Fallout 2 Interview
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GB: How about Fallout 3? What was your role on Van Buren and what areas of the game had you worked on before its cancellation? Chris: I was the lead designer for about 3-4 years before resigning (Ferg leaving was the last straw), then the co-designer (creative lead) when Josh came on board. I did rough drafts of initial system mechanics (which we tried out in the pen and paper games, since a turn-based hex system doesn't matter too much if it's on paper or in a computer game - Josh rightfully revised a number of these) and did area design, maps, character breakdowns, items, and plot elements for all locations in the game including Hoover Dam, Fort Abandon (Aradesh), and these were passed off to the designers who then revised them and made them their own - some changed a great deal from the initial premise (Hoover Dam, New Zion, the Cyphers, Hangdogs, the Nursery) while others were relatively unchanged (Boulder Dome, Caesar's Legion Slavers, Daughters of Hecate, and Denver). Before resigning, I'd done the most work on Leavenworth Prison, Denver, Circle Junction, the Boulder Dome, Fort Abandon (Aradesh), and the Military Boot Camp area (The Big Empty). I was probably most looking forward to designing the Nursery, which was a homage to the Agricultural Station in Wasteland (but without the giant animals).
GB: What were Black Isle Studios' main goals for Fallout 3? How was the third installment going to build on what the first two titles had to offer?
Chris: Before I resigned, the goals were epic, post-apocalyptic world where you fight against a rival party of survivors (I thought this would be a more interesting series of adversaries - instead of a Foozle villain, you have a group that's a lot like your band - they're not evil, just have a different approach), have a few more Science-based options for braniac characters to solve problems (Science Boy), and try to push the theme of the "Prisoner's Dilemma" (bad, quick explanation - it's a theorem that cooperating with an opponent yields a greater reward than trying to beat them) to explore even new ways of solving situations in role-playing games. I also wanted more gender-based epic options (male players could fight for control of Caesar's Legion and use them as an army, Postman-style, and female characters could take charge of the insidious medical infrastructure and "midwife" structure" of the Daughters of Hecate as informants to gain power). I did want to include more elements I'd liked from Wasteland in Fallout 3. I didn't want the game mechanics or view to change much at all, since I didn't find much wrong with the initial two except for the skill imbalance problems and armor and weapon balance problems.
I also wanted to play around with post-apocalyptic locations in fun ways like the sealed airtight science chambers in the Boulder Dome that you could unlock over the course of the game room by room until its deadly secret was revealed (gasp), and adventuring on the tops of skyscrapers in Denver. I also wanted to explore more with the Brotherhood of Steel, NCR, and slavers... and the unique civil war challenges those organizations were facing within their own faction (the BOS, especially).
I guess what I miss most were the companions you could get. I don't think I've felt the same energy since Torment for the companions you could get over the course of the game - we had a police administration Mr. Handy robot (Job), as a homage to the police admin bot in Wasteland, a cameo appearance from a young girl in Fallout 2 who became a soldier in NCR, a new version of ZAX who's desperately trying to save the world even as he runs out of CPU space, the Hanged Man, and even members of the rival party you could convince to see things your way. We also had some great "villains" as well, and I am sad they will never see the light of day.
GB: Were any of you at Obsidian interested in acquiring the rights to Fallout 3 when they became available? What was your reaction to the news that Interplay had sold the rights to Bethesda Softworks?
Chris: I don't think it was ever an option that ever came up (I think it was offered to much higher bidders than we could hope to be) - and Bethesda totally works for me. Oblivion kicked a great deal of ass.
GB: Why do you suppose Interplay retained the rights to any massively multiplayer Fallout titles? Do you think we'll ever see such a game, and if so, would a Fallout MMORPG even work?
Chris: I have no idea, but I think it would totally work, though.
GB: If you were given the choice, would you like to see Obsidian pursue a post-apocalyptic RPG in the same vein as the Fallout series? Why or why not?
Chris: Nope, I'd rather we do something brand new that builds on the RPG mechanics and aesthetic style guides of that and other Interplay RPGs to create something that's better than Fallout. If it's post-apocalyptic, so be it, but it doesn't have to be similar to Fallout.
All right, now I've got to get back to Neverwinter Nights 2 - and Obsidian should be making more announcements about upcoming titles in the future, so please check out our webpage at www.obsidianent.com, and if you want to see some unofficial tradeshow coverage of NWN2 (and other Obsidian hijinks), feel free to check out my blog at http://www.myspace.com/sicilianchris.
Thanks Chris!
