Interview Pete Hines Interview

[VentilatorOfDoom]

Tags: Bethesda Softworks; Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

<p>VG247 <a href="http://www.vg247.com/2011/01/26/interview-bethesdas-biggest-year-in-history-by-pete-hines/" target="_blank">has put up their interview</a> with Bethesda Softwork's Pete Hines. They speak about a variety of topics, here's a snippet on Skyrim:</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>Why has the number of skill classes in Skyrim dropped to 18 from Oblivion&rsquo;s 21 and Morrowind&rsquo;s 27?</strong></p>
<p>Stuff changes from game to game. Look at Fallout; we changed a mix of skills and stuff from the previous Fallout games in Fallout 3. That list changed again and the way it worked changed again in Fallout: New Vegas.</p>
<p>We don&rsquo;t stand still or keep things the same just for the sake of keeping them the same. We make the choices that we think will make for the best game possible.</p>
<p>Whether it&rsquo;s the number of skills, or how things work, or whatever it may be, we&rsquo;re not afraid to make changes. We don&rsquo;t believe in just keeping things the same because that&rsquo;s the way they were in the last game.</p>
<p>I think that&rsquo;s how you run a franchise into the ground, by just iterating on the last one. We believe in sort of blowing things up and starting over and starting fresh each time.</p>
<p><strong>The modding kit for Skyrim you guys recently announced; how does that differ from the one in Oblivion?</strong></p>
<p>The specifics are still TBD, but, essentially, it&rsquo;s the same approach as Oblivion, the same approach as Morrowind: the ability to mod and custom create content on the PC to your heart&rsquo;s content and all the ways that we&rsquo;ve done in our previous games.</p>
<p>It&rsquo;s called it the Creation Kit because we call the engine the Creation Engine. We call the tools the Creation Kit. It&rsquo;s all part of one suite, if you will, but the intent and the function of it is really not any different.</p>
<p><strong>Can we assume Skyrim will get the same DLC support Oblivion and Fallout have had?</strong></p>
<p>To be determined. The game&rsquo;s been announced for less then a month. We&rsquo;re trying to get everyone to focus on the main game and we&rsquo;re focusing on the main game and not really worry about what we might be putting out later.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>We're not afraid to make changes.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Spotted at: <a href="http://www.gamebanshee.com/news/101258-bethesda-softworks-interview.html">Gamebanshee</a></p>

 

[FatCat]

Skill are cut mostly cuz they are getting rid of class system , it's not a bad thing at all , 27 skills is overkill and waste of time.

 

[Andyman Messiah]

Creation kit, huh? Sounds more like they just threw away the Garden of Eden.

 

[Mastermind]

Skill are cut mostly cuz they are getting rid of class system , it's not a bad thing at all , 27 skills is overkill and waste of time.

The number of skills doesn't matter, the quality does.

That said, they should go back to the skill-free arena system where attributes and level determine how good you are at doing things and class determines what you can and can't do.

 

[Dorf]

Quote 1: Hines "We don’t stand still or keep things the same just for the sake of keeping them the same."

Quote 2: Hines: "I think that’s how you run a franchise into the ground, by just iterating on the last one. "

Quote 3: Hines: "The specifics are still TBD, but, essentially, it’s the same approach as Oblivion, the same approach as Morrowind: the ability to mod and custom create content on the PC to your heart’s content and all the ways that we’ve done in our previous games.

It’s called it the Creation Kit because we call the engine the Creation Engine. We call the tools the Creation Kit. It’s all part of one suite, if you will, but the intent and the function of it is really not any different."

I really think Hines doesn't have any idea what he is talking about.

 

[DraQ]

Skill are cut mostly cuz they are getting rid of class system , it's not a bad thing at all , 27 skills is overkill and waste of time.

Fucking newfags.

 

[FatCat]

Skill are cut mostly cuz they are getting rid of class system , it's not a bad thing at all , 27 skills is overkill and waste of time.

Fucking newfags.

Better to be a newfag , than retardishly conservative oldfag for which bigger number means better.

 

[Mastermind]

Skill are cut mostly cuz they are getting rid of class system , it's not a bad thing at all , 27 skills is overkill and waste of time.

Fucking newfags.

Arena had no skills and it's the oldest ES game.

 

[Phelot]

The problem isn't the numbers, it's the lame excuses and mentality that if it's broken then just throw it out rather then fix it. Morrowind had some broken skills, yes, the answer wasn't to throw them out, but to fix them and other skills were thrown out for no other reason then because, according to the devs "nobody used them anyway" such as Medium Armor

 

[Black Cat]

Skill are cut mostly cuz they are getting rid of class system , it's not a bad thing at all , 27 skills is overkill and waste of time.

Fucking newfags.

Better to be a newfag , than retardishly conservative oldfag for which bigger number means better.

He never said a bigger number meant better, while you did say a bigger number was overkill and a waste of time, therefore meant worse, regardless of the mechanics set around them.

 

[Xor]

Quote 1: Hines "We don’t stand still or keep things the same just for the sake of keeping them the same."

Quote 2: Hines: "I think that’s how you run a franchise into the ground, by just iterating on the last one. "

Quote 3: Hines: "The specifics are still TBD, but, essentially, it’s the same approach as Oblivion, the same approach as Morrowind: the ability to mod and custom create content on the PC to your heart’s content and all the ways that we’ve done in our previous games.

It’s called it the Creation Kit because we call the engine the Creation Engine. We call the tools the Creation Kit. It’s all part of one suite, if you will, but the intent and the function of it is really not any different."

I really think Hines doesn't have any idea what he is talking about.

As much as I dislike bethseda, those statements aren't really contradictory and he's pretty much right about ruining franchises by re-releasing the same game.

The modding tools don't have anything to do with the game itself, and there seems to be an active enough modding community for TES that removing the tools or changing them would probably cause a backlash. For the actual game, they need to change things to keep it from being the same game, because that would kill the franchise if they did it enough.

I don't really agree with the changes they're making (or actually I don't much care), but pete says enough bullshit that you don't need to call him out on the few coherent and logical statements he makes.

 

[Excommunicator]

I don't think I have ever heard of a single game series that has been run into the ground due to being exactly the same as previous installments. I can name many which have sequels which are almost exactly the same as previous games, and in many cases they are as strong or stronger than their predecessors.

I can also name dozens of games that have been run into the ground due to them being changed around by designers who feel entitled to change whatever, whenever, often to the extent that they no longer resemble previous games in that series.


Of course change is good, but you need to be a genuinely good designer to change a successful game around and still have it be both successful and be as good a game. Bethesda aren't that.

 

[Mastermind]

The problem isn't the numbers, it's the lame excuses and mentality that if it's broken then just throw it out rather then fix it. Morrowind had some broken skills, yes, the answer wasn't to throw them out, but to fix them and other skills were thrown out for no other reason then because, according to the devs "nobody used them anyway" such as Medium Armor

In vanilla morrowind the only saving grace for medium armor was the ebony mail (best chest armor in the game). The top tier medium armor (indoril,which wasn't even a full set as it had no greaves) was inferior to glass.

 

[Andhaira]

Less skillz can be a good thing if, and only if, said implementation of the skillz is increased.

 

[Andhaira]

Less skillz can be a good thing if, and only if, said implementation of the skillz is increased.

 

[gromit]

Why did you change ____?

Long, involved answer; thorough whether you agree with it or not.

Because we didn't have to NOT change it. Gawd!

It sure was a nice treat to read things straight from the horse's mouth.

It seems the perception of everyone just plain hating change has altered how every question about it will be answered from now on (at least by dedicated PR men.) How does answering a question about a specific change with sophistry on change itself excite, inform, or empower your audience? Let alone sway (or nudge) anyone with reservations.

Hell, I think a lot of their planned changes will be for the best, as the series moves away from half-assing two different genres of RPG simultaneously and settles on what it actually wants to be. But were I to ask about any of the design decisions, even agreeing with them, would that be my answer? "Because." God forbid we discuss a burgeoning media.

Fuck you, supposed vocal luddite minority. Just as hard as the PR people. Both over-trained, like a suburban cop convinced that everyone has drugs and bombs.

 

[Dorf]

Quote 1: Hines "We don’t stand still or keep things the same just for the sake of keeping them the same."

Quote 2: Hines: "I think that’s how you run a franchise into the ground, by just iterating on the last one. "

Quote 3: Hines: "The specifics are still TBD, but, essentially, it’s the same approach as Oblivion, the same approach as Morrowind: the ability to mod and custom create content on the PC to your heart’s content and all the ways that we’ve done in our previous games.

It’s called it the Creation Kit because we call the engine the Creation Engine. We call the tools the Creation Kit. It’s all part of one suite, if you will, but the intent and the function of it is really not any different."

I really think Hines doesn't have any idea what he is talking about.

As much as I dislike bethseda, those statements aren't really contradictory and he's pretty much right about ruining franchises by re-releasing the same game.

The modding tools don't have anything to do with the game itself, and there seems to be an active enough modding community for TES that removing the tools or changing them would probably cause a backlash. For the actual game, they need to change things to keep it from being the same game, because that would kill the franchise if they did it enough.

I don't really agree with the changes they're making (or actually I don't much care), but pete says enough bullshit that you don't need to call him out on the few coherent and logical statements he makes.

My point is, when asked about why they are cutting skills again, he responds with some knee jerk boilerplate reponse about "change" and "not be afraid of change" etc, etc... Pure bullcrap. He doesn't explain anything about why its better, only that because they are changing it then by default it must be better. Then when he is asked about the mod editor he quips that it will be basically the same. Well, if change is so damn good why aren't you changing that?

Also, I disagree on a franchise needing to change. Fallout 1&2, and Van Buren are perfect examples of where all you need to do is keep refining your product and adding improvements that fix and improve the gameplay within your game design. Fallout 3 is a perfect example of how "change" ruined a game franchise.

While it is not CRPG, the CIV series is a perfect example of how the core game experience doesn't change but it keeps evolving with each sequel.

 

[Mastermind]

Also, I disagree on a franchise needing to change. Fallout 1&2, and Van Buren are perfect examples of where all you need to do is keep refining your product and adding improvements that fix and improve the gameplay within your game design. Fallout 3 is a perfect example of how "change" ruined a game franchise.

Except Fallout 3 is better than 1 and both 1 and 3 are miles above the unplayable piece of shit that is Fallout 3.

 

[Luzur]

I think that’s how you run a franchise into the ground, by just iterating on the last one. We believe in sort of blowing things up and starting over and starting fresh each time.

you can say that again.

 

[DraQ]

He never said a bigger number meant better, while you did say a bigger number was overkill and a waste of time, therefore meant worse, regardless of the mechanics set around them.

:brofist:

The problem isn't the numbers, it's the lame excuses and mentality that if it's broken then just throw it out rather then fix it. Morrowind had some broken skills, yes, the answer wasn't to throw them out, but to fix them and other skills were thrown out for no other reason then because, according to the devs "nobody used them anyway" such as Medium Armor

In vanilla morrowind the only saving grace for medium armor was the ebony mail (best chest armor in the game). The top tier medium armor (indoril,which wasn't even a full set as it had no greaves) was inferior to glass.

Armour skills happen to be the one and only group of skills I wouldn't mind seeing discarded and replaced with some other mechanics limiting usefulness of the most protective armour (Unarmoured should be replaced by dodge, with encumbrance penalties). Other than that phelot is right, beth's break->declare useless->discard method of "fixing" things is rage-inducing and profoundly retarded.

I think that’s how you run a franchise into the ground, by just iterating on the last one. We believe in sort of blowing things up and starting over and starting fresh each time.

you can say that again.

Seeing they have the first part mastered, maybe they should move on to practicing the second?

 

[JarlFrank]

we changed a mix of skills and stuff

Skills and stuff, like, you know, like, stuff.

Their PR language shows perfectly how much they actually care about game mechanics.

 

[The Anus Of Discontent]

Except Fallout 3 is better than 1 and both 1 and 3 are miles above the unplayable piece of shit that is Fallout 3.

Except Fallout 3... miles above the unplayable piece of shit that is Fallout 3.

On that note, you have to admire how these people can talk whilst providing no concrete answers to any of the questions asked. Why did they slash the number of skills nearly in half? 'Cause change!

I think that’s how you run a franchise into the ground, by just iterating on the last one.

True, which is why developers used to improve upon their franchises game after game until the already solid mechanics are spotless, rather than removing or needlessly simplifying the said mechanics, dumbing them down until you only need to press spacebar to win the game, whilst introducing revolutionary features ( read: gimmicks ) to sell this particular iteration better.

 

[Silellak]

Except Fallout 3 is better than 1 and both 1 and 3 are miles above the unplayable piece of shit that is Fallout 3.

 

[SCO]

Posting in a troll thread.

(that's you Pete)

 

[Roguey]

I don’t see there’s any product that we’ve ever made ever where we say, ‘Yeah, we’re fine, it’s got some serious critical bugs, but we’ll go ahead and ship it anyways.’

So what do they say? Isn't that what always happens?