Has your opinion of Obsidian changed after Avellone’s revelations and Deadfire?

[Major_Blackhart]

I lost faith with PoE. Obsidian for me was all about potential held back by constrains of a relative kind. The need to make money, lack of time or funding and so forth. Every time they sunk into mediocrity (NWN2 main campaign) they showed that the talent was still there (Mask of the Betrayer) etc.

PoE was supposed to circumvent all that. No need to dumb things down for sales. No need to meet modern expectations, like third or first person view, super advanced graphics, fully voiced dialog, or an inflexible deadline. This was their chance to let their talent and potential flow unimpeded by everything we always assumed held them back. And they blew it.

This. But it wasn't just this. Everything just kind of led to it. This was the straw that broke the camels back, for lack of a better phrase. I still have hopes that Tim and Leon's game will be good, but I don't have illusions about it, if that makes sense. Like I know it's going to be watered down or something but I hope it won't be.

Also, the way MCA was treated was pretty fucking awful. I kind of thought these guys were supposed to be like family or something, or loyal in some way. 15 fucking years together and this is how you treat one another? What kind of shitty human beings are you all?

 

[eggdogg]

Prior to joining the codex I was a longtime lurker. The reaction to POE on the dex rubbed me the wrong way and I bought the game because I knew you were all wrong. Turned out you were all very right and so I thought "if I can't beat them might as well join them." So POE changed my view of Obsidian and Josh.

KOTOR2 is one of my favorite games and I am quite fond of the NWN2 package on GOG, I still play it...I'm playing it right now. AP is worth a run through or 6. Stick of Truth is the funniest game ever. POE was a terrible experience for me.

 

[DeepOcean]

I had a hope that the old writing guard at Obsidian would create an environment for incline writing and manage to pass their know how to the new hires and keep he quality up but that evidently didn't happen, as it turned up, Feargus is too dysfunctional for that.

 

[Belegarsson]

NWN2 was the first CRPG I've ever played. I joined the codex due to PoE. I thoroughly enjoy Deadfire despite its flaws, it just fucking scratched an itch that I never knew I've had, that's why I don't want Obsidian to fail, simply because I grew to love whatever crap they pooped out (okay well maybe not DS3). At the same time I wish these devs left Feargus' pathetic ass in somewhere near holocaust aftermath and look for decent people who can fund their projects. They deserve better.

 

[Safav Hamon]

I would be deeply saddened if Obsidian went bankrupt. Deadfire captured a feeling that I haven't experienced playing RPGs in many years. I believe they're making a genuine effort to learn from their mistakes, and I wish people would show them more support as they're probably the last major developer to attempt this style of RPG

 

[Cael]

Avellone's probably right about them, but the problem is that is broadly reflective of the entertainment industry, video games in particular, and really everything. The reason why EA has a graveyard full of studios is because the Feargus Urquhart's (out of touch, morally misguided, and self centered managerial types) of the world are primally ascendant. They're the only people who feel entitled or motivated enough to climb to the top and take charge of things. In the long run this results in entropy, decay, and failure.

Problem is, left to their own devices artists will do the same thing -- you see in in bands all the time, always breaking up due differences of personality, artistic vision, ideals, and other "flaky" reasons.

Beneath all of the economic and political systems of the world, human beings are essentially an overlapping, flux state anarchy of the strong climbing over the weak.

Why bother being mad at Obsidian when they're doing the same thing everyone else is doing?

While true in many ways, there is also an unprecedented amount of politics inserted into all forms of entertainment in the last decade or so. People like to think that it is a post-Gamergate thing, but I point you to the movie 2012 and The Day After Tomorrow. Those are nothing but political propaganda pieces, and hilariously unscientific and flawed shit at that, but it sure got the media elites tongue wagging about the morality of greenism and SJW ejaculate.

I mean, the fucking twats had humanity build massive arks that would serve as the base for future humanity once the waters recede in 2012 and what do they do? They put massive diesel engines in them, which means, amongst other things, they had to design in space and tonnage for fuel to sustain a population of 40,000 over a period of several years, and pipe in contaminated air (they said it in the movie that the air would be contaminated for years, and hence the reason the arks are sealed) to run the engines. And that is before you consider what nasties like sulphur oxides and other corrosives would do to the engines themselves.

I actually laughed out loud in the crowded cinema when they turned on the engine and BLACK SMOKE came out of the exhaust pipes. Fucking clueless, fraudulent, greenie, pissant fucktards.

 

[Rev]

KotOR2 is one of the best games ever made, so it is satisfying in a variety of ways. It just suffers from technical issues that are easily ignored, especially with the fan patch.

Oh come on, it has far too many problems to be among the best games ever. It could've been one of the best RPGs ever made, but the rushed release prevented that from happening and the end product was so technically lacking and also full of plot holes and a mess of an ending (actually all the last act of the game is terrible). Some may argue that it's LucasArts' fault but it doesn't change the thing that the game is broken, and even the narrative stops making sense after some time (which is a shame, since writing was great in the most polished parts of the game).

Beyond that, gameplay is a carbon copy of KotOR 1, so not that good, level design is just a series of small areas and corridors (just like its predecessor), quests are usually well written but they usually just envolve a lot of talking and killing and that's it, so quest design is not that good either. I still think it's a very good game because I am a storyfag (and I admire the intentions behind the title and its potential), but among the best games of all time? Not a chance.
Also, while the narrative is intriguing and explores new aspects of SW and tries to go beyond the usual light side vs dark side, none of that is actually carried in the gameplay itself, undermining the game. More than that, while the game pushes the idea that both extremes have problem of their own and being a Grey Jedi may actually be the best thing, the game punish you if you try to actually play as a Grey Jedi (which is a colossal design flaw) even more than the first KotOR did: in Bioware's game if you didn't maxed your dark or light side meter you just didn't get a bonus to some stats, in KotOR II on top of that you also cannot access the very powerful prestige classes and some of the content of the game is precluded for you (cave in Korriban).

Edit: also the fan mod (restoration project) is not really that great. Some of its additions are ok, but others are really terrible. On Nar Shaddaa it adds an almost endless number of trash mobs, for example, and HK factory is really boring to play through, consisting only of combats and some few dialogues (most of it funny but it doesn't save that section anyway). It really shows that most of the cut contents required a lot of work before being in a vaguely acceptable state in order to be implemented in the game.

 

[Safav Hamon]

This community has a penchant for overly ambitious broken games. Imagine the outrage if Piranha Bytes released a polished game with a functioning combat system.

 

[Yosharian]

Can someone explain something to me, genuinely asking here, this is not a troll question: why do you guys hate Feargus Urquhart so much? Is it just about the Chris Avellone thing is or is there more to it than that?

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Has your opinion of Obsidian changed after Avellone’s revelations and Deadfire?

No, I never had much respect for Obsidian, so my opinion of them hasn't changed substantially. The only worthwhile game ever released by Obsidian is Fallout: New Vegas, created using Bethesda's much-derided Gamebryo engine, with near-identical mechanics to Bethesda's Fallout 3, and based story-wise on Interplay's classics Fallout and Fallout 2.

 

[Forest Dweller]

This community has a penchant for overly ambitious broken games. Imagine the outrage if Piranha Bytes released a polished game with a functioning combat system.

They did. It's called Risen.

 

[fantadomat]

Nah,MCA didn't change my opinion of Obsidian. PoE made me have huge doubts about the company's future,tranny cemented my opinion of them. Doubt that they will produce something worth playing in the next 5 years. Also i don't care about work ethics in the company as long as they deliver good games,for all i care they could whip each other all day long.

 

[conan_edw]

I will never learn until Indiana slaps me in the face

 

[Cael]

I will never learn until Indiana slaps me in the face

 

[Jacob]

MCA's revelations and Obsidians' latest games are both the same to me: Unsuprising, but still a huge disappointment.

 

[Quillon]

My opinion about Feargus is definitely changed especially with him adding his wife & children to payroll stuff. Otherwise I still want Obs to make good games and succeed since only they are willing to make games with reasonably blank-slate characters with reasonable budget, other "big" rpg studios all forces a set protag story down our throats.

 

[DalekFlay]

All I give a fuck about is the games. Just like I don't care about Tom Cruise being a psycho in real life when I go see Mission: Impossible movies I also don't care about office politics and staff when I play an Obsidian game. I've liked 80% of their output quite a lot, so they're still pretty aces with me. Tyranny is underrated and I enjoyed it. Pillars was bland and boring unfortunately, but still worthwhile. I hear the sequel's better, which I will play. That's about all I care about.

 

[Cael]

All I give a fuck about is the games. Just like I don't care about Tom Cruise being a psycho in real life when I go see Mission: Impossible movies I also don't care about office politics and staff when I play an Obsidian game. I've liked 80% of their output quite a lot, so they're still pretty aces with me. Tyranny is underrated and I enjoyed it. Pillars was bland and boring unfortunately, but still worthwhile. I hear the sequel's better, which I will play. That's about all I care about.

I have a personal objection to adding to the success (or perception thereof) of people I consider to be assholes. That, coupled with having had bad managers in my career who did display favouritism on a massive scale as well as coming up against bullying, harassment and racism so outrageous that even the clients were commenting on it, makes me care enough to boycott anything by Feargus and stardick (HBS, Vampyr and Kingmaker is a separate issue).

 

[Quillon]

Tom Cruise being a psycho in real life

Is he really?

 

[Cael]

Tom Cruise being a psycho in real life

Is he really?

He is a religious ultrafanatic, so he qualifies. Just be glad Scientology doesn't tell its adherents to suicide bomb others.

 

[ItsChon]

He is a religious ultrafanatic, so he qualifies. Just be glad Scientology doesn't tell its adherents to suicide bomb others.

Eh, bit of an over exaggeration mate. You've clearly never had that one dumbass friend that's into a bunch of conspiracy theories. Just because he believes in Scientology doesn't mean he's a psycho, just deluded.

 

[Cael]

He is a religious ultrafanatic, so he qualifies. Just be glad Scientology doesn't tell its adherents to suicide bomb others.

Eh, bit of an over exaggeration mate. You've clearly never had that one dumbass friend that's into a bunch of conspiracy theories. Just because he believes in Scientology doesn't mean he's a psycho, just deluded.

Several, actually. 911, MH17, you name it. I had to tell them to stop forwarding me their latest crap because I am not interested.

Cruise is an ultrafanatic because he does what his priest tells him regardless of what it is. If headboy told him to sacrifice his firstborn, he would be one child less today. His actions against his wife and anyone who criticise or even question his religion makes it plain what he is.

 

[ItsChon]

Cruise is an ultrafanatic because he does what his priest tells him regardless of what it is. If headboy told him to sacrifice his firstborn, he would be one child less today. His actions against his wife and anyone who criticise or even question his religion makes it plain what he is.

Fair enough. I was under the impression that he was supposedly a nice guy, just fucked with the whole Scientology thing. I didn't know all the other stuff, so I'll take your word on it.

 

[Cael]

Cruise is an ultrafanatic because he does what his priest tells him regardless of what it is. If headboy told him to sacrifice his firstborn, he would be one child less today. His actions against his wife and anyone who criticise or even question his religion makes it plain what he is.

Fair enough. I was under the impression that he was supposedly a nice guy, just fucked with the whole Scientology thing. I didn't know all the other stuff, so I'll take your word on it.

Just because he is a fanatic doesn't mean that he isn't a nice guy otherwise (which he is, by all accounts). Just stay away from criticising his religion and you'll be fine.

 

[FeelTheRads]

It works well enough when the terrain is mostly flat, but Absurdian kept putting in all this higher level terrain that makes seeing what's going on a pain

Don't give people excuses, I'm pretty sure most of them are trying to play it with the default over the shoulder view. Let them try the strategy cam.

Yeah, no, you didn't discover the secret of making the NWN2 camera usable. No matter how you set it, it's still shit. You CAN'T play it in "isometric" or "strategy" (lol) mode. You constantly have to rotate to dodge buildings and terrain.
Plus it keeps resetting and locking. After each map loading the camera is zoomed in on the characters. Fucking lol.
And the zoom in/zoom out thing when moving to a different terrain height is just... well, they should've instantly fired whoever programmed the camera just for that.

It's mindblowing that something like this passed testing and even more so that there are people how defend it as "versatile". Yeah, sorry, a ton of options (some added because people complained) might make it versatile, but when all options are shit then what do you call it?

Worst camera ever made. Period.