Here is a brief summary of the most popular genres found in GURPS games. Note there tends to be a lot of crossover between certain Genres
Action-adventure[]
Action-adventure is about carrying out tasks that involve physical danger, typically in mundane settings. It tends toward the Cliffhanger
Swashbucklers[]
Swashbuckling adventures are often based in the 17th and 18th centuries and portray the main character archetypes of the period: pirates, or swashbuckling swordsmen like the Three Musketeers.
Pulp Fiction[]
Pulp fiction adventures are usually set in the 1920s and '30s, though they also work well during the empire-building phase of the 19th century. They should give the feel of the 'Saturday matinee' films of the 1950s, with heroic figures battling sinister criminal masterminds or the hazards of the wilderness. Indiana Jones is a classic Pulp Fiction-style adventurer.
Westerns[]
Arguably one of the earliest examples of historical fictional action-adventure with Dime Novels using still living people as the main protagonist of the story (such as Buffalo Bill Weekly). The Great Train Robbery (1903) was a western and the genre arguably reached its zenith in the 1930s to 1960s.
Classic: Old West considers the Old West period as ranging from 1800 to 1912 with a free important people who lived well into the 20th century.
Fantasy[]
Also known as sword and sorcery, this genre usually features medieval-level technology (swords, armour up to plate, animal-powered transport) with the addition of magic and, usually, other sentient races such as elves, orcs, and dwarves. It is probably the most popular genre for all role-playing games, including GURPS. The best-known fictional world in this genre, and one which is widely used as a campaign setting, is Middle Earth from JRR Tolkein’s Lord of the Rings saga. The official GURPS setting of Yrth is also an example. GURPS Fantasy covers this genre.
Historical[]
Many campaigns are set during historical times, sometimes with 'exotic' elements and sometimes without. A good example of exotic elements is the existence of healers who can do much better cures than were historically possible, thanks to either magic use or very advanced apothecary skills.These are often included by the GM because they are a useful resource in games involving combat to keep the characters alive and in one piece!
Some historical campaign settings stick closely to historical realities such as GURPS World War II but even in that setting there were things both real and imagined that go into Horror and Fantasy as seen in GURPS Weird War II.
Horror[]
Horror campaigns rely on the buildup of fear and tension. They assume that there are powerful evil forces in the world, and the PCs must investigate and overcome them, knowing all along that the evil ones are more powerful than they are. The aim is to find ways to minimise the damage they can do without a full-frontal confrontation against them.
Science Fiction[]
Using future technology: starships, blasters, cybernetic implants, etc. Science Fiction tends to gravitate to three sub-genres of SF RPGs: Hard science, Space Opera, Cyberpunk.
- Technology becomes focused on improvements to individuals. Cybernetic implants are common and significantly superior to the original human organs. Cyberpunk campaigns tend to be about low-status ‘street-runners’ pitting themselves against the giant multinational corporations and involve computer hacking and penetration of corporate security. William Gibson’s Neuromancer is generally thought to have been the first cyberpunk novel, and GURPS Cyberpunk provides a campaign setting for the milieu.
Steampunk[]
For those who like the idea of advanced technology, but don’t fancy a setting where much of the gaming will be about computer hacking and corporate structures, along came Steampunk. It takes the kind of technology we are familiar with now, and imagines how it would have been built in the late 19th century. Steam-powered dirigibles, land monitors (tanks), mechanical horses (walking machines which fulfil the role of the car), and so forth are among the items thing that PCs may encounter. The adventures tend to be ‘investigate and fight’ ones with a light feel. The Wild Wild West TV series (not to be confused with the Will Smith film Wild Wild West which is meh by comparison) encapsulate this feel perfectly.
Supers[]
Supers is a hard genre to describe because it has such a huge range. The mystery men like Zorro, Spider (a kind of precursor to Batman), or The Copperhead (Mysterious Doctor Satan) who are, in theory, little more then "normal" people dressed up in outfits are the low end of the spectrum. Then there is the mid-range with Gadgeteers or a very limited set up superpowers (the 1938 Superman, the Hulk, or Spiderman). Finally there are the power-houses who tend to be a problem to write thanks to them being so above nearly another of the other Supers around. This tends to crossover with Fantasy and Science Fiction a lot.