get trapped or ambushed.
It makes for games where players think hard before committing to combat.
I used it to run a game set in Alastair Reynolds‘ “Revelation Space” universe and it worked well. I chose it because it does not force a very specific sci-fi universe on you. Super happy.
Sounds like you’d like Hostile by Zozer Games. They have a solo version too where you control a crew.
…i’ve wanted to play the original alternity / star*drive for twenty-five years, but i hear dark*matter is a pretty good campaign setting for the system, too…
🤦♀️ How did I forget Alternity?
…may as well throw in star frontiers while you’re at it…
I tried the Star Trek Adventures recently and liked it. It felt like a middle ground between FATE games and Cortex games. Worth a shot for anybody on the fence.
Some here that I didn’t spot on the list:
- Space Opera
- Other Suns
- Albedo
- Space Master
- HARP SF
- Blue Planet
- Ringworld
- SLA Industries
- Living Steel
- High Colonies
- Jovian Chronicles
- Heavy Gear
- Justifiers
- Star Frontiers
- Universe
- Timelords
- Warp World
- CORPS (first edition was SF, second was generic)
If I dig through my collection I’ll probably find a few (dozen) more.
Wow. I hadn’t heard of a single item in your list except for SLA Industries. Not that surprising considering most are long out of print.
By Jupiter Chronicles do you mean Jovian Chronicles?
Yes. Yes I did. My brain was saying Jovian and my fingers typed out Jupiter. 🤦♀️
Don’t beat yourself over it. 👍
There is a new version of Robotech from after Paladium Games lost the license, but I have not looked at, or played it.
And there is the old d6 system for Star Wars from West End Games, and the new books use I think the
FATEEDGE system. There was also the short lived d20 system from WoTC.You also have Battletch, but somt know Robotech to say of the systems are similar
Rifts is a classic, but also a very strange animal. And for some reason I thought Robotech was a minis game (must be confusing with something else).
Star Wars is already listed. I know those are technically different games, but I’m trying to keep the list as concise as possible (grouping the multiple versions of the same setting under one entry). I don’t know much about the history of star wars RPG though. How would you summarize it?
(WEG d6, d20, Fate)?And for some reason I thought Robotech was a minis game (must be confusing with something else).
There was a Robotech minis game, that was a huge debacle, and why Paladium games lost the license. But you are likely thinking of BattleTech, which is historically a mini game but also has an TTRPG version initially called MechWarrior, but I think it has a new name now.
How would you summarize it?
(WEG d6, d20, Fate)?Yes. They all play totally differently, and the newer stuff has newer source books. But the last time I looked the community had taken the newer stuff and adapted it to work with WEGd6.
And despite something being listed, I think if there are multiple versions (not just different editions, but these are totally different games set in the same universe. But to keep the list concise, a note that there are different versions from different publishers.
Another I just remembered, is there is a Firefly RPG, I forget the publisher (possibly Lost Unicorn Games) I will look it up later.
BattleTech! That’s the one. Didn’t know they made an RPG out of it.
Firefly is an out of print Cortex Plus game by Margaret Weis Productions. It’s in the list as well as Serenity (the Cortex Classic game by WEP, isn’t IP licensing fun?).
Thanks, I missed seeing those in the list!
The Battletech RPG was called Mechwarrior, if memory serves.
Aside from the ones mentioned, Star Wars also has the FFG system, right?
I misremembered, the current Star Wars game uses EDGE, not FATE. And afaik this is the same system that FFG published. But was moved to a new studio when Asmodee moved all of the Star Wars licenses around killing X-Wing and Armada.
That’s right. Arguably the most famous?
Come to think of it, I don’t think there ever was a Fate official Star Wars setting. I didn’t find it, anyway.
Sorry, it is EDGE, not FATE. I edited my initial post.
Right, that uses the Fantasy Flight Games’ Narrative Dice System (same as WH Fantasy).
