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Game News Wasteland 2 Kickstarter Update #48: Meet Nathan Long + New Dialogue UI

Infinitron

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Tags: InXile Entertainment; Matt Findley; Nathan Long; Wasteland 2

This month's Wasteland 2 Kickstarter update is out. This one's by inXile's second-in-command, Matt Findley, who has some good news:

Hey Rangers,

It is May and things are good. Another big beta update went out, patch notes here. We are nearing the end of the three-month plan we outlined earlier, and hit all our internal end-of-April milestones, which is a rarity. We're getting closer every day, and we intend to announce the official release date sometime this month.

At this stage of the project some portions of the game require less manpower than they did a few months ago, which is all part of our plan for moving people to Torment: Tides of Numenera when their work on Wasteland 2 is simply done. One of those things we're slowly wrapping up is writing, which at this stage is really just tweaks or minor NPCs and encounters added. You may have heard us mention Nathan Long before, a talented and veteran writer who we were very lucky to have join us on this project. This feels like a good time to give him the floor and have him talk a bit about the writing process, so without further ado, here's Nathan.
Here's an excerpt from Nathan's write-up:

So, what is my day to day job here at inXile?

Well, earlier on in the process, it was expanding the design docs created by the writers that had come before me - breaking them down into individual encounters, writing the descriptions and dialog for those encounters, and figuring out how they all tied together into a cohesive whole. And when I was done with one zone, I would move on to the next and do it all over again.

These days it’s a little more scattershot. We are in the tweaking and tuning phase, so I am doing a little of everything. Today Matt needs an extra radio call for an encounter in Arizona, Jeffrey needs a rewrite on a NPC in the Mannerite map because the logic for the encounter has changed, Zack needs to cut some interiors, so I have to rewrite a few scenes so the characters don't talk about being inside when they're actually outside, Brian wants me to rewrite a gag which he feels is in poor taste, and the backers have pointed out a continuity problem in a newly released encounter, so I have to come up with a solution.

I usually start the morning with a call to Matt (which he loves) to determine the priority of all the issues I've got on my list, then I get to work, knocking down items as quick as I can while more get added throughout the day. Occasionally an emergency will come up, and I'll suddenly have to switch over to something else, but usually it's just a slow steady flow of emails and delivered documents all day long.

But in all this work, no matter how scattered, no matter how minor the tweak, the most important consideration is making all of it feel like Wasteland. Brian, Matt and the rest of the developers have a clear, focused vision of what Wasteland 2 is and isn't, and it's my job to be in sync with them and make sure that all the writing in the game - no matter who originally wrote it - delivers on that vision and feels right and true and consistent from zone to zone and character to character. It’s a terrifying responsibility, but I'm happy to have been given the opportunity to do it.​

The update also comes with a screenshot of the latest iteration of Wasteland 2's dialogue UI. If you've been following our thread, you may have seen an earlier version of that. With the help of a member of the community, inXile have improved it further. Well, improved if you don't hate dot matrix printers:


One last thing: If you speak French, Italian, German or Spanish, and are feeling generous, you might want to check out inXile's crowdsourced localization initiative.
 

MrEvilGuy

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I feel like I should be paying tuition to be here instead of being paid. (Ha ha! Just a joke, Brian. Just a joke.)

Brian wants me to rewrite a gag which he feels is in poor taste.

This Brian guy sounds like an asshole.
 

l3loodAngel

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upload_2014-5-9_23-23-41.png

Gay Ass: 1
Improvement?

Oh man, I am dying to read the dialogues.
 
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Irenaeus

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I didn't back WL2, only getting it as a bonus for backing Torment. Kiss Ass is flirting? What kind of beta wrote that? In any case, I liked the “Ass Trio".

Can't wait to ass my way into Glory! :cool:

Btw, current dialogue UI is looking good.
 
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Irenaeus

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Kiss Ass is flirting?

No. Stop being a dumbshit.

I guess you are wrong as usual.

Information / Knowledge Skills
Your chance of success with non-combat skills depends on the difference between the challenge and your skill level. For an expert at lock picking facing a door with a very simple lock, there is almost no chance to fail. A novice surgeon may find it very hard to remove the effects of a dangerous strain of toxin or a serious injury that renders your ranger in mortal condition. If the skill difference is too significant, especially for untrained rangers, it may simply not be possible to accomplish the task.

  • Picklock: Chance of success and speed at picking conventional locks.
  • Safecrack: Chance of success and speed at picking safe locks, including on vault doors.
  • Alarm Disarm: Ability to disarm alarms, but also to fix faulty wiring on security doors and open them directly.
  • Toaster Repair: Fix broken toasters and who doesn’t need that?
  • Computer Tech: Skill at hacking computers, which gives access to a variety of possibilities. You can gain information you couldn’t otherwise, or remotely activate a security system or camera. Some computers may give you the ability to activate or reprogram security doors.
  • Synth Tech: With synth tech you can repair and reprogram synthetics and other robots, turning them to your side in combat.
  • Demolitions: The ability to use demolitions in and out of combat. Out of combat, its most common use is to break down doors or clear barriers that do not give way to picklock or brute force, but this unsubtle means of entry is sure to be noticed. In combat, lots of destruction.
  • Brute Force: Determines your skill at applying your raw strength to break some things. Lacks the subtlety of picklock and the raw force of demolitions.
  • Move Silently: The ability to sneak around unnoticed.
  • Salvaging: How effective you are at finding usable items in what would normally be considered piles of junk. A ranger who is good at salvaging can find many useful items that might be skipped over by a normal person.
  • Kiss Ass: Dialogue skill involving flattery, :codexisfor:seduction :pete:, and well… ass kissing.
  • Hard Ass: Dialogue skill involving intimidation and aggressive speech.
  • Smart Ass: Dialogue skill involving persuasion. ***The “Ass Trio” names are placeholders but somehow they’ve taken hold around the office.***

Keep doing a good job.

:hero:
 

TwinkieGorilla

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Irenaeus

Hey, dumbshit. You honestly don't know the difference between "subversive manipulation through mollification" and "flirting"? You were being purposefully reductive for the sake of edginess about a game you've no real knowledge of. Hence: dumbshit. As usual.

And while I think your general worldview makes this obvious, I am quite certain you're not actually this dumb.
 
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Irenaeus

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Irenaeus

Hey, dumbshit. You honestly don't know the difference between "subversive manipulation through mollification" and "flirting"? You were being purposefully reductive for the sake of edginess about a game you've no real knowledge of. Hence: dumbshit. As usual.

And while I think your general worldview makes this obvious, I am quite certain you're not actually this dumb.

I am this dumb.
 

Curious_Tongue

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Irenaeus

Hey, dumbshit. You honestly don't know the difference between "subversive manipulation through mollification" and "flirting"? You were being purposefully reductive for the sake of edginess about a game you've no real knowledge of. Hence: dumbshit. As usual.

And while I think your general worldview makes this obvious, I am quite certain you're not actually this dumb.

*batters eyelids*
 

ghostdog

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Improved dialog UI looks good. Now they should concentrate on improving dialog itself.
 

Shryke

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Where are the numbers next to dialogue choices? Why always the clicky clicky to accomplish everything? Give me number keys next to dialogue choices, and give me shortcuts for EVERYTHING or go home. The keyboard is faster and less prone to misclicks.

In essence, why devolve from the UI in Baldur's Gate?
 

Curious_Tongue

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Where are the numbers next to dialogue choices? Why always the clicky clicky to accomplish everything? Give me number keys next to dialogue choices, and give me shortcuts for EVERYTHING or go home. The keyboard is faster and less prone to misclicks.

In essence, why devolve from the UI in Baldur's Gate?

I play almost exclusively with the mouse, except for pressing escape to save, load or quit.

I liked to sit cross legged and have one hand free for my coffee or cigarette.
 

MicoSelva

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New dialog UI looks much better, and the fan version is another improvement. I hope they go with that one.
 

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