I would appreciate getting you feedback on why it is that SFRP games seemed to be so much more dependent on setting than their Fantasy counterparts.
The first 20+ pages of HARP SF are about the setting Tintamar. Cyradon, on the other hand, gets a brief mention along with Shadow World in a small paragraph in the Introduction section of HARP Fantasy.
While far from the only reason, one commonly heard complaint about why they don't play HARP SF is that the setting, Tintamar, does not work for them or that they do not like it. Discussions about Imperium vs. Privateer setting also seem very common for SpaceMaster players. Perhaps even more so than a discussion of the merits of the various rule sets involved.
Professions in HARP SF include Pilot (Carter in Fantasy parlance - Sizmund was a great hand with the whip. Never saw anyone drive a cart like him.) and Merchant. There is not a good reason for failing to have a Merchant in Fantasy RP games, beyond the possible fact that no one will want to play one.
Personally i think that much of this seems to be due to the increased, and earlier, reliance upon objects rather than characters. Most Fantasy RPGs as they progress to higher levels become more about objects (the staff of anything I need it to do, or the blade of slaying whoever I point it at) but in the earlier levels those objects are still a fond hope. It seems for SFRP games that the objects have to be their from the start. My group needs to have a spaceship of their own, with 4 or 5 attendant vehicles etc.
Why do you think that SFRP games are more dependent on setting, and therefore more subject to being judged on setting, that their Fantasy counterparts?
What could we do to make HARP SF be judged more on the rules and less on whether or not you like the setting (Tintamar)? is it even possible, or practical, to have a generic base setting for HARP SF?
Takeyabue