Interview Oblivion interview special: 2 in 1 news post!

[elander_]

It's odd that when the fans ask for a demo of Oblivion the answer is that cannot represent the entire game and could give fans the wrong idea of the game. I see now that there is no problem about doing this with the lore with one word descriptions.

You have to be careful with mainstreaming, alchool and drugs. It may cause alucinations and disorientation.

 

[Chefe]

What's so wrong with a small dungeon crawl?

Or, what I personally think, do they not want people to see how the game really is and thus not buy it? Bethesda isn't confident, or they know it sucks.

 

[MrSmileyFaceDude]

While there are many answers, the main one is that we're busy making the game, and don't have time to separate out a demo, test it, deploy it, and support it. Our priority is on finishing the game itself.

 

[Lowry]

While there are many answers, the main one is that we're busy making the game, and don't have time to separate out a demo, test it, deploy it, and support it. Our priority is on finishing the game itself.

Im amazed you have the patience to credit comments like Chefe's there with a response....

 

[ExMonk]

Our priority is on finishing the game itself.

Well that's just wrong! What kind of sickos do you have working there at Bethesda?

 

[Gwendo]

Order is that rock.
Chaos is the chisel.

Order must guide the chisel to achieve a statue. Or the chiesel would just produce another random shaped rock.

But your example has another flaw: after working the rock with the chisel... You still got a rock. Does that mean that order > chaos?

 

[Gwendo]

While there are many answers, the main one is that we're busy making the game, and don't have time to separate out a demo, test it, deploy it, and support it. Our priority is on finishing the game itself.

Humm... I thought the delay would give you time to prepare a demo...

 

[Balor]

But your example has another flaw: after working the rock with the chisel... You still got a rock. Does that mean that order > chaos?

Don't be dumb. They are equally important, unless you prefer rocks over statues.
Yet, when all people seem to concentrate on 'orderly' stuff, I feel compelled to be the Devi's advocate just to make it even.

 

[Chefe]

While there are many answers, the main one is that we're busy making the game, and don't have time to separate out a demo, test it, deploy it, and support it. Our priority is on finishing the game itself.

I thought you guys have an extra ~5 months now.

Many, many games create demos. I don't see why Bethesda should be an exception. It wouldn't be so hard to create a small dungeon crawl with a pre-set (as in no custom chargen) character for potential gaming customers to get a feel of the game. After all, combat is a LARGE portion of it, isn't it?

Im amazed you have the patience to credit comments like Chefe's there with a response....

WOW! Fucking A--maaaazzing!

Fuck off, you silly stupid little kid.

 

[Pete]

Most fans would prefer to be amazed the first time they open the retail package and play the game, rather than experiencing a dungeon beforehand, which would spoil the game for them.

 

[Vault Dweller]

They don't have to play the demo, do they? Most sensible people would prefer to try a demo and see if the product is worth 50 bucks instead of buying a game and being amazed how much it sucks.

 

[Pete]

Those people aren't in our target market.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Still in character?

 

[Pete]

Yes, you will be able to play many different types of characters in The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivionâ„¢, such as a Fighter, Mage, and Theif.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Really? That's awesome. Will I be able to join guilds?

 

[Pete]

We have four guilds available: The Fighers Guild, The Mages Guild, The Thieves Guild, and The Dark Brotherhood (the assassins guild in Tamriel). We also have an Arena Guild, where you will be able to pursue the career of a gladiator. These guilds will allow you to really flesh out your character type and provide hours of gameplay.

We have put an immense amount of work into these guilds to make them truly epic and unlike anything you've experienced in a game before. The complexity of these different factions will certainly surprise many people.

 

[Gran'pa_Jack]

Our priority is on finishing the game itself.

Well that's just wrong! What kind of sickos do you have working there at Bethesda?

Yeah, in this day and age where games get pushed out the door in a half finished state, bug riddled etc it just doesn't make sense.

Fair enough if Bethesda are going to concentrate on giving us a very stable game (fingers crossed ) . Some software houses have more resources at their disposal to crank out a demo. I think a game like this never works being brought out as a demo imo. Its not like a first person shooter or something, where a level can give a good idea. Hell even an RTS can work as a demo but an RPG...I dunno, all the demos of RPGs I've played have always belied the actual game . Now a tech demo would make sense maybe. For sussing out if your system will really cope. Sorta like what Egosoft did for X2: The Threat.

 

[Vault Dweller]

We have four guilds available: The Fighers Guild, The Mages Guild, The Thieves Guild, and The Dark Brotherhood (the assassins guild in Tamriel). We also have an Arena Guild, where you will be able to pursue the career of a gladiator. These guilds will allow you to really flesh out your character type and provide hours of gameplay.

Wow, I'm so excited, I'm counting hours (2,746 hours left!) until I get the game! The role-playing in this game is amazing, I can create any character I want: Fighter, Mage, or Thief, and there are unique guilds for every possible character choice!

We have put an immense amount of work into these guilds to make them truly epic and unlike anything you've experienced in a game before. The complexity of these different factions will certainly surprise many people.

OMG! How do you guys come up with awesome stuff like that? I betcha each guild has quests and trainers. I will play a character who wakes up every day, goes to a tavern, then trains some skills, then goes on a quest. I feel like I'm living in this game already!!! Thank you, Bethesda!

Edit: What's a faction?

 

[Pete]

Wow, I'm so excited, I'm counting hours (2,746 hours left!) until I get the game! The role-playing in this game is amazing, I can create any character I want: Fighter, Mage, or Thief, and there are unique guilds for every possible character choice!

Thank you for your enthusiasm. That was our goal, to give you, the player, the most possible roleplaying options available. You will be able to complete the main quest without ever picking up a sword, and instead relying on magic or stealth weapons such as the bow. We know not everyone wants to be a fighter, and we aim to give you the choice to be whatever kind of character you can imagine, be it a fighter, mage, or thief.

OMG! How do you guys come up with awesome stuff like that? I betcha each guild has quests and trainers. I will play a character who wakes up every day, goes to a tavern, then trains some skills, then goes on a quest. I feel like I'm living in this game already!!! Thank you, Bethesda!

We have so many ideas that we come up with that we can't implement them all in the game! Usually, the team discusses what we want to see in the game, and then we reason if that's feasable or not. I believe the designers have made excellent desicions on what to include and what not to include in Oblivion.

You are right about the quests and trainers. Each guild will offer specific and unique quests to suit that character type. For instance, the Dark Brotherhood (assassins guild) will require you to perform a murder without getting caught, while the Fighters Guild might have you killing monsters or raiding a bandit camp in the woods. There will also be guild perks once you reach higher levels, such as availability of trainers and cheaper prices on their services.

Edit: What's a faction?

Glad you asked. A number of our fans aren't sure on this word either, they're more familiar with words such as "guild". Essentially, a faction is a guild. It's a group of people with common interests. The Fighters Guild is the faction for warriors, while the Mages Guild is the faction for potential wizards.

 

[Vault Dweller]

Thank you for your enthusiasm. That was our goal, to give you, the player, the most possible roleplaying options available. You will be able to complete the main quest without ever picking up a sword, and instead relying on magic or stealth weapons such as the bow. We know not everyone wants to be a fighter, and we aim to give you the choice to be whatever kind of character you can imagine, be it a fighter, mage, or thief.

I'm getting dizzy thinking of all those choices! I have a question though, in Morrowind I could often find a weapon that didn't match my skill. Obviously, it was some kinda glitch, but Morrowind was still an amazing game. Was that problem fixed in Oblivion?

We have so many ideas that we come up with that we can't implement them all in the game! Usually, the team discusses what we want to see in the game, and then we reason if that's feasable or not. I believe the designers have made excellent desicions on what to include and what not to include in Oblivion.

I can not agree more. Although some people and even sites constantly criticize the designers, it's very clear to me that the designers (I like to call them DEVs) know much better what to put in the game than some computer nerds. A great company like Bethesda knows how to make awesome RPGs!

You are right about the quests and trainers. Each guild will offer specific and unique quests to suit that character type. For instance, the Dark Brotherhood (assassins guild) will require you to perform a murder without getting caught, while the Fighters Guild might have you killing monsters or raiding a bandit camp in the woods. There will also be guild perks once you reach higher levels, such as availability of trainers and cheaper prices on their services.

Sounds great! This will be the best role-playing game ever! I have one concern though. What if there is a quest that involves more than one guild? Would I have to choose what to do? I hate doing that because then I will definitely miss some stuff.

Edit: What's a faction?

Glad you asked. A number of our fans aren't sure on this word either, they're more familiar with words such as "guild". Essentially, a faction is a guild. It's a group of people with common interests. The Fighters Guild is the faction for warriors, while the Mages Guild is the faction for potential wizards.

I'm getting confused here. Why do wizards go into the Mages Guild? Shouldn't there be a Wizards Guild or something? Also, I think that "clan" is a much better and familiar word for many fans, and I think that the Fighters Clan sounds much better. I don't know if it's too late to change it now, but keep that in mind for TES5.

 

[Balor]

For some reason, this conversation somehow made me think of hot manly love.
Not sure why, though.

 

[kastha]

i can't watch... i just can't. surely pete cant be this stupid, he's gotta be humoring VD. but still, it makes me cringe.

EDIT: just saw a post clarifying that this pete is in fact an imposter! AN IMPOSTER! :D

 

[Balor]

*rofls*

 

[Goliath]

I need a hammer and some nails. Sorry, it is nothing personal Vault Dweller...

 

[Fresh]

Hahaha some amusing dialogue going on in this thread.

Seriously though - it's VD having a so called conversation with himself right?