Forgotten Realms, subtitled "War of the Avatars", was a computer-moderated play-by-mail game (PBM) published by Reality Simulations that was set in the Savage Frontier of the Forgotten Realms.
The game was designed by Paul Brown.
50 players per game adventured in a world comprising 5,000 hexagons of varied terrain, where they controlled various characters, military forces, and communities. Diplomacy and combat were important parts of gameplay. The company published a "top-10 chart" every turn to highlight significant realm accomplishments.
Each game lasted until one of the players met the victory conditions, usually 35âÂÂ50 turns, at a cost of $1.50 per turn plus 50 cents for each move (to a maximum, of $15 per turn.) After twenty turns, players could summon a god's avatar to aid them.
Kuo W. Ping reviewed the game in the JulyâÂÂAugust 1996 issue of Paper Mayhem magazine and stated it was "one of the best PBM games I have yet played". Ping described the game as "very fun and enjoyable" and rated it with "high marks" while suggesting two areas to improve.
Forgotten Realms won the Origins Award for Best New Play-by-Mail Game of 1994.