Fate

It doesn't seem that Fate is all that popular here on GP. I only found one game in the Games search. What do people think about it? I've tried it in the past with my home group and didn't dig it, but I want to give it another try.

It's heavy dependence on such overt meta-currency exchange and it's low granularity/guileless mechanics can make ppl feel like it's much more a loosely structured storytelling event, rather than a "proper game". Difficult to have proper long term mechanical progression. Tactics. etc. Plus since everything you can possibly do (punch, shoot, talk, dismantle a bomb, ride a tyrannosaurus, etc.) is handled the same (and usually equally effective), everything/everyone can feel like they're playing the same character, doing the same thing. Or that it doesn't matter what you do. Which I've found rpg players REALLY like to be distinct, and feeling like it doesn't matter what you do is rather antithetical to RPGs. Combine that all into one, and it can be a tough pill to swallow for most traditional gamers (myself included).

Given that there is the Cortex (Plus, Prime, etc.) system out there, which has literally the same basic narrative-facing mechanics - and many others games too with similar ethoses - but much more nuanced dice mechanics, I have no use for Fate.

I've played Fate twice. Once FAE (Fate Accelerated), running a game of a Star Wars homebrew mod for my wife and friends in our hotel at a Sci Fi convention (the game ended on a memorable line: "And that's how the Hutts got a Star Destroyer"). The second was here on GP, where we all played familiars of wizards who had gone missing - this game didn't last overly long.

The tough part, IMHO, is understanding Aspects, and getting the players and the GM alike to feel free to create and tap them. Once you get that in play, though, is a powerful narrative system that should work great in PBP.

Are we talking about FATE as the generic system, or one of its adaptations? I'm curious about both. I don't have a lot of experience with generic systems, and I've actually heard a lot of great things about FATE. I've been looking to try it for awhile, but the right opportunity hasn't come up. I'd seen a post not too long about someone wanting to try out Atomic Robo, and it might still happen.

I love Fate. I've been toying with the idea of launching a game of it myself, but I'm not sure yet.

I do feel it loses something in PBP because you can't react as fast as you can face-2-face, but over all, it is a great game. Understanding Aspects is key to a good character, and a good game. I've read a setting or two I didn't care for, mostly because there wasn't enough wiggle room for PCs to be distinct, as emsquared mentioned.

Specifically, I was in a game of Dresden Files with two Full Casters...or 2 Harry Dresden types. Being in a scene with them was boring, at best you were mopping up around the edges.

I would really like to play in a Fate game, but I'd prefer it to be my FtF group and not PbP. I think one of the reasons that it's barely represented here could be that systems like it are more enjoyable in a FtF setting. That said, there were several people on the Discord that all talked up the topic of doing a Fate game here (myself included), but I'm not sure if anyone followed through. I don't believe anyone felt comfortable enough with the ruleset to run said game.

Wow, there are a lot of differing stances on the game, here. That's great. I had a love affair with Cortex Plus, specifically the dramatic flavor, for awhile. I ran a Dresden Files game for awhile, too, and we had fun but I felt frustrated at how hard it was to challenge the characters. But the game is so nice on paper that I feel like I should be loving it hardcore. Maybe I'll try starting a game of it in the near future, maybe both, and see how I like them now that I've matured more as a GM.

I did mean to mention that it seems like probably gamers with more traditional rpg backgrounds have more problems with Fate. There are so many versions and hacks of Fate, and I don't doubt that some of those make the system better for those who like a little more crunch in their rpg diet. And I have always wanted to try the Dresden Files version of Fate, as a huge fan of the novels.

Strands of Fate is an interesting generic offshoot made for more traditional crunch. It's often called "Fate by way of GURPS"

If you remember, I was part of that group. That was one of the first games I ever played on GP, and my first taste of Fate, which I'd been curious about for a long time. I had real trouble wrapping my mind around Aspects, which hampered my participation in and enjoyment of the gameplay even though I found the story itself engaging. I honestly don't know if I would try it again.