Interview Josh Sawyer Interview

[VentilatorOfDoom]

Tags: J.E. Sawyer; Obsidian Entertainment

<p>After his extensive interview with MCA Will Ooi turns his attention to<a href="http://willooi.com/2011/09/unmasking-the-gamers-jesawyer/" target="_blank"> Josh Sawyer</a>.</p>
<blockquote>
<p><strong>WO: The information available about you on the net tells us that, having completed a history major and participating in theatre, you then became a game designer. How did this happen and how did you make the decision to pursue this career path? Who and what has influenced you?</strong></p>
<p><strong><br /></strong></p>
<p><strong>JS:</strong> The transition from college to game development was stroke of luck. I was a bad student in college. I don&rsquo;t mean that in the &ldquo;zany Val Kilmer Real Genius&rdquo; way, but in the way that a lazy wastrel who plays video games and tabletop RPGs all day is a bad student. A friend of mine noticed that Interplay was hiring a web designer for an unannounced RPG. I had taught myself a bunch of web design (including Flash) and was a freelance web developer, so I fired over a resume. Apparently my absurdly long cover letter and knowledge of Flash were the keys to success. I was the second choice of about sixty applicants. The first pick decided to follow his girlfriend to Seattle.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>As for how I became interested in game design, it probably started with my first introduction to CRPGs. At a public library, I saw an older kid playing the original <em>Bard&rsquo;s Tale</em> on a C=64. I was mesmerized. The older kid, Tony Unate, introduced me to a wide array of CRPGs as well as <em>AD&amp;D</em>. I had already played Basic and Expert <em>D&amp;D</em>, but <em>AD&amp;D</em> is when the obsession truly took flight. Tony and I and our mutual friends debated a lot of the finer points of game design, both in CRPGs and in tabletop games. We sector edited games, modified board games, and altered RPG rules to suit our tastes and sensibilities.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>When I got to college, I started playing a wider range of tabletop games with a diverse group of gamers of varying backgrounds. We did a lot of customization and system development along the way. That process of critical analysis and revision made me interested in game development, though I always envisioned myself getting into tabletop design.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
</blockquote>

 

[.Sigurd]

WO: The Fallout: New Vegas DLC Honest Hearts dealt with a rare topic in video games: real life religions. What were your aims with this add-on? Are you a religious person?

JS: I wanted to involve the player in a conflict between two well-meaning, genuinely religious characters. Religion is not dealt with much in video games, or designers deal with it as a joke or through proxies. That’s fine if it’s part of a broad spectrum of approaches, but the spectrum of religious portrayals in video games isn’t that broad. Religion in the wake of an apocalypse seemed like an under-explored topic, so I figured I’d make it more prominent in Honest Hearts.

Religion is a way of understanding the universe and one’s place in it. There are three major characters struggling for redemption in the story: Joshua Graham, Daniel, and The Survivalist (Salt-Upon-Wounds, also, but he’s more of a minor figure). Each character has his own internal conflict and baggage to deal with and each character is looking for some sort of redemption for what they perceive as past failures. It is often their inability to recognize and accept their motivations that prevents them from making progress. Many players seem to empathize with one of the characters over the other two and derive their own way of dealing with the current problem based on that character’s approach.

As for me, personally, I believe there are no gods and live my life accordingly.

WO: For someone who personally doesn’t believe in the existence of any god, you certainly seem to approach religion with an open mind and an acceptance of other’s faiths. Is there any particular reason behind your belief?

JS: There’s no particular reason. It’s not an argument that hinges on a specific point.

 

[Shannow]

 

[Sacculina]

 

[MMXI]

At a public library, I saw an older kid playing the original Bard’s Tale on a C=64.

And he's still yet to make a better cRPG.

 

[Shannow]

At a public library, I saw an older kid playing the original Bard’s Tale on a C=64.

And he's still yet to make a better cRPG.

IWD2 is laughing all the way home.

 

[MMXI]

IWD2 is laughing all the way home.

And when it gets home it'll curl up in bed and cry itself to sleep.

 

[Excidium]

How the industry changes people.

 

[Roguey]

In a more ideal world Sawyer and Gaider would be collaborating on a modern Darklands clone. Gaider's writing kept to a minimum of course.

 

[Mastermind]

IWD2 was better than any goldbox swill. Too bad about all the fucking filler combat.