I was originally going to write about out-of-print tabletop RPGs that needed to make a comeback in the modern era. As it turned out, though, lots of classics that I had thought were lost to time are, in fact, still very much alive!
Tabletop RPGs that aren’t Dungeons & Dragons are always sustained by the passion of their creators, and in a lot of cases a beloved game will be taken over by dedicated fans, get acquired by a small publisher, or in some cases, continue as it has for decades under the same imprint. If you long for the good old days, these classics are still around.
Tunnels & Trolls
D&D was the first roleplaying game, and Tunnels & Trolls, released the following year, was the second. Its creator, Ken St. Andre, loved the idea of D&D but wanted something that was less bogged down by rules and more geared toward just messing around with friends. T&T was the result, and it’s garnered a loving following over the last 50 years.
The last new edition of the game, Deluxe Tunnels & Trolls, released in 2015. The game has changed hands a few times since then, and is currently held by Rebellion Unplugged, along with other classics like Grimtooth and Mercenaries, Spies, and Private Eyes.
Deadlands
The “Weird West Roleplaying Game” featured spell-slinging card sharks, crackshot desperadoes, and a frontier crawling with undead nightmares ready to prey on the not-so-innocent. It was flavorful and exciting, earning some dedicated fans.
Deadlands has been in and out of print several times, including a stint as a setting for Savage Worlds, A 20th Anniversary Edition of Deadlands Classic was released in 2016, and a reprint is coming soon. Who knows, maybe next year we’ll see a 30th Anniversary Edition?
Kult
Creepy 1991 horror RPG Kult may not have had quite the same impact as its contemporary, World of Darkness, but it was compellingly spine-tingling. WIth the right group, its stories kept you morbidly fascinated even as you wanted to look away.
Kult was rebooted in 2018 as Kult: Divinity Lost. With new artwork and an overhauled game system using the Apocalypse Worlds engine, it offers tons of freedom as you and your fellow players struggle to survive in a bloody, fallen world – even if it means losing your soul.
World Of Darkness
Of course, World of Darkness has had its own revitalization. After the disastrous launch of Vampire: The Masquerade 5th Edition in 2018, IP-holder Paradox took more direct control of the property and brought in established, respected developers – including longtime series lead Justin Achilli – to bring the franchise up to quality and ethical standards.
Now updated and published by Renegade Game Studios, Vampire, Werewolf, and Hunter are all likely on the shelf at your local game store right now. If, like me, you came around to New World of Darkness in the 2000s and 2010s, it’s been rebranded as Chronicles of Darkness, and is available in print-on-demand through Onyx Path Publishing. Speaking of which…
Exalted, Scion, Trinity
Onyx Path also picked up a lot of White Wolf’s second-string properties and has kept them alive. Whether you’re looking for the godlike martial-arts of Exalted, the modern mythology of Scion, or the history-spanning superpowers of Trinity Continuum, Onyx Path has kept them alive and even released new editions relatively recently (by the standards of RPG publishing, anyway).
Tri-Stat / BESM
For a while, Big Eyes, Small Mouth was the TTRPG to beat when it came to anime roleplaying. Powered by the Tri-Stat System, it is great for both licensed adaptations and creating your own anime- or manga-inspired campaigns. It allowed for characters to be as over- or underpowered as you needed, from ordinary students to literally the most powerful beings in the universe, somehow without feeling broken.
Originally created by Mark MacKinnon of Guardians of Order, Tri-Stat is now held by Canadian publisher Dyskami. In addition to a traditional setting-neutral rulebook, they offer genre-specific BESM games (magical girls, occult, etc.) in small box sets, complete with custom dice.
Heavy Gear
There are a few mecha RPGs out there, but it’s hard to find one that really strikes a good balance between gameplay in and out of the cockpit. Heavy Gear RPG, based on the miniature wargame Heavy Gear Blitz, has been around for decades and has a great war-torn universe to run around in.
Heavy Gear is still published by its original company, Dream Pod 9, and the RPG’s fourth edition landed in 2023. It’s a print-on-demand title, so it can get a bit spendy unless you go for the PDF version, but it includes rules for converting your characters and vehicles over from new editions.
RIFTS
If you’ve been around tabletop RPGs long enough, chances are you’ve encountered RIFTS at some point. To some, it’s the ultimate multiverse game, with endless possibilities and potential. To others, it’s power creep incarnate, with broken rules stacked on top of more broken rules for decades on end. Love it or hate it – and there’s very little in-between – RIFTS is an institution of classic TTRPGs.
Originally published in 1990, RIFTS is still published by Palladium Books to this day, with creator Kevin Siembieda still at the helm. That kind of consistency is unheard of in the tabletop industry, so while RIFTS may not be for everyone, you’ve got to respect the game’s tenacity and endurance in the face of changing times.