Eternity Avowed - Obsidian's first person action-RPG in the Pillars of Eternity setting - coming February 18th

[Butter]

The reaction online hasn't been that welcoming to any Avowed footage. I don't think this will sell much, or create any lasting market for the brand and obsidian.

People keep saying it looks and runs like something from the last gen, with bad combat.

I bet Obsidian and Inxile are one bad launch away from getting fucked by Xbox. Hi-fi Rush was a critical success and its studio still got canned.

2027: Feargus launches a new studio called BlackRock Entertainment. This time, without publisher interference, they will finally produce incline.

 

[Gargaune]

If I'm running a game development project, what's to stop me from firing people who impose their own style contrary to the direction I've given?

A variety of labour regulations and corporate practices, unions were applicable, and industry pressure groups. I'm not saying this is the case with Avowed, I don't imagine there's any internal artistic differences over this game at Obsidian, but to your question in general, shitcanning full-on employees (rather than consultants) is a much lengthier and more complex process today than it was twenty years ago. If said employee literally craps on your desk, sure, immediate termination, but if they're merely underperforming or you just don't "like" the quality of their work (especially in an artistic capacity), there's a whole rigamarole of critical feedback, performance improvement programs, and even compromise before you can outright replace them.

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

Seventy Dollars?!?!

I feel like the shovel-ware from the gamepass fodder devs gets those ridiculous pricings on purpose to push the agenda.

 

[scytheavatar]

I remember watching some documentary on the production of "The Sopranos", where Matthew Wiener was recalling a conversation David Chase had with him when he was hiring him to write for the show. Among other warnings and advise, Chase told him "I'm not running a writers school here. If you can't write, I'll fire you" Why doesn't it work the same? If I'm running a game development project, what's to stop me from firing people who impose their own style contrary to the direction I've given? There is supposed to be enough supply in the labor market for their jobs.

For one, firing people is easy but replacing them with more competent people is way more difficult. Finding good writers in Hollywood is way easier than finding them in gaming. So there's a high chance of you firing a fucktard writer only to replace that person with an even worse clown.

But more importantly in basically every studio the director tells the writer what to write. David Gaider made it clear that he was instructed by his design director to write something science-fantasy for Anthem, and his colleagues hated him for making yet another sci-fi Dragon Age. Heck in Larian Swen basically writes the first act of the game and then they make a game from that. So I am not sure why you think writers are the ones telling their bosses what the direction of their games will be like.

 

[Infinitron]

These guys stopped making what they liked making and focused on what they thought would sell well, lets see how it pans out for them.

I think the Obsidian founders (Urquhart, Parker) are making the type of game they always wanted to make.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

These guys stopped making what they liked making and focused on what they thought would sell well, lets see how it pans out for them.

I think the Obsidian founders (Urquhart, Parker) are making the type of game they always wanted to make.

Likely, we did see Feargus' reading list. Or was that Brian Fargo.

 

[Kem0sabe]

Stalker 2 looking much better, with a larger open world, more complex game systems and running at 60 fps on consoles, is a clear indication that obsidian is not only incompetent but completely talentless. This shit looking the way it does while also being locked at 30 fps, is insulting.

 

[JarlFrank]

These guys stopped making what they liked making and focused on what they thought would sell well, lets see how it pans out for them.

I think the Obsidian founders (Urquhart, Parker) are making the type of game they always wanted to make.

Likely, we did see Feargus' reading list. Or was that Brian Fargo.

It was Feargus's. Lots and lots of extremely generic high fantasy. Terrible taste.

 

[Roguey]

It feels as if the writers room dictates the tone of games in these companies more than any one person formally wearing the hat of "game director", "project director", "executive producer", or whatever term these pompous asses have decided to copy from their treasured movie industry.

It's like a milder version of Jeff Bezos coming down from the heavens and still unable to alter the direction of his own employees writing at the Washingpon Toast.

What led to this? Aren't these guys supposed to conform to a project's overall direction, and get changed if they don't? Isn't this how employer-employee relations usually work?

I remember watching some documentary on the production of "The Sopranos", where Matthew Wiener was recalling a conversation David Chase had with him when he was hiring him to write for the show. Among other warnings and advise, Chase told him "I'm not running a writers school here. If you can't write, I'll fire you" Why doesn't it work the same? If I'm running a game development project, what's to stop me from firing people who impose their own style contrary to the direction I've given? There is supposed to be enough supply in the labor market for their jobs.

The project director of Avowed is Carrie Patel, a promoted writer. She's making the kind of game a middle aged woman into fantasy fiction would like.

These guys stopped making what they liked making and focused on what they thought would sell well, lets see how it pans out for them.

I think the Obsidian founders (Urquhart, Parker) are making the type of game they always wanted to make.

Poor Feargus had to give up his boob plate and sexy designs on women due to staff/fan rebellion. But yeah this is absolutely in line with "I like running around Skyrim and going into dungeons and killing skeletons."

 

[Heroic Liberator]

But yeah this is absolutely in line with "I like running around Skyrim and going into dungeons and killing skeletons."

I'm awfully pessimistic that this will be anywhere near as fun.

 

[Roguey]

I'm awfully pessimistic that this will be anywhere near as fun.

Looks fun enough to me from the gameplay footage.

 

[Heroic Liberator]

I'm awfully pessimistic that this will be anywhere near as fun.

Looks fun enough to me from the gameplay footage.

Sure, but it's not only the dungeons that make something like Skyrim fun. It's also all the sort of random side content that you can stumble upon while aimlessly wandering around. With this being of a lower scale, dunno how much of it will be in Avowed.

 

[AwesomeButton]

If I'm running a game development project, what's to stop me from firing people who impose their own style contrary to the direction I've given?

A variety of labour regulations and corporate practices, unions were applicable, and industry pressure groups. I'm not saying this is the case with Avowed, I don't imagine there's any internal artistic differences over this game at Obsidian, but to your question in general, shitcanning full-on employees (rather than consultants) is a much lengthier and more complex process today than it was twenty years ago. If said employee literally craps on your desk, sure, immediate termination, but if they're merely underperforming or you just don't "like" the quality of their work (especially in an artistic capacity), there's a whole rigamarole of critical feedback, performance improvement programs, and even compromise before you can outright replace them.

Then there is our problem.

So I am not sure why you think writers are the ones telling their bosses what the direction of their games will be like.

I said it seems so to me, because whatever game they make, Obsidian's writing is always Obsidian's writing - PoE, Tyranny, Deadfire, ToW, Avowed...

"Good" writers should be able to change style and mood to fit the direction. Imagine asking Obsidian's writers to switch to writing an Elden Ring DLC. They would never pull it off. Because they are not "good" at anything but writing for themselves. That's not professionalism.

I also remember Josh saying after Deadfire, that he wasn't available enough due to other tasks, to give direction to the writing, hence the lack of connection between the politics plotline with the Eothas plotline.

The project director of Avowed is Carrie Patel, a promoted writer. She's making the kind of game a middle aged woman into fantasy fiction would like.

And that's the problem too. She isn't making a game for herself, is she. She can write a novel for herself if she feels the urge for it, but that's a different enterprise.

 

[Roguey]

And that's the problem too. She isn't making a game for herself, is she. She can write a novel for herself if she feels the urge for it, but that's a different enterprise.

OTOH Obsidian's attempts at making games they weren't particularly enthused about for a particular audience they didn't belong to didn't give them the mega-sales they were hoping for. They did okay, but not great.

 

[Harthwain]

Well similar story to Larian really except Larian stuck to their guns and kept making and refining on Isometric RPG. These guys stopped making what they liked making and focused on what they thought would sell well, lets see how it pans out for them.

I don't know about that. Last time I saw Swen had a lot of fun making (and showing off) Baldur's Gate 3. I'd say Larian dies the moment Swen either retires or dies, because he's the soul of that dev team.

 

[scytheavatar]

I said it seems so to me, because whatever game they make, Obsidian's writing is always Obsidian's writing - PoE, Tyranny, Deadfire, ToW, Avowed...

"Good" writers should be able to change style and mood to fit the direction. Imagine asking Obsidian's writers to switch to writing an Elden Ring DLC. They would never pull it off. Because they are not "good" at anything but writing for themselves. That's not professionalism.

I also remember Josh saying after Deadfire, that he wasn't available enough due to other tasks, to give direction to the writing, hence the lack of connection between the politics plotline with the Eothas plotline.

Obsidian has developed a reputation and fanbase for their intellectual and often pretentious style of writing, for them to change that style of writing would be to basically kill Obsidian and their identity. Might as well rename Obsidian to another studio at that point. Different doesn't necessarily mean better, something a lot of people keep forgetting. This constant rebranding of their style of games is how Bioware became irrelevant and alienated all their fans (same issue that Square Enix is facing with Final Fantasy).

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

But yeah this is absolutely in line with "I like running around Skyrim and going into dungeons and killing skeletons."

I thought Feargus was X-com guy.

I said it seems so to me, because whatever game they make, Obsidian's writing is always Obsidian's writing - PoE, Tyranny, Deadfire, ToW, Avowed...

"Good" writers should be able to change style and mood to fit the direction. Imagine asking Obsidian's writers to switch to writing an Elden Ring DLC. They would never pull it off. Because they are not "good" at anything but writing for themselves. That's not professionalism.

I also remember Josh saying after Deadfire, that he wasn't available enough due to other tasks, to give direction to the writing, hence the lack of connection between the politics plotline with the Eothas plotline.

Obsidian has developed a reputation and fanbase for their intellectual and often pretentious style of writing, for them to change that style of writing would be to basically kill Obsidian and their identity. Might as well rename Obsidian to another studio at that point. Different doesn't necessarily mean better, something a lot of people keep forgetting. This constant rebranding of their style of games is how Bioware became irrelevant and alienated all their fans (same issue that Square Enix is facing with Final Fantasy).

Grounded and Penistent are their biggest hits and both are wildly different from typical Obsidian game.

 

[frajaq]

Can someone clamp down this toxicity in the Steam forums? Is there a moderator we can get in contact with?

 

[jackofshadows]

Obsidian are so so late with this shit. At least for one year. The game audience grew fed up with this kind of looks.

 

[Camel]

Poor Feargus had to give up his boob plate and sexy designs on women due to staff/fan rebellion.

That's outrageous. I can understand woke staff being usual retards, but how on earth fans could be against "boob plate and sexy designs on women"?

 

[Elttharion]

Poor Feargus had to give up his boob plate and sexy designs on women due to staff/fan rebellion.

That's outrageous. I can understand woke staff being usual retards, but how on earth fans could be against "boob plate and sexy designs on women"?

What???? Have you been in a coma for the last 15 years?

 

[Robber Baron]

The black chick looks cute from some angles, much better than Pallegina at least

 

[AwesomeButton]

And that's the problem too. She isn't making a game for herself, is she. She can write a novel for herself if she feels the urge for it, but that's a different enterprise.

OTOH Obsidian's attempts at making games they weren't particularly enthused about for a particular audience they didn't belong to didn't give them the mega-sales they were hoping for. They did okay, but not great.

I'm open to suggestions from anyone in this thread, what does this reply have to do with my point. I don't agree with the reply itself, but that's a separate topic.

The black chick looks cute from some angles, much better than Pallegina at least

I'm really impressed by how accurately they've kept the art style of all assets so consistent with Deadfire. I mean the armors and the items, across all the footage I've seen.

Can someone clamp down this toxicity in the Steam forums? Is there a moderator we can get in contact with?

If even the Kazakhstan player has pitched in, Obsidian better pay attention.

 

[Roguey]

I thought Feargus was X-com guy.

Nucom maybe.

Turn-based combat is fine if there are three turns. I get frustrated in Wizardry 8, spending four turns just to get to the creatures I want to fight and then spending a long time in battle--sad to say, I just don't feel like I have time for all that, and I think a lot of gamers feel the same way.

GB: Did you ever try to convince them that you should do an isometric turn-based Fallout after Fallout 3?

Feargus: [laughter]

That's outrageous. I can understand woke staff being usual retards, but how on earth fans could be against "boob plate and sexy designs on women"?

Back during the Project Eternity kickstarter they showcased concept art for a priest.

A good number of backers, women and feminist allies alike, balked. They very shortly after put up a revised portrait. It seemed likely that boob plate was what Feargus specifically wanted and the negative reaction convinced him to go with his project director's instincts.

My take is that it makes the world look very not-serious, which would have been against Sawyer's goals.

 

[mediocrepoet]

I prefer realistic armours and boobplate is usually pretty dumb looking. Chain mail bikinis and the like are a big part of the S&S genre (which isn't what PoE was going for and not having them is still a good decision for that series).