Company News Black Isle Studios is back

[Zed]

Tags: Black Isle Studios; Herve Caen; Interplay

This is certainly a... surprise.

It looks like mustache-wizard Hervé Caen has resurrected the Black Isle Studios division of Interplay. There's currently not much more than a website (BlackIsle.com), Facebook and Twitter.

This is currently what's on the website:

Our goal has always been to make the world's best RPGs. Black Isle Studios is back.​

Black Isle Studios is a legendary name to live up to. One could wonder what use Interplay would have of it unless they were planning something serious. But how serious can you be without the old Black Isle folks in the company?

It's like a dream come true. Except it's 10 years too late and Freddy Kreuger is around somewhere.

Source: RPG Codex Investigations Division.

Update

Here are some twitter comments from former Black Islanders:

Josh Sawyer: lol black isle lol
Brian Fargo: A game division is obviously only as good as the talent it employs.
Chris Avellone: I know nothing about the Black Isle Studio news announcement, doesn't involve me or Obsidian... or well, anyone that I know.

Meanwhile, Trent Oster of Overhaul Games retweets the following:
Black Isles is back! Is this somehow connected to BGEE or might be?
And adds:
Excellent question.

 

[sea]

That mustache wax won't pay for itself, kids.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Sacrilege. Herve trangressed a very delicate line here. This fucking "company" needs to die for good. How dare they soiling Black Isle's name without having the former developers back?

 

[TwinkieGorilla]

Will wait until I hear why Black Isle is back and who "Black Isle" now is before caring.

 

[Infinitron]

Somebody send a tweet to Brian Fargo about this.

 

[Mother Russia]

Icewindale ENHANCED edition. PST ENHANCED edition. Dark Alliance 3. TORN.

Could be any of the above, a mixture of the above, all of the above, or none of the above (a facebook or IoS game instead)

I doubt Haerve has the $$$ for a MMO though...

UNLESS...

He is reallocating the resources from the rumored Fallout MMO...

 

[Zed]

I asked Fargo about it but he doesn't seem to know more than anyone else.

Brian Fargo ‏@BrianFargo
I just read that Interplay is bringing back Black Isle. Hmmm... Not enough info for me to comment.

 

[Durwyn]

In before Planebook: Torment or Baldurs Gate facebook game. Only for hardcore fans y'know

 

[Black]

CRPGD was first, LOSERS!!

 

[Infinitron]

The only reason it's even called "Black Isle" is because Feargus is Scottish.

 

[Rivmusique]

Well now



Drama will come from this, one way or another.

 

[GreyViper]

Wow talk about necromancy and doing unspeakable things to a dead horse.
Or has Harve targeted Bio and former BIS for a new money scam?

....So what was that Lithuanian hitman contact nr again?

 

[Scruffy]

This could make me really, REALLY happy or finally send me into that chainsaw massacre mode I sometimes feel coming. But then again, it’s Caen. So nothing good will come out of this. I guess that, since defiling the corpse of Fallout turned out to make good money, he’s trying something similar himself. Only, his legendary incompetence will cost him more money than he’ll ever make. I wonder if this time he’ll go to live under a bridge for good.

 

[Mother Russia]

It seems it's not enough that our childhood and teenage games and game franchises are raped, now our old beloved game companies are also under the rape cawk.

 

[Helly]

In before Van Buren: Forever

 

[Scruffy]

Please feel free to heavily insult me, but here’s a train of thoughts: Avellone talks about a spiritual successor to PS:T. Caen needs money (he always does). Does Interplay still hold any kind of rights that would allow them to make an actual PS:T successor?
Again, I am probably just deluding myself here and talking out of my ass, but you know when you really really want something to be true and fool yourself into believing it could be true…

 

[Angthoron]

CRPGD was first, LOSERS!!

CRPGD was first?

Fuck those losers :smugjaywilson:

 

[FeelTheRads]

Doubtful they have any kind of rights for Torment, but I wouldn't be surprised to see a Black Isle Kickstarter soon.

 

[Infinitron]

Please feel free to heavily insult me, but here’s a train of thoughts: Avellone talks about a spiritual successor to PS:T. Caen needs money (he always does). Does Interplay still hold any kind of rights that would allow them to make an actual PS:T successor?
Again, I am probably just deluding myself here and talking out of my ass, but you know when you really really want something to be true and fool yourself into believing it could be true…

Nope. Start shopping for chainsaws.

 

[Angthoron]

Perhaps Herve has hired ~Qwinn and Cleve.

 

[Mortmal]

Please feel free to heavily insult me, but here’s a train of thoughts: Avellone talks about a spiritual successor to PS:T. Caen needs money (he always does). Does Interplay still hold any kind of rights that would allow them to make an actual PS:T successor?
Again, I am probably just deluding myself here and talking out of my ass, but you know when you really really want something to be true and fool yourself into believing it could be true…

Caen need money, so you answer your question yourself , a PST successor wont bring him enough , the niche games called as rpgs dont bring enough money , planescape sales are unsignificant compare to diablo 3 , or the amount of money you get from facebook games e- transaction. No , at the very best, that being already over optimistic , you MAY have more ports of classics to the Ipad/android .New quality rpgs ? Ahaha.... if they wanted to do that they could have done it since a decade at least.
More likely you will get a new dark allliance hack& slash, a diablo 3 clone using D&D 4E ip something as satysfying as dungeon siege 3 , 3D first person baldurs gate 3 (i bet on that), even a shooter out of it why not . Or.... baldur's gate facebook edition,now being pessimistic they could even do a facebook mmo with cartoony graphics, like the new ultima .

 

[Shadenuat]

At least BOS was isometric and turn-based --

OW! OUCH! What?! Stop hitting me-- ow ouch ow--

 

[Gozma]

Might be a setup to make a fraudulent Kickstarter.

 

[Scruffy]

Please feel free to heavily insult me, but here’s a train of thoughts: Avellone talks about a spiritual successor to PS:T. Caen needs money (he always does). Does Interplay still hold any kind of rights that would allow them to make an actual PS:T successor?
Again, I am probably just deluding myself here and talking out of my ass, but you know when you really really want something to be true and fool yourself into believing it could be true…

Caen need money, so you answer your question yourself , a PST successor wont bring him enough , the niche games called as rpgs dont bring enough money , planescape sales are unsignificant compare to diablo 3 , or the amount of money you get from facebook games e- transaction. No , at the very best, that being already over optimistic , you MAY have more ports of classics to the Ipad/android .New quality rpgs ? Ahaha.... if they wanted to do that they could have done it since a decade at least.
More likely you will get a new dark allliance hack& slash, a diablo 3 clone using D&D 4E ip something as satysfying as dungeon siege 3 , 3D first person baldurs gate 3 (i bet on that), even a shooter out of it why not . Or.... baldur's gate facebook edition,now being pessimistic they could even do a facebook mmo with cartoony graphics, like the new ultima .

Hmmm… but couldn’t Fallout be considered a niche game too? With the right marketing, PS:T could be sold as… well, I don’t know how, but do you see my point?

 

[Tigranes]

Anyone who feels anything positive about this is a retard, and has just been trolled by Herve.