Malek

I've had a lot of fun as a player of this one. Nice sandbox experience where you are presented with a ton of choice about where you are going to go and what you are going to do. I'm given to understand from several other GMs that there is a fair amount of work for the GM running this to really flesh it out and make it shine which is why I am knocking off a star. Having said that, it is popular for a reason, and there are a tremendous amount of resources for it out there to help improve it in various ways.

It is exactly what it says on the tin, a fantastic cozy game with very dark elements that creep in more and more over time. Everyone I've run this for has had a blast, regardless of age, gender, experience with rpgs, or even experience with Murder Mystery TV shows. This game is very story forward and leans heavily on the players to help with some of the heavy lifting that is normally exclusively the province of the GM/Keeper. The important thing to note is that there are not any established solutions to these mysteries. The solutions are discovered through play. That may sound weird to some, but I encourage everyone to give it a try!

Very easy system to GM. Works pretty well across genres. Home to some of my favorite settings, like Numenera. The Cypher System is one of my faves. Great for those that want a little bit more crunch, let's say medium, then a pure story game, but don't want to have to worry about giant stat blocks and constantly looking up rules.