Obsidian's new 2D RPG?

[Gokyabgu]

Today Eurogamer posted an interview with Nathaniel Chapman from Obsidian, lead designer of Dungeon Siege 3. There's one question that really intrigued me:

Eurogamer : Rumour has it your next project is going to be a 2D RPG. Can you tell us anything about that?
Nathaniel Chapman : We do have some job postings for something but I can't talk about it, except to say that people will be very excited when they find about it.

Could this be the new Icewind Dale game, or a new IP in the tradition of good old isometric RPGs with lots of side quests, tactical gameplay? This's the most exciting news for me since the announcement of the Larian's new isometric RPG. I hope Obsidian find enough money to put this project into reality.

But, this could be some Facebook flash-based hack&slash or some Iphone game. Who knows?

You can find the full interview here:

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-06-21-reinventing-dungeon-siege-interview

[blatantninja]

As much as I'd love to see it, I can't think of a good reason a major studio would do a 2D RPG.

[Drithius]

As much as I'd love to see it, I can't think of a good reason a major studio would do a 2D RPG.

FAR lower cost. Testbed for risky ideas.

Another interesting tidbit from the same interview is that they are working on a patch for the much-maligned combat on PC.
…right now we're working on improving the PC controls through an update.

I think if there are PC gamers who are having a negative reaction it's less about what the combat is, it's more how the combat controls.

…now, repeat after me: TORMENT 2, TORMENT 2, TORMENT 2 !

Edit: just stumbled upon this amidst the job application:
Pluses
• Has previously shipped titles on the PS3 or Xbox 360
• Previous experience on mobile or browser based Flash applications or games


Oh well.

[Gokyabgu]

I think I mustn't hope too much. A Feargus Urquhart interview from a site called GamesTM. One question stands out:

"Obviously, people are going to compare the game with the likes of Diablo but, at the same time, Dungeon Siege III is available o consoles too. Do you believe, like some, that RPGs should be dumbed down for a console audience?

It’s an odd thing, I would say. It’s almost unfair not to say that RPGs over the course of the years have been dumbed down for consoles. But, I wouldn’t say that I would necessarily make a PC role-playing game the same way that I would have made one fifteen years ago either.

I think a part of it is that games are evolving, and so a lot of it is looking at it going, ‘So what do role-playing gamers want now?’ The way that I see it is: I always look at accessibility. Accessibility does not necessarily mean ‘dumbing down’, it means that when the player starts the game it has to be accessible to them. It can’t depend on the fact that they know how to play the game, that they’ve played seventeen role-playing games before this and that we just have all these understood things.

A company I used to work for was Black Isle Studios and a PC game I worked on was Icewind Dale, which required you to roll six whole second-edition D&D characters before you could even start playing the game. No one would get through character creation nowadays. You know, people back then loved it, and there are still people that would love that, but I think the thing is when it comes to the console, and maybe all gamers, it has to be accessible, people have to be led into it. And so, my best answer is that the game is easy to get into, and then we ramp up the complexity and sort of add the layers of the RPG system as you play, and that is how we approach things now with the modern console gamer as compared to PC games fifteen years ago."

Link of the interview:

http://www.gamestm.co.uk/interviews/obsidians-fergus-urquhart-talks-dungeon-siege-iii-fallout-new-vegas-and-the-developers-planned-new-ip/2/

[JemyM]

As much as I'd love to see it, I can't think of a good reason a major studio would do something new.

[blatantninja]

FAR lower cost. Testbed for risky ideas.

Yes and no. If you mean they produce something with the graphical equivalent of Avadon, then yes, but the Infinity Engine games each cost several million to make. Now that's lower than DAO for sure, but the liklihood of recouping the cost on a game like that is extremely low (at least in the short run)

[DArtagnan]

In any case, I'm curious about what they're going to do next.

Since he basically promises excitement - it's almost certainly a sequel or a continuation of an established franchise.

Torment/IWD the most likely candidates?

[blatantninja]

I could go for an IWD3. I'd like to see more story though this time around.

[DArtagnan]

I'd take a 2D Aliens CRPG :)

As if that would ever happen...

[blatantninja]

That would be cool. Definitely a dearth of sci-fi rpgs out there.

[Alrik Fassbauer]

I believe it could be a second "Dark Brotherhood" RPG : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_Chronicles:_The_Dark_Brotherhood

Only that it'd be a different developer, then.

[DArtagnan]

I believe it could be a second "Dark Brotherhood" RPG : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sonic_Chronicles:_The_Dark_Brotherhood

Only that it'd be a different developer, then.

You can have 10 Sonic games if only I can have my single Aliens CRPG.

[Ovenall]

I think it's going to be some browser based thing that builds on an older franchise, tacking on social media to build a fanbase for other projects. The Facebook guess is a good one too.

I'm really not getting my hopes up. I highly doubt this will be a full game like Icewind Dale 3 or whatever.

[Alrik Fassbauer]

I think it's going to be some browser based thing that builds on an older franchise,

Ultima ?

I'm wondering.

[dteowner]

I think it's going to be some browser based thing that builds on an older franchise, tacking on social media to build a fanbase for other projects. The Facebook guess is a good one too.

I'm really not getting my hopes up. I highly doubt this will be a full game like Icewind Dale 3 or whatever.What he said. I'm thinking a relationship similar to the Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes game for the DS (which *was* a very enjoyable game) with the rest of the M&M series: they share a world, they share a general sense of art direction, they share an NPC name or two, they share, ummm...nope, that's about it.

[Motoki]

I think I mustn't hope too much. A Feargus Urquhart interview from a site called GamesTM. One question stands out:

"… Do you believe, like some, that RPGs should be dumbed down for a console audience?

…

I think a part of it is that games are evolving, and so a lot of it is looking at it going, ‘So what do role-playing gamers want now?’ The way that I see it is: I always look at accessibility. Accessibility does not necessarily mean ‘dumbing down’, it means that when the player starts the game it has to be accessible to them. It can’t depend on the fact that they know how to play the game, that they’ve played seventeen role-playing games before this and that we just have all these understood things.

… Icewind Dale, which required you to roll six whole second-edition D&D characters before you could even start playing the game. No one would get through character creation nowadays. You know, people back then loved it, and there are still people that would love that, but I think the thing is when it comes to the console, and maybe all gamers, it has to be accessible, people have to be led into it…"


I see his point somewhat about different audience expectations today vs in the past. I don't know if any of you guys played some of the old console RPGs in the 8-bit days but they were hard! Final Fantasy 1 kicked my ass while a trained monkey could probably play the recent ones without much difficulty. FF1 actually had you create a party from various character classes. It wasn't anything as complex as D&D but you still had to think about what sort of party you wanted and you could definitely screw yourself over later in the game if you didn't chose wisely.

It's not so much the medium as the audience, but I do think the whole accessibility thing is just a big self fulfilling prophecy. The more you do it, the more the audience comes to expect it so then you have to keep doing it and even try to one up the last go round and dilute any thought that must be put into the game even further. If anything, I think the developers in many ways trained the audiences to be this way. I mean way back when a lot of us were kids and teenagers playing these really tough games so it's not even an age thing.

On the character creation, that is one thing I really miss from modern RPGs. I think half the fun I had from some games was just planning out my party, customizing them and figuring out what sort of characters I wanted and what paths I wanted to take for them.

If modern audiences do not find character creation fun, then instead of taking the lazy way out and yanking it altogether I think the developer needs to look at ways to make character creation fun. They can also give the attention span challenged a way out with some balanced pre-rolled characters or a random auto roll quick start.

I like how Drakensang did it where you have a bunch of basic templates and looks and can opt for them or you can go into advanced mode and get more detailed with it.

[DArtagnan]

He could just acknowledge that it IS dumbing down - and be done with it.

[Motoki]

Ultima ?

I'm wondering.

EA already has an Ultima browser game so I highly doubt they'd license the name out to Obsidian. Besides, their new Ultima page makes me think they have further designs of their own on the Ultima name.

He could just acknowledge that it IS dumbing down - and be done with it.

They are never going to say that. We all just need to realize that streamlining/accessibility/innovation is game developer PR bullshit speak for dumbing down for the masses.

[DArtagnan]

True, true.

[Thrasher]

I can't hardly wait for the PST 2 Facebook game - what else could change the nature of gaming? Innovation!

[JDR13]

I'd love to see another Planescape or Icewind Dale game, but I'm not holding my breath. I just don't see it happening.

I'm curious to see how they price this title though, assuming it gets done. Could they charge full price for a 2D game in this market?

[Fnord]

I'd love to see another Planescape or Icewind Dale game, but I'm not holding my breath. I just don't see it happening.

I'm curious to see how they price this title though, assuming it gets done. Could they charge full price for a 2D game in this market?

I can think of only one company that has managed to get away with charging full price for games with very dated graphics these days, and that is Matrix games, but they are releasing very niche games, and have a devout group of fans.
In a world where people expect CRPGs to look like Dragon Age, Drakensang, The witcher or Dungeon siege 3, it would be hard for Obsidian to get away with charging full price for a brand new 2d game on anything but a handheld console.

[purpleblob]

I would love to see another IWD or Torment.. or.. maybe they can balance out amount of combat tactic and dialogue/story to make next BG2 like game... ok, now I'm hoping for too much.

[Gokyabgu]

Ultima ?

I'm wondering.

It could be a Ultima related project. I remember reading in a Feargus Urquhart interview (I can't remember when or where) about how an Ultima project would be excited him and his team. It can be. Obsidian is an indepentant studio and they have developed different titles for different publishers. Also they have close contacts with Bioware, the RPG division of EA.

[Motoki]

Do we really need another crappy Ultima project? The last two single player games in the series were crap, it had an MMO which was basically Ultima only in the names of the locations in the game, it has a crappy browser rts that's Ultima in name only, it almost had a crappy pseudo JRPG portable reboot and it had two other MMO projects cancelled.

Unless someone is doing Ultima 7 Part 3 I just don't care anymore.