RPG Codex Interview: Chris Avellone on Pillars Cut Content, Game Development Hierarchies and More

[Ismaul]

I got an idea for his company name, given his success as a stretch goal: Aveloan Games.

 

[Glaucon]

Aveloan Moans.

 

[Forest Dweller]

How about Chris Avellone's Giant Horsecock?

 

[Cross]

I don’t think Paradox was ever fully aware the Tyranny team had been gutted (in general, publishers don’t like hearing the resources they’re paying for they aren’t getting).

I'm sure they'll appreciate reading this then.

And when we question how it paid off, that’s a good question - because who reaped the benefits of PST’s development challenges? It wasn’t Interplay, the company who had asked for the game in the first place and needed a return on its investment in the license. inXile certainly reaped the benefit, many, many years later, when the game was regarded as a cult classic that deserved (?) a sequel. Yes, I put a question mark there (not a slam against inXile, but it was good they took the general “Torment” premise vs. doing a direct sequel to Planescape Torment). I will say for crowdsourcing 13-14 years later, it definitely paid off

How does he not know how hard T:ToN bombed? Or was this part of the interview done before it came out?

In Durance and Grieving Mother's case - and this I can say - the Creative Lead told me after my departure that the Project Lead had interfered but didn't specify the reasons. I don't even know what the reasons were

There were other people who apparently didn’t like Durance’s swearing (easy fix), and the original tie in the GM and Durance backstories were they had violated each other physically and mentally and that’s what broke both of them, which I then cut

So much for that highly touted freedom from publishers that they said would allow them to explore mature subject matter.

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2012...all-star-effort-to-revive-the-classic-pc-rpg/

Being free of publisher constraints and things like the ESRB ratings system will also allow the game to delve into more mature subject matter that fantasy worlds normally ignore, Sawyer said. Things like "slavery, hostile prejudice (racial, cultural, spiritual, sexual), drug use and trade, and so on" will all help flesh out the story and add a believable core to the highly fictional world, he said.

"I think the reason a lot of fantasy storylines feel hollow is because we don't treat the worlds like real places nor the characters in them like real people. I believe the existence of fantastic elements is an opportunity to ask, 'How would this change things?' When we see how the fantastic changes our reality, and how it does not, I think it can help us consider why we are the way we are."

 

[Haba]

So much for that highly touted freedom from publishers that they said would allow them to explore mature subject matter.

I was reading the comic "Hawkwood, as in the actual Sir John Hawkwood, captain of the mercenary band White Company. And in one chapter the company loots a French village for provisions. While looting, they naturally rape the women. The main protagonist casually strolls by the street whilst his soldiers are having their bit of fun.

The comic didn't stop to lecture the reader about how wrong this is, the rapists didn't get punished and Hawkwood himself didn't give a damn. Men were killed, women were raped and the villagers probably all starved. Company rode on and got rewarded for their efforts.

Could you ever imagine something like that happening in a fantasy RPG? Nobody has the balls.

 

[fobia]

Arcanum, when?

What can change the nature of a promise?






A: Nothing! A promise is a promise, get back at those wolves Avellone!

 

[Junmarko]

There were other people who apparently didn’t like Durance’s swearing (easy fix)

...that's it?

How is this the same studio that developed South Park: The Stick of Truth...

 

[Sensuki]

Thanks for the interview Fairfax, and thanks for the responses Chris Avellone

Well worth the read

wow @ some of the pillars of eternity stuff, esp regarding internal communication

 

[Chaotic_Heretic]

Does this interview mention why P:E is shit? Who is to blame? Apart from Fearass Cuckheart and Joshua Eric Sawyer, the eternal enemy of fun loving grognards that is.

Someone give a TL;DR version please

those words on Sawyer
Fairfax was right

What did Fairfax say about Sawyer?

 

[Bohr]

Interesting interview, thanks. Don't have the autistic stamina to delve back into the old poe threads but it seems some of the speculation going around back then... was in the right ballpark at least.

 

[Prime Junta]

Epic interview. This is what makes the Codex great.

Spoiler

especially the office gossip

 

[you know what time it is]

Chris is still my boy, less so after the wolves incident of 2013, but still.

 

[Infinitron]

Additionally someone (not me of course) should post this on SA to get the goon reaction to "Josh Sawyer pulled rank and messed with Durance and Grieving Milf, but was too much of a coward to criticize Chris directly to his face."

Goon response, starting with the usual suspect: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3807509&pagenumber=523#post483634929

 

[Grauken]

Retard on a forum: It's bad form to hear only one side of an argument
Sane person: It's an interview
Retard on a forum: Waaaaah

 

[Kem0sabe]

Spoiler

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

God, who formatted the transcript? Stevie Wonder, with Ray Charles as additional consultant?

 

[Blakemoreland Hybrid Boss]

How about Chris Avellone's Giant Horsecock?

Think big! said

Think big!

 

[Blakemoreland Hybrid Boss]

There were other people who apparently didn’t like Durance’s swearing (easy fix)

...that's it?

How is this the same studio that developed South Park: The Stick of Truth...

Remember that Ubisoft developers trashed Obsidian publically saying that when the game end up in their hands it was not like a South Park game at all and that they had change a lot of stuff. I would include swearing in the middle, that's for sure. Political correctness is a bitch. Or maybe it was just jealousy.

 

[ga♥]

Goon response, starting with the usual suspect: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3807509&pagenumber=523#post483634929

ChairCUCKer confirmed as Sawyer's alt.

 

[Roguey]

Could you ever imagine something like that happening in a fantasy RPG? Nobody has the balls.

Well in Tyranny you can side with rapists. Fallout: New Vegas too.

 

[Septaryeth]

Fair's fair, maybe MCA did wrote some characters that require too much resources to have their story completely play out.
But cutting them all down to bare dialogues... and he said he was only told after he finished the task and left?
Good luck seeing either of Gm or Durance in PoE2 I suppose!

 

[ga♥]

Fairfax wish you could ask Chris Avellone how his role as one of the owner/founder of the studio could led to such situations as the one described in the PoE development.

 

[Roguey]

Fairfax wish you could ask Chris Avellone how his role as one of the owner/founder of the studio could led to such situations as the one described in the PoE development.

He's mentioned elsewhere that he didn't really have much power as an owner/creative director. The smallest big fish.

Like he mentioned in this interview that Urquhart and Parker went to bat for Sawyer even though they didn't read Avellone's work or necessarily understand what exactly Josh's problem was. That's two owners against him.

 

[ga♥]

He's mentioned elsewhere that he didn't really have much power as an owner/creative director. The smallest big fish.

It seems to me he just didn't want to be a "boss", and the small fish was self-imposed. He could probably "force" his vision... but he decided not to because he's too nice.
Thats why the appeal for someone to write down a clear hierarchy (someone ELSE, not him).
I am speculating ofcourse.

 

[Blakemoreland Hybrid Boss]

It seems to me he just didn't want to be a "boss", and the small fish was self-imposed.

It seems to me he regretted this decision once they start ganging up on him out of petty jealousy.