Super Classic!
Man, I LOVED this game. I played it intensely when it originally came out, on my trusty but aging 386 system at the time. I spent days reading the in-depth manual; it was fascinating, almost as intriguing as reading a novel. The world that it described was imaginative and inspiring. Ah, the Grand Adventure. I totally bought into the Victorian era science fiction theme. Liftwood! Ether in space! Delightful. I also liked that I could have females in my party, and I got a kick out of envisioning refined, upper class ladies in their corsets packing pistols and wielding rifles to the detriment of the enemies. Highly detailed, immersive, complex, and entertaining. This was one of those RPGs where I felt compelled to read everything on screen so that I could catch every detail and nuance.
Yes, this was "steampunk" before steampunk became so vogue. I always thought it would have been awesome if someone could have made a movie based on this, or even better, an updated version of the game using modern technology. Imagine what the graphics and gameplay could be like now. I might even go so far as to list this one in my top 10 of all time. Perhaps a little obscure for some and not as well known even back then, but it deserves the attention of any hardcore RPGer.
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