Obsidian General Discussion Thread

[Abu Antar]

It's been in development since early 2014 and still not announced, so we know it's not some quick thing

Probably will get canned so they have to work on another MMO or TCG.

 

[Infinitron]

You're not as optimistic as usual today, Abu Antar

 

[Abu Antar]

You're not as optimistic as usual today, Abu Antar

After Aliens RPG and some of the other cancelled stuff, I feel that pessimism is the best way to go with Obsidian. My pessimism gets even worse when I have a cold.

 

[Athelas]

Probably will get canned so they have to work on another MMO or TCG.

I think that's jumping to conclusions. For example, you're discounting the possibility that this new game is also an MMO or TCG.

 

[Abu Antar]

I think that's jumping to conclusions. For example, you're discounting the possibility that this new game is also an MMO or TCG.

Why must you do this to me? It all makes sense.

 

[Fairfax]

Hmm...considering publishers they've worked with in the past:
I doubt it's Ubisoft: they've got a shitload of games coming up already and we know they passed the next South Park to another studio of their own.
LucasArts is dead.
Same for Atari, basically.
SEGA? After Aliens and AP+SEGA's own recent record, I doubt it.

Bethesda is a likely candidate. Todd Howard said they've hired only half a dozen people since Skyrim was released. He said once that only a small portion of the team starts to work on the next project shortly before one is released, so they can't do Fallout and TES at the same time. TES VI will take at least 4 years, that means a ~late 2018 release. They won't have the time to work on another Fallout for this generation, so someone else will have to make it.
The only other studio that could probably work on Fallout is Arkane, but they'll be busy with Dishonored 2 for at least another entire year+work on DLC.

Besides the obvious reasons -such as their success with F:NV and how it was infinitely better than that piece of shit F3- they're obviously the right people to work on a new Fallout while BGS is busy with TES VI.

There's also this bit from a kotaku article on Obsidian's history and success with Kickstarter:

They've got two promising games on the way, and even just a few months ago, major publishers were knocking on their door: Urquhart told me he's been talking to Bethesda, Ubisoft, Warner Bros., and LucasArts.

Again, Ubisoft is unlikely and LucasArts is gone (we also know Disney rejected their pitch recently). Warner Bros is interesting, they've got plenty of licenses that could use a good RPG by Obsidian: LOTR, DC Comics, Harry Potter.
And then Bethesda. Fergus said he'd also like to put Obsidian to work on TES as well, but I don't think they'd ever let anyone else touch their baby.

As for other publishers that could afford a AAA project: EA approached them back then, but now they have BioWare and more. Microsoft fucked them over. Sony seems more interested in helping fund/buying exclusivity for big projects from studios rather than comission them, and they'll always be focused on japanese ones, I think.
Square could afford them, and it seems like things went smoothly with DSIII, but it was no hit (neither with critics nor sales). It's also hard to say because, well, what would they work on? Another Dungeon Siege? SE has their own studios making a new Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, multiple FFs and Hitman already. Maybe a new IP, but I wouldn't bet on it.

Of course, it could also be a regular pathfinder RPG or another my.com thing.

 

[Drax]

Bethesda is a likely candidate. Todd Howard said they've hired only half a dozen people since Skyrim was released. He said once that only a small portion of the team starts to work on the next project shortly before one is released, so they can't do Fallout and TES at the same time. TES VI will take at least 4 years, that means a ~late 2018 release. They won't have the time to work on another Fallout for this generation, so someone else will have to make it.
The only other studio that could probably work on Fallout is Arkane, but they'll be busy with Dishonored 2 for at least another entire year+work on DLC.

Besides the obvious reasons -such as their success with F:NV and how it was infinitely better than that piece of shit F3- they're obviously the right people to work on a new Fallout while BGS is busy with TES VI.

 

[Duraframe300]

It's most likely not Bethesda. Sorry.

Also Bethesda already worked with Obsidian again after F:NV. Cancelled the first project and took away the second.

 

[Drax]

Well, if they're gonna pimp their asses for russian mob uncle they might as well suck some howard meat and be done with it...

 

[Fairfax]

It's most likely not Bethesda. Sorry.

Also Bethesda already worked with Obsidian again after F:NV. Cancelled the first project and took away the second.

First time I'm hearing that. Two projects? Any other info?

 

[Duraframe300]

First time I'm hearing that. Two projects? Any other info?

The first one was Backspace (sci-fi time travel) and that was right after. A prototype existed, but it was never greenlight for full production by Bethesda. (Well not exactly *cancelled*, but it did lead to a few NV devs leaving)

The second one was Prey 2 before that went to Arkane.

 

[jdinatale]

 

[Excidium II]

new wallpaper

 

[Roguey]

Perfectly good picture ruined by that hipster mullet.

 

[Zed]

it's the Double Fine curls

 

[Aeschylus]

Perfectly good picture ruined by that hipster mullet.

It's more of a hipster pompadour.

 

[Fairfax]

The first one was Backspace (sci-fi time travel) and that was right after. A prototype existed, but it was never greenlight for full production by Bethesda. (Well not exactly *cancelled*, but it did lead to a few NV devs leaving)

The second one was Prey 2 before that went to Arkane.

I see, but Prey 2 was back in 2013 tops, no? Fergus said many times over the last couple of years that he's on good terms with Bethesda and would love to work on Fallout again.
Unless they give it to Arkane, which would delay the game's release for at least 12-18 months, Obsidian is too obvious a choice. Arkane has experience with first-person RPGs, it's in-house, etc, but Obsidian has people who worked on the first Fallout games, not to mention the creator. F:NV also speaks for itself, and they made it in 18 months.

Bethesda is many things, but business-wise they seem to make the right calls.

Anyway, if not Bethesda, there aren't many options left. Industry doesn't have as many big publishers as it used to. This is assuming it's a big project, of course, but anyway:

Capcom and Konami have taken different directions for themselves over the last few years, and Capcom did spend years shopping around in the West for studios to work on their franchises, but it doesn't seem to be the case anymore.
Don't see Bandai Namco hiring westerners for their Tales Of series, and financially speaking it's not in good shape.
Activision Blizzard has never outsourced the Blizzard franchises, and they're already investing a shitload of money in a massive RPG franchise (Destiny) for the next 10 years.
SEGA and Microsoft have the issues I mentioned, plus Phil Spencer said they've decided to focus on first-party.
Paradox is a real possibility if it's not a big project.
Take-Two....I don't know. Borderlands is the only franchise by a third party they've funded in the last decade, I think. Other than that, they have no RPG franchises, so it'd have to be a new IP. It wasn't one of the companies mentioned in any of these interviews with Fergus, but who knows.
Disney is also a real possibility. Not Star Wars, as that's exclusive to EA now, but they could work on any other Disney IP, and that's a company that shut many of its studios down and has been focusing on outsourced projects. Obsidian also worked on a Snow White RPG, so I bet they'd be interested too.

This is just me guessing, but assuming it's AAA, I'd say the most likely are: Warner Bros, Bethesda, Disney.
Folowed by Ubisoft, SEGA and....Take-Two, I guess?

I still think Bethesda makes too much sense not to happen (maybe that's the problem, eh? lol), but if that's not it, Warner Bros. would also make sense for both. Obsidian could make an RPG for any DC franchise, which they're expanding a lot through films, or perhaps even LOTR, although they have Shadow of Mordor already.

 

[Drax]

in a massive RPG franchise (Destiny)

Obsidian also worked on a Snow White RPG

wat

 

[Jaesun]

That was just a code name

 

[Duraframe300]

I see, but Prey 2 was back in 2013 tops, no? Fergus said many times over the last couple of years that he's on good terms with Bethesda and would love to work on Fallout again.
Unless they give it to Arkane, which would delay the game's release for at least 12-18 months, Obsidian is too obvious a choice. Arkane has experience with first-person RPGs, it's in-house, etc, but Obsidian has people who worked on the first Fallout games, not to mention the creator. F:NV also speaks for itself, and they made it in 18 months.

Bethesda is many things, but business-wise they seem to make the right calls.

Anyway, if not Bethesda, there aren't many options left. Industry doesn't have as many big publishers as it used to. This is assuming it's a big project, of course, but anyway:

Capcom and Konami have taken different directions for themselves over the last few years, and Capcom did spend years shopping around in the West for studios to work on their franchises, but it doesn't seem to be the case anymore.
Don't see Bandai Namco hiring westerners for their Tales Of series, and financially speaking it's not in good shape.
Activision Blizzard has never outsourced the Blizzard franchises, and they're already investing a shitload of money in a massive RPG franchise (Destiny) for the next 10 years.
SEGA and Microsoft have the issues I mentioned, plus Phil Spencer said they've decided to focus on first-party.
Paradox is a real possibility if it's not a big project.
Take-Two....I don't know. Borderlands is the only franchise by a third party they've funded in the last decade, I think. Other than that, they have no RPG franchises, so it'd have to be a new IP. It wasn't one of the companies mentioned in any of these interviews with Fergus, but who knows.
Disney is also a real possibility. Not Star Wars, as that's exclusive to EA now, but they could work on any other Disney IP, and that's a company that shut many of its studios down and has been focusing on outsourced projects. Obsidian also worked on a Snow White RPG, so I bet they'd be interested too.

This is just me guessing, but assuming it's AAA, I'd say the most likely are: Warner Bros, Bethesda, Disney.
Folowed by Ubisoft, SEGA and....Take-Two, I guess?

I still think Bethesda makes too much sense not to happen (maybe that's the problem, eh? lol), but if that's not it, Warner Bros. would also make sense for both. Obsidian could make an RPG for any DC franchise, which they're expanding a lot through films, or perhaps even LOTR, although they have Shadow of Mordor already.

No, that was just for info.

The reason I'm saying its probably not Bethesda is because it was mentioned and implied multiple times since January 2014 that Obsidian isn't currently working with Bethesda.

 

[Duraframe300]

wat

Yeah, it was a prequel and it actually sounded p. cool. (For an action-rpg)

 

[Fairfax]

Well, it's an eternal MMO endgame simulator, didn't know what else to call it (and don't really care about Destiny tbh).

wat

Yeah, here's more on the prototype:

One of those publishers was Disney, who enlisted Obsidian to design a video game prequel to Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Tentatively called Dwarves, it would be a third-person action game for Xbox 360 and PS3 that focused on Snow White's seven companions. There would be a whole new story, and at the end, you'd banish the antagonist to Snow White's iconic magical mirror.

Source

No, that was just for info.

The reason I'm saying its probably not Bethesda is because it was mentioned and implied multiple times since January 2014 that Obsidian isn't currently working with Bethesda.

I see. Has it been implied that Brian's project is a big one? How's the company split atm? We know AW has ~100, PoE about 12, probably that many on pathfinder thing, and there's also Skyforge, which I don't know the extent of their involvement.

 

[Ultra]

Perfectly good picture ruined by that hipster mullet.

It's not a fashion statement lol it's probably to stop him biting his arse or something

 

[Roguey]

Bethesda is many things, but business-wise they seem to make the right calls.

Every game they've published not made by BGS or Arkane is shovelware (New Vegas being a notable exception because it's their brand).

 

[Fairfax]

Every game they've published not made by BGS or Arkane is shovelware (New Vegas being a notable exception because it's their brand).

True, but I meant BGS, not Zenimax/BethSoft in general. They've yet to make a wrong business decision with their core titles. Even their first(I think?) attempt at mobile shovelware became a massive hit.