Project Eternity Interview
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IG: The outpouring of support' ('¬and cash'!) '¬for' '¬Eternity shows that people were crying out for a new,' '¬Infinity Engine-style RPG.' '¬What do you think those' '¬90s RPG titles had that more contemporary RPGs are no longer providing'?And make sure you keep your eyes peeled on GameBanshee in the days following Thanksgiving... for what purpose, I can't yet reveal.
AB: I think there are a few differences for me that distinguish an IE game from a modern RPG.' '¬One is the party based tactical combat' '¬-' '¬you don't see too many games with full party control with' '¬6' '¬party members' '¬today.' '¬Secondly,' '¬IE games left room for the player to contribute to the' '¬experience' '¬-' '¬some which' '¬was necessitated by' '¬technology,' '¬the rest aesthetically.' '¬As an example,' '¬from how quests work,' '¬to the amount of dialogue we have,' '¬to the lore and item descriptions' '¬there's a lot of reading' '¬in Project Eternity.' '¬This has allowed us to both add more content and also allow players a level of active immersion sometimes lost with modern VO and animation,' '¬which often fills in the blanks for the players.' '¬I enjoy having to use my imagination.'
'¬Last,' '¬while we want to make the game fun for everyone,' '¬we aren't going to treat the player like a' '¬baby,' '¬which for some reason has become the standard in recent years.' '¬Our quests require you to think,' '¬the' '¬combat will be challenging,' '¬the choices might be difficult,' '¬and you won't be hammered over the head with' '¬quest markers.
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IG: Obsidian titles are also pretty well known for offering proper systems of' '¬'˜choice and consequence.'''¬ Will there be quests in' '¬Eternity with as many options and outcomes as' ('¬say') ('¬Beyond the Beef')'¬ from' '¬Fallout:' '¬New Vegas'?
AB: Yup,' '¬complex quest design is' '¬an Obsidian staple and we are going to continue to make quests' '¬like the ones you enjoyed' '¬in our previous games.' '¬All' '¬of our quests contain reactive choices,' '¬and we take care to make sure that' '¬the' '¬quests have' '¬many solutions with great role playing opportunities' '¬for the player.' '¬Many quests' '¬lines are deeper than how they initially appear on the surface and some may' '¬have a turn or two that' '¬could take you on unexpected adventures.' '¬And this will make you happy:' '¬Eric Fenstermaker,' '¬the designer of' '¬)Beyond the Beef')'¬,' '¬is the Creative Lead on PE,' '¬which should instill' '¬confidence in our quest direction.
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IG: Some of the Kickstarter reward tiers allowed backers to design their' '¬own NPC,' '¬or even mercenary company.' '¬Have you started collecting those player-created aspects yet,' '¬and what happens if you receive something that really doesn'''¬t fit into the game you'''¬re creating'? '¬Will it spark a diplomatic incident'?
AB: We've' '¬contacted our backers for the' '¬Inn/Taverns already,' '¬and soon' '¬via the backer portal' '¬we will be collecting data for all of the other tiers including portraits,' '¬NPCs,' '¬items,' '¬and' '¬adventuring parties.' '¬Keep an eye out in the next few weeks if you did back Project' '¬Eternity at the higher tiers because you will need to fill out your survey soon.
The team is going to work' '¬closely' '¬with' '¬the backers because they are the people who are making this game' '¬a reality.' '¬Our backers aren't game developers,' '¬so there might be a few cases where an idea doesn't fit with the world,' '¬or the idea is larger than what is possible.' '¬In cases like these' '¬we would like' '¬to work with the backer to make sure' '¬the spirit of' '¬their idea' '¬makes' '¬it into the game.
