ARBBL

Optimum Character Creation System
Arrange the players in a circle. Give each one a blank character sheet. The system works over a number of rounds

Round One 1A: The player to the left of the GM chooses one skill for their character (say ‘guns’, always a popular choice), and marks it on their sheet, giving it one point (‘melee +1’). Then they choose any other player in the group. That player gets the same skill for their character, but at -1.
1B (i): This second player swears a bit.
1B (ii): Once they have finished swearing, the second player chooses a different skill for their character, taking it at 1 point, and selecting a third player who has to take the skill at -1. They can’t choose a player who has already chosen a skill this round.
1C (i): Swearing
1C (ii): Then this player chooses... you’re getting the hang of it.
1D: The last player to choose a skill automatically gives the negative to the player who started the round. Are you feeling it? The sense of togetherness? The simmering cameraderie? The muttered expressions of gratitude? Can’t you feel how this is pulling all the members of the group into a single unit, united by common emotions? No? Perhaps we should up the stakes a bit.

Round Two 2A: The player to the left of the one who started round one chooses a skill and takes it at +2. This can be a skill they already have, either positively or negatively. And then, as before, they choose another player to take it at -2.
2B: That player chooses... yeah, you get it.
2C: And once everyone in the group has chosen a skill and received a -2 negative from someone else, we move on...

Round Three 3A: +3s and -3s.

Round Four 4A: +4s and -4s

Round Five 5A: Yup, you got it...

By the end of this every player should be holding three things: (1) a character sheet with a minimum of five and a maximum of ten non-zero skills on it; (2) a clear idea of what that character is good at and the things they should never, ever try to do at all; and (3) a selection of grudges against the other players and the characters they are about to bring to life.