Sword Coast Legends Interview

Develop has published an interview with n-Space CEO Dan O’Leary that focuses on the company’s parternship with Digital Extreme to produce the D&D-based RPG Sword Coast Legends. From the way O’Leary puts it, Digital Extreme’s help seems to be limited to getting the title funded and published, and the lion’s share of development falls solely on the shoulders of N-Space:

What does each studio bring to the table? What contributions will each team be making to the new RPG?

n-Space is developing the game, concept to completion. We also bring to the table a strong partnership with Wizards of the Coast and the Dungeons & Dragons team. Digital Extremes is providing a portion of the funding, along with the skills and experience they have garnered publishing and supporting Warframe, which boasts over 14 million players worldwide.

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Tell us more about the talent you have brought on board for this new RPG project. Who have you hired and why?

I first brought on Dan Tudge as president over two years ago. Dan was the director of Dragon Age: Origins, but our paths had first crossed prior to that when he was running his own development studio and we were both working for Nintendo. I hired Dan to fill shoes left empty in 2008 and to help pivot the company. Even then we were talking about this project, which was a great fit for his experience and passion.

In turn, Dan brought in Ross Gardner and Jay Turner, both BioWare vets and prior members of the DA:O team. Ross came on as the project’s technical director, leveraging over 13 years of experience at BioWare on Baldur’s Gate 1 and 2, Neverwinter Nights and The Old Republic, among others.

Jay is the narrative director for Sword Coast Legends. While at BioWare, he wrote for several titles including Dragon Age: Origins, Jade Empire and the Mass Effect series, before moving to EA where he wrote for Dead Space 3 among others. Together with n-Space’s proven team of veteran developers, it is a formidable combination.

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With the new talent adding their RPG experience, how will this team help attract fans of previous Forgotten Realms games?

When I tell you that Jon Irenicus from Baldur’s Gate II was based on the D&D character campaigned by the Sword Coast Legends’ technical director. or that the director of Dragon Age: Origins is heading up the team. These things lend a certain degree of instant credibility to the team and our game.

But that sort of thing is only enough to get your attention. What really matters is what the fans see when they look at what we’re doing, or hear about it from their friends. The care taken in bringing the spirit of Dungeons & Dragons and old-school RPG sensibilities to their PC in a way that lets them play with their friends, and create a story with their DM. that will attract the fans.