Project Eternity Interview

It’s time to take in some more tease-worthy information on Obsidian Entertainment’s Project Eternity, as IncGamers has treated us to a two-page interview with lead programmer Adam Brennecke. Since I can’t help but quote more than usual on games that really pique my interest, here’s a reasonably sized helping:

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’­?

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.

And make sure you keep your eyes peeled on GameBanshee in the days following Thanksgiving… for what purpose, I can’t yet reveal.