Feargus chats with GameSpot
Feargus chats with GameSpot
Interview - posted by Spazmo on Mon 5 January 2004, 20:33:14
Tags: Black Isle Studios; Fallout 3 (Van Buren); Feargus UrquhartGamespot PC have posted the first of two parts of an interview with our pal Feargus Urquhart, ex-BIS bigwig and current Obsidian bigwig. He discussed Black Isle's closure and what may have motivated it, Fallout 3 and what all this means for RPGs at large.
GS: What do you think caused Interplay to lay off most of Black Isle's staff?
Feargus Urquhart: I can only speculate based upon what I have heard going around the Internet and third-hand. However, it sounds like Interplay has decided to put all of its remaining development effort behind Fallout Brotherhood of Steel and the Exalted license. Both of those are console titles, while Black Isle was making a PC product. Plus, I would assume that Interplay could make more money in the short term by selling Fallout to another publisher and letting the team go then finishing the product.
GS: Do you think the layoffs were a good decision, business-wise?
FU: That's very hard to answer. I have heard from many people that the team was very certain that they could get Fallout 3 done and I think most people would consider that Black Isle was a marketable brand. I'm sure there are smarter people then me who could comment on whether shutting down a division in that position was a good idea or not.
Feargus should have done this interview with us. We'd have let him curse at Herve and Darth Molitor as much as he wanted instead of this noncommital waffling.
Keep an eye out for part 2 tomorrow wherein Feargus will talk about Obsidian.
GS: What do you think caused Interplay to lay off most of Black Isle's staff?
Feargus Urquhart: I can only speculate based upon what I have heard going around the Internet and third-hand. However, it sounds like Interplay has decided to put all of its remaining development effort behind Fallout Brotherhood of Steel and the Exalted license. Both of those are console titles, while Black Isle was making a PC product. Plus, I would assume that Interplay could make more money in the short term by selling Fallout to another publisher and letting the team go then finishing the product.
GS: Do you think the layoffs were a good decision, business-wise?
FU: That's very hard to answer. I have heard from many people that the team was very certain that they could get Fallout 3 done and I think most people would consider that Black Isle was a marketable brand. I'm sure there are smarter people then me who could comment on whether shutting down a division in that position was a good idea or not.
Feargus should have done this interview with us. We'd have let him curse at Herve and Darth Molitor as much as he wanted instead of this noncommital waffling.
Keep an eye out for part 2 tomorrow wherein Feargus will talk about Obsidian.
