Interview Alpha Protocol: A Game of Subtlety and Intrigue

[Syraxith]

I'm just hoping OEI can pull off good combat, C&C, good story, and an overall enjoyable game, I'll be happy.

Considering how much development time it's had I think this might be their first game to have a considerable amount of polish before release.

I'm just hoping it sells well so we can get my fucking Aliens RPG!

I'm hoping as well but Sega's track record after the dreamcast era hasn't exactly been the best. There's some hope but I'm expecting the worst.

 

[Longshanks]

What are the chances that they will suddenly create an original action RPG (or shooter with stats) on par with Deus Ex?

I'm expecting it to be better than Deus Ex, certainly in the RPG department. The game does at least have dialogue, with good writers working on it, so it's already at least one up on Deus Ex :wink: .

 

[Kingston]

Re: Alpha Protocol:

a game of subtlety and intrigue

Truly there is nothing quite as subtle as slowing down time and shooting numerous people with unlimited ammo.

 

[Tigranes]

Where "relatively early" should be replaced with "lack of progress" or "lack of direction". The game has been in development since 2006 and sega expected to have a clear outline of where the game stands now and where it's headed. Something that Obsidian seemingly failed to provide.

This is almost as stupid as all the "OMG I TOLD U IF U GUYS SHOWED US SCREENSHOTS THE GAME WULDNT BE CANCELLED" crap. Unqualified bullshit. How many employees do you think Obsidian had working on Aliens when they had just got NWN2 out the door? Then developed MOTB and SOZ? And worked on Alpha Protocol? They weren't 100-man-big back in 2006 either. 2007/8 saw a steady hiring process that I assume tacked on more and more people to Aliens and AP.

What are the chances that they will suddenly create an original action RPG (or shooter with stats) on par with Deus Ex?

They've got the talent, I don't know if they have the right organisation/system in place and the situational factors going for them.

 

[MetalCraze]

They've got the talent

Actually the main problem is that they don't. I've yet to see the so called Obsidian's talent that goes beyond copying other games and writing good dialogues once per 3 years.
And they certainly don't have any experience when it comes to making shooters. Guys who were making Deus Ex previously worked in ever innovating LGS for 10 years and it shows.
What is Obsidian? Feargus, Chris "PS:T needed more combat" Avellone, Josh Sawyer who did mediocre IWD2 and a bunch of newbies.

 

[Dionysus]

I'm expecting it to be better than Deus Ex, certainly in the RPG department. The game does at least have dialogue, with good writers working on it, so it's already at least one up on Deus Ex :wink: .

I don't know about that. From what I've heard, the core gameplay is about "taking cover and shooting people in the face." Good writing is neither necessary nor sufficient for that sort of thing.

They've got the talent, I don't know if they have the right organisation/system in place and the situational factors going for them.

I enjoy their games. I just think it's unlikely that they will quickly go from aping Bioware to producing a different sort of game on par with the best in its class. They've never made anything original, and they've never made anything like this.

 

[Andrej]

Half of the challange in Deus Ex was the inventory managment - seeing as how ammo has been removed completely I will have to guess that AP will lack that aspect of DX.

However, I'm looking forward to AP and trying not to get my hopes up or down. I'll actually try to play it as it comes to me out of the box and we'll see what it's like.

 

[LastAngryBat]

Ammo didn't take up any inventory space in DX

and inventory management was never a challenge unless you were trying to take more than one heavy weapon with you

 

[Longshanks]

They fixed that sort of micro-management in Deus Ex 2 anyway.

 

[The Feral Kid]

The biggest risk we had with our concept being set in the present day and not some far away future or mystical land was the fact that we wouldn't have any crazy technologies or magic to call upon to make it game-y.

Of course, that would require to have imagination, one of the many things Obsidian lacks.

 

[M_I_C_K_E_Y_M_O_U_S_E]

The biggest risk we had with our concept being set in the present day and not some far away future or mystical land was the fact that we wouldn't have any crazy technologies or magic to call upon to make it game-y.

Of course, that would require to have imagination, one of the many things Obsidian lacks.

There are no original ideas or concepts.

 

[FeelTheRads]

There are no original ideas or concepts.

You feel really smart when uttering those words, don't you?

 

[tunguska]

PS:T didn't use an original setting (although it is the only CRPG with that setting), but I think the story was original. Actually it is the only CRPG I have played that even has much of a story. If you are asking, "But what has MCA done for us lately?". Fair enough. Aside from that NWN expansion I guess not a lot. From my POV, the success or failure of this game depends almost entirely on Chris. On his ability to write and maybe design. Not even the great Looking Glass had any single person with his level of talent IMHO. And I say that having been a big fan of LGS. I am *still* waiting for my Ultima Underworld III. I think it's going to be a while though. I'd settle for an Arx Fatalis II. I hated Deus Ex. I don't consider it an RPG, and I definitely don't consider it a good game of any genre. Who worked on Deus Ex from LGS anyway? Besides Warren Spector, who doesn't count. It would be hard to imagine anything from Obsidian being as bad as Deus Ex.

 

[MetalCraze]

MCA didn't do anything for that NWN expansion besides writing 2 characters.

Also PS:T was great because not only MCA worked on the game and the story but the creator of Planescape himself as well - that was an ultimate showcase of how you should really handle somebody other's lore.

 

[Forest Dweller]

MCA didn't do anything for that NWN expansion besides writing 2 characters.

Who happened to be the two best written characters in the game.

 

[Burning Bridges]

Does AP have bullet time? That shit kills every game for me.

 

[Andhaira]

It has Bullet Storm.

 

[ghostdog]

Bullet holocaust

 

[elander_]

"I hated Deus Ex. I don't consider it an RPG, and I definitely don't consider it a good game of any genre. "

Adding choices and a plot to an FPS. It's such an horrible thing to do.