Modern day game where Mages don't suck?

Let's face it, Mages are kinda eh in Modern d20. So, what are some modern day/Sci-Fi games that has mages that don't suck and can be offensive and not just support casters?

I'd say Shadowrun. Without a doubt.

Which edition of shadowrun is currently more played? Any other games?

I used to play World of Darkness (now oWoD) and I liked the mages in that game. But, it was 10years ago when I last played that system. The mages in oWoD could do just about anything they wanted but they had to deal with the backlash reality gave them if they pushed too hard. - Gauss

Mages in WoD, whether oWoD or nWoD, are pretty badass. They aren't mages in the traditional sense, however. And as Gauss noted, they shape reality at will (with enough mastery of specific spheres) but with often painful consequences. It also isn't a setting where you want the world in general to know about magic, so the use of it is really subtle in many cases. Essentially you're hiding from the general public while fighting what can often be a ridiculously powerful war. I enjoy the new version of WoD Mage quite a bit. I personally love the PVP that is often possible with the setting.

I'd second Shadowrun. It's currently in its 4th incarnation, though I couldn't tell you if that's more played than third or not. I prefer 4th, but that doesn't mean much. There's also a 2050 sourcebook for fourth - basically importing the original 2050 world into 4e rules. Apparently 5th Edition is due to be released in Summer 2013, but other than "more streamlined and grittier" I know next to nothing about it. SR has a learning curve and Catalyst games have an unfortunate habit of writing their rules in a slightly slapdash manner, but I love the game and would recommend it in a heartbeat. And as for mages being powerful; one of the party I'm GMing has an Ork Chaos Mage (who follows the Spirit of Shark) called Frenzy. Frenzy has an AOE spell called Slaughter Human. That thing is terrifying.

Honestly, we just created a game with the basics of White wolfs Mage (oWoD), took out the backlash, (paradox), and threw in a d7 set (1 d20, 1 d12, 1 d10, 1 d8, 1 d6, & 1 d4). Personally, I liked D&D's dice system, but i hate the no defensive action as well ass pre-made options of what your limited to do. I like Mage's open-endedness (spelling?) but hated rolling that many dice with their d10 system, (can have up to 40 dice rolled in one turn of 1v1). We created our own game and its turning out well thus far.

Someone mentioned the name Mage to me but I have no clue what it's about. Also, Shadowrun seems to be getting the most votes here.

Mage is one part of the World of Darkness. WoD has vampires, werewolves, mages, etc. Each section can be played as a stand alone or together. I have played in (oWoD) groups where we were all vampires, all werewolves, or all mages. I have also played in groups where we were mixed. That was rather interesting (and difficult). - Gauss

WoD seems like a very HUGE game if you combine all the parts.

It can be. Thing is, you dont have to combine the parts. You can play with all Mages, all Vampires, all Werewolves etc. Heck, iirc there was a human option to hunt all of these things. The element I liked the most about Mages in oWoD was that you can do anything you wanted if you were powerful enough and could avoid the paradox backlash. In D&D/PF (which I like btw) spells are defined. If the spell doesn't exist it doesn't exist. In oWoD (and maybe nWoD) the magic you use is up to your imagination and the GM's decision of how difficult the magic is (guidelines are provided). Avoiding paradox was equally up to you and the GM. If you come up with a reasonable excuse of how it fits into reality, it works with little to no paradox. Example: I am strong in teleportation type magics. I want to teleport across the world. If I just do this reality will not be happy with me and paradox is generated. However, if I hack the airline databases and insert myself into a flight yesterday, I can 'arrive' today. Little to no paradox (assuming I am successful and avoid detection). WoD can be a very creative system in this regard. But, there were issues too. Such as a ridiculous number of D10s to be rolled for things at higher difficulties. Oh well :) - Gauss

I'd also vote for Shadowrun. But you should probably consider generic system too. Mage, Shadowrun, Call Of Cthulhu and the like are quite bound to their specific settings. If you imagine creating your own story take a look at GURPS, D6 or HERO. They all have quite ellaborate magic systems.

The element I liked the most about Mages in oWoD was that you can do anything you wanted if you were powerful enough and could avoid the paradox backlash. In D&D/PF (which I like btw) spells are defined. If the spell doesn't exist it doesn't exist. In oWoD (and maybe nWoD) the magic you use is up to your imagination and the GM's decision of how difficult the magic is (guidelines are provided). Avoiding paradox was equally up to you and the GM. If you come up with a reasonable excuse of how it fits into reality, it works with little to no paradox. Fundamentally that is still true for nWoD Mage: The Awakening. It gives you a lot of potential to go crazy, & high level mages can do incredible things. Even low level mages are quite powerful compared to the other creatures in the WoD. When you can bend reality then a werewolf isn't causing you too many problems!

I've never played Shadowrun, but always wanted to try it. It looks very good. I've run GURPS since version 1 and, since it's a generic system, magic is the same no matter what genre you play in. Mind you, I always thought that basic GURPS magic was weak compared to D&D. So, for the last year we've been using the ritual magic rules and that is a lot more fun (you take skills in each college of magic instead of taking each spell). It makes your mage a lot more flexible and fun to play.

M&M, and the various iterations thereof. (True20, Rogue Mage etc) Depending on how you define "Mage" Ron Edwards "Sorcerer". Marvel Super Games in most if not all iterations. Capes, Cowls and Villains Foul. Mortal Coil. In Nomine. Amber Diceless RP. Dream Factory. Various permutations of Runequest (are they in the hundreds yet?) .... I could go on... For sheer rabid, unabashed, froth at the mouth munchkin on crack power gaming, OWOD mage is the thing. You are really only limited by the player's persuasive abilities. Really, really broken game. WW tried to mitigate this somewhat, to tepid effect.

I've been a fan of Shadowrun for a long time. One of the things that I like most about it is, whenever they release a new edition of the game, they advance the timeline another 10-ish years, and you can see the history of the game world evolve. Also, while there are lots of little fiddly bits (and a huge number of stats) it really all boils down to throwing cups full of D6's. My buddy, for example, has a Mage Husky/Wolf Shapeshifter (who is by definition a dog/wolf that can transform into a human - not the other way around). The player got the sick idea of taking a spell called "Deathtouch", which is rather painless to cast, since it involves having to physically touch your opponent. Except, in his natural dog form, he can trot along, looking like a stray, and go up to his target, wagging his tail and being all friendly. The target pets him, and ZAP. Toasty. Or he can just chuck ball lightning. S'all good.

I have heard good things about Dresden Files, albeit that it uses a radically different system from what most of us are used to. It's also pretty expensive if you want to buy the hardcover.

Dresden is a really great iteration of the FATE rules. Light but meaningful/purposeful crunch that actually ADDS to the game in multiple ways.