And here we are in the final day of Marvel RPG week here at Greywulf Towers. We’ve looked at what made this system so innovative, and it’s awesome random (or not so random, should you so choose) character generation, at the Gamers Handbooks, the task resolution system, the Ultimate Powers supplement and the published adventure modules – and we’ve barely even scratched the surface.
That’s how it is with superhero gaming though. It’s such a large genre full of everything from mutants to magic, from low-powered street-level costumed vigilantes to cosmic reality-warping entities and everything in between. It’s a genre where cavemen can rub shoulders with alien super-technologists (and frequently do) – and Marvel RPG is arguably the first system which truly delivered a system able to handle all levels and styles of play. Where other, equally venerable systems such as Villains & Vigilantes, Golden Heroes and DC Heroes were capable in their own way, it was the Marvel RPG that captured the hearts and minds of our gaming group and many others like it in the UK, US and elsewhere. Personally, I owe Jeff Grubb (hi, Jeff!) and the rest a debt of gratitude every bit as large as that one we owe to Gary Gygax himself. The Marvel RPG is the system which opened my eyes to the possibility of superhero role-playing gaming, and all the way through my years of gaming the lessons I learned from those earliest day have never left.
There’s so much left to explore. Want to join me on the adventure?
If you want to try the Marvel RPG yourself head over to Classic Marvel where the entire system and supplements can be downloaded for free. Go to Other Stuff->Downloads->Advanced Game and Modules for the Marvel RPG Advanced Set. Spend some time surfing the site – it’s a terrific resource full of more role-playing goodness than you can possibly imagine.
Make Mine Marvel! (or DC, or Wizard, or Image, or Wildstorm, or Dark Horse, or………)
Hey Greywulf, great post series on the Marvel RPG. I just read all of it and it brought back a ton of memories from that game. I think you are dead on with a lot of your assessments about the system, history, and books as a whole.
I will be the first to admit, I love comics but I’m not a huge comic lore guy. I don’t know Spiderman’s entire comic history, or where Captain America got his shield from, etc. But I do know a teeny-tiny amount about comics. I’ve got my favorites, just like everyone else.
The Marvel RPG is just an awesome RPG, even for one that was made over two decades ago. It’s one of those too that you can almost delve into a little piece of nostalgia with even if you’ve never played the game (cause you can relate to the comics).
I wish comic book RPGs got their fair share with fans and traffic within the RPG blogs, but it just doesn’t seem like they get a fair shake. You did a great service to them with you post series. Nice job.
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Hey Greywulf,
I loved this series about the Classic Marvel RPG.
I agree that it was wonderful, and I wonder if the whole reason it was left unsupported had to do with TSR being bought, not because the system had become obsolete.
That being said, I’d like to see a post or two about the weaknesses of the system, and possible “patches” to make it a better game.
What do you think?
@Steve-0 Glad you enjoyed the series. I think the Marvel RPG fell by the wayside partly because of TSR’s changing fortunes, but also because of the tides of fashion. Both table-centric RPGs and superhero RPGs became much less popular, and with the Marvel RPG being both, it suffered a double whammy.
The die-hard superhero gamers (my group included) moved to other systems – mainly Champions/HERO system which offered far greater levels of fine-tuning and character customization.
And so, the Marvel RPG’s reign ended with not a bang, but a whimper. A shame, because it still remains one of the best, most under-rated systems ever made.