Rolemaster is still awesome.
This is sort of a "this is not AD&D" mixed with a "super real combat" crossed with "this is not Lord of the Rings," and we have a game from the early 1980s that could stand up to AD&D and trade blows pretty effectively. Although with AD&D, the blows were taking down bags of hit points, and in Rolemaster, you were stabbing orcs in the spleen, stunning them, and having the cleric give them a skull fracture with a flanged mace.
It is always good stuff here in Rolemaster land.
Rolemaster, like GURPS, is a great solo game. All you really need is one hyper-detailed character, let them figure their way through life, survive, fight a few thugs, and go on these street-level adventures where it isn't some big "put on" battle between your party, 100 orcs, and a dragon. Just one fight in an alley against a thug or two could kill or seriously wound your character, and surviving was thrilling.
The more gritty and detailed the rules are, the fewer fights and monsters you need in an adventure to be exciting and enjoyable. Just an orc and a few goblins would be a fun fight for a solo character, and provide maximum impact with a detailed, blow-by-blow combat system. I get more satisfaction from in-depth systems than from games "designed to be easy," like 5E.
There is more "meat on the bones" here than 5E, at least to hack off in interesting ways. I can lose myself in these books, enjoy them, read them, work through them, and immerse myself in a game with decades of depth. There is a deeper level of enjoyment here than in 5E, which pretends to be D&D, but it is just a pale imitation and wannabe story game at heart. The roleplaying parts and story hooks in 5E were always weak compared to games like FATE, and the inspiration system is uninspired and too easy to abuse. If I want a story game, forget Daggerheart; I will play Cypher System and have it all.
But Rolemaster is a sound, solid system and has recently been updated. We have the four core hardcovers, and another, hopefully more, are coming. Yes, the game is deep, but I am not afraid of depth, nor would I criticize it. I like depth in my games, and there are plenty of times when I make 5E characters, play with them for a few adventures, and end up saying "so what?"
It is hard to say the same thing about Rolemaster characters.
