Rifts vs Tales from the Loop
Compare Rifts and Tales from the Loop side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Rifts | Tales from the Loop | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Post-Apocalyptic, Scifi, Fantasy, Horror, Superhero | Scifi, Modern |
| Tags | Character Building, Combat-Heavy, Crunchy, Fear & Stress Mechanics, Gonzo, High-Power, Mana Points, Mecha, Superpowers, Tactical | Narrative, Beginner-Friendly, Character-Driven, Mystery, Rules-Light, Licensed IP |
| Core Mechanic | Combat and saving throws use a d20 plus bonuses, with high results overcoming a target number or opposing roll. Skills use d100 and succeed when the result is at or below the character's percentage. | Roll a d6 dice pool (attribute + skill). Each 6 is a success. Push to reroll failures but take a Condition. Kids cannot die: instead they accumulate Conditions (Upset, Scared, Exhausted, Injured, Broken) and must roleplay recovery with anchors. |
| Dice | d20, d100 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Very High | Low |
| Accessibility | Medium | Medium |
| Runnability | Very High | High |
| License | All Rights Reserved | Year Zero Engine OGL |
| Third-Party Publishing | Noncommercial only — Palladium Books Internet Policy limited license | Not yet researched |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | $$ | $$ |
| Publisher | Palladium Books Inc. | Free League Publishing |
| Year | 2005 | 2017 |
| Languages | English | English, Swedish, French, German, Italian, Spanish |
| Best For | Groups who want long-form science-fantasy campaigns that move from a ruined Earth to other dimensions. The game suits tables whose GM will decide which parts of the broad setting a campaign uses. | Groups wanting a rules-light, nostalgia-driven RPG about kids solving sci-fi mysteries in an alternate 1980s: Stranger Things meets E.T. |
| Highlights | Occupational and racial class packages assign distinct abilities and advancement tracks, giving each archetype a different role in the party. Mega-Damage places many supernatural creatures and war machines on a separate durability scale beyond the reach of ordinary Structural Damage Capacity attacks. Rifts and ley lines make dimensional travel a standing feature of the setting, letting campaigns move between devastated Earth and other worlds. | Very simple rules, distinctive 1980s setting, Conditions system encourages roleplay over combat, accessible for new players and younger teens |
| Considerations | Character creation combines rolled attributes with extensive skill selection, making first-time preparation lengthy. Combat asks each player to track an action economy, active defenses, and which damage scale applies. Magic and psionics use separate point pools and power procedures, adding class-specific rules to the shared system. | Trouble mechanic resolution can feel arbitrary, limited mechanical differentiation between kid characters, investigation pacing relies heavily on GM skill, sessions can stall without clear mystery structure |