@renegaderich @blackcoat I mean you've gotta keep in mind that in a very real sense, *all* #TTRPGs before #3eDnD (and even 3e to a certain extent) are effectively "indie games" and we understand the concept today.
#TSR was the biggest fish in the pond, but it was still a very small press. So games like Top Secret, Star Frontiers, and Amazing Engine are all effectively indie games.
#WorldOfDarkness? Indie. #GURPS? Indie. #Warhammer? Indie.
Almost all of those things that we look at as being huge monoliths today started out very very small.
It almost doesn't matter how deep you dig, you're gonna find more weirdness. Rifts was spawned from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle and other Strangeness, the official licensed game for the Turtles brand at the time! There's a for-real Rocky and Bullwinkle TTRPG.
If you really want to see the expansive weirdness of the early days of the hobby, check out the #SystemMastery podcast:
https://systemmasterypodcast.com/