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

[taxalot]

Oh.

 

[Zer0wing]

Long time ago, someone ex-Obsidian also posted about working at the company during Neverwinter Nights 2 development. Could someone dig it up this read pls?

 

[J_C]

Of all the things Chris said in this thread, this hit me the hardest. That is pretty damning shit. Lucky for me, I won't have time to play Pillars 2 for a while, so I can follow your advice and play it after a few DLCs.

Again, not trying to be a dick, but it is for the best.

We found with PoE1 that the patches, later updates, and expansions fixed a lot of problems people had with the initial release.

If the story also comes back as a plus (which shouldn't be affected by this), am happy to give it a shot.

No problem, I appreciate your honesty. It is true that PoE1 also needed some extra polish time, after patch v3 and the DLCs, it is a massively better game. (although I also enjoyed it in vanilla state)

Chris what is your favourite character on Planescape Torment?

I liked them all, but after working with Beamdog on potential sequels, I did find myself gravitating toward Xachariah again and again.

Fall-From-Grace is always an easy win, however. She's the nicest, kindest succubus in the multiverse.

Jesus Christ, there is a companion called Xachariah in Torment? I missed so much in that game, I have never heard about it. XD Great, another good reason to replay it.

 

[Grauken]

I finally am done reading this thread.

Wow, that sure was both interesting, funny, and painful. I had to go through horrible conditions at work last year, and while it was hardly on the scale MCA experienced, I can sure sympathize.

The thing to note here : everyone who has posted in this thread is telling the truth. This kind of stuff is far too serious to lie nonchalantly about. People can indeed have vast different outlooks based on friendships, positions, departments, and just... time. Things are always okay until they are not.

But I have to admit, and god I certainly hope I am not being offensive in an way Chris Avellone , but reading this entire thing made me wonder about your current mental state at the moment.

I understand you mean and felt everything you wrote, but everything that you have posted here could have far reaching consequences, even in the upcoming years. Nobody likes whistleblowers, not because they are telling the truth, but because they fear if they hire one circumstances might make an enemy out of them. Anyway, what I am trying to ask is : are you alright and fully aware of eventual personal difficulties that might result of these posts ? Sometimes emotions take over and however true and honest your word, one regrets phrasing it out loud later.

As funny as this thread has been, I agree, sometimes the best thing you can do is to let it go, not for anybody else, but your own sanity

 

[Infinitron]

Obsidian can keep doing whatever it is they do best. I wasn't sure what that was before my departure. I'm still not sure, beyond "I think it's a BG thing"...

This sounds more like a description of the Pillars team than Obsidian as a whole. Surely you've heard things about Project Indiana. That's supposed to be announced this year, and it should make all of this stuff look small. Can you tell us anything about it?

 

[Bohr]

If confronted with evil (as categorized by existing employees who will soon resign - check back in a week or two for the latest round, even though one of them dropped yesterday), I will be prepared to fight it. I guarantee I have more in my bank account than Obsidian does, since they rarely think more than 2 months in advance - and unfortunately, their very, very expensive lawyer charges by the hour, which is unfortunate, but he knows, remora-like, what to attach himself to to get the most financial gain.

But it's all okay - Paradox has already been in touch, and they aren't too happy with how Obsidian handled the work they asked for. Future revelations will likely be much more fun than mine.

Wow. The drama just intensifies.

( Cleveland Mark Blakemore , feel you're missing out on an interesting thread which may feel slightly familiar)

 

[taxalot]

OK, very serious question here. Are you actually at all worried about any blowback from being so candid about a former employer? The game industry might be large, but it can also be damn small at the same time.

No, but good question.

Aside from making up what Obsidian chose to never pay me, I set aside a legal fund to deal with any repercussions, and I will fight anything they bring to the table, tooth and nail. I welcome it.

If confronted with evil (as categorized by existing employees who will soon resign - check back in a week or two for the latest round, even though one of them dropped yesterday), I will be prepared to fight it. I guarantee I have more in my bank account than Obsidian does, since they rarely think more than 2 months in advance - and unfortunately, their very, very expensive lawyer charges by the hour, which is unfortunate, but he knows, remora-like, what to attach himself to to get the most financial gain.

But it's all okay - Paradox has already been in touch, and they aren't too happy with how Obsidian handled the work they asked for. Future revelations will likely be much more fun than mine.

Oh great now Codex is bound to be an item in a libel suit

DU is gonna receive some plane tickets from Sawyer.

 

[Chris Avellone]

This sounds more like a description of the Pillars team than Obsidian as a whole. Surely you've heard things about Project Indiana. That's supposed to be announced this year, and it should make all of this stuff look small. Can you tell us anything about it?

I wish I could, but you'd be better off asking Tim, Leonard, or Take2 (who to all reports, have been awesome to work with aside from Obsidian interference). It sounds like it's going to be great, and I'm looking forward to it.

 

[Infinitron]

lawl

MCA 2008: Obsidian can't make good games because of publisher interference

MCA 2018: Publishers can't make good games because of Obsidian interference

 

[Sensuki]

Chris Avellone

slightly offtopic, but did you ever get around to playing either Expeditions: Conquistador or Expeditions: Viking ?

Conquistador, in particular has quite a cool take on the style of companions and companion content, and quite good 'scripted interactions' (before that phrase was coined by Pillars team?). Vikings was more traditional.

I also recall that you did a narrative session with the Logic Artists guys, how was that? They seem pretty cool, one of the few dev teams that I would still gladly opt into beta testing for

 

[VentilatorOfDoom]

Nevar forget.

 

[Jarpie]

Chris Avellone I mean our Italian Stallion preparing for a fight?

 

[Turtle-Zone 3000]

I wish I could, but you'd be better off asking Tim

And he never got back to us after getting on that plane.

 

[Chris Avellone]

lawl

MCA 2008: Obsidian can't make good games because of publisher interference

MCA 2018: Publishers can't make good games because of Obsidian interference

I accept and will fight/debate all quotes to this respect that are attributed to me. :: Cracks knuckles ::

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

Man leaves a company, cannot post from his work account anymore.

What a shocking development.

It actually was a surprise, since I was told it was okay - then suddenly, not.

When "not" happened and I realized I couldn't access my account, I asked it be deleted, and they refused and was told it was impossible to delete my account. Which I suspect was an untruth because the delete function is... like... basic functionality.

Overall, it was.... weird. But I have faith Darren Monahan, holder and keeper of the Backer Portal for Pillars knows the truth.

Also, your user name - provided you aren't Darren, which is a legitimate question - always makes me laugh.

Delete function would definitely exist in the IPB board. Most likely admins just have a policy to refuse all the delete requests.

 

[Barrow_Bug]

Posting in an epic thread. Thanks for the truth bombs Chris Avellone! Also Infinitron, how's those publisher bucks going? Shill much?

 

[Infinitron]

lawl

MCA 2008: Obsidian can't make good games because of publisher interference

MCA 2018: Publishers can't make good games because of Obsidian interference

I accept and will fight/debate all quotes to this respect that are attributed to me. :: Cracks knuckles ::

Yeah yeah, I know that much of the "evil publishers" narrative is more due to fan extrapolation than anything you (or other people from Obsidian) actually said. Still funny though.

 

[Septaryeth]

Of all the things Chris said in this thread, this hit me the hardest. That is pretty damning shit. Lucky for me, I won't have time to play Pillars 2 for a while, so I can follow your advice and play it after a few DLCs.

Again, not trying to be a dick, but it is for the best.

We found with PoE1 that the patches, later updates, and expansions fixed a lot of problems people had with the initial release.

If the story also comes back as a plus (which shouldn't be affected by this), am happy to give it a shot.

No problem, I appreciate your honesty. It is true that PoE1 also needed some extra polish time, after patch v3 and the DLCs, it is a massively better game. (although I also enjoyed it in vanilla state)

Chris what is your favourite character on Planescape Torment?

I liked them all, but after working with Beamdog on potential sequels, I did find myself gravitating toward Xachariah again and again.

Fall-From-Grace is always an easy win, however. She's the nicest, kindest succubus in the multiverse.

Jesus Christ, there is a companion called Xachariah in Torment? I missed so much in that game, I have never heard about it. XD Great, another good reason to replay it.

He's the blind archer who accompanied the previous incarnation (neutral one) that turned zombie in the morgue.
He will hand you some items if you recalled his identity but I'm not sure much is known about his background apart from the fact that he didn't make it back from the fortress of regret.
I think he sacrificed himself? Though I'm never sure whether the neutral incarnation meant Deionarra or him.

I'm just... wow, fan-girling so hard right now.
Torment is one of the first western rpg I've played. I was fortunate enough to receive a copy from a rich uncle in America, but it was all in English and an Asian kid just entered high school had to look up dictionary to know what the characters are saying word by word.
There are solid translation now by the same guy who translated LoTR but man those stuff left some serious impressions. It was weird (especially given how asians are more exposed to the colorful jrpgs) but it was cool, and still thought-provoking even after all these years.

This agreement stuff is beyond my league and it stinks, kept reading and boy am I glad to know the guy who made PS: T is doing okay now.
Will definitely look forward to what Ghost Story has to bring to the table.

 

[Maculo]

If confronted with evil (as categorized by existing employees who will soon resign - check back in a week or two for the latest round, even though one of them dropped yesterday), I will be prepared to fight it. I guarantee I have more in my bank account than Obsidian does, since they rarely think more than 2 months in advance - and unfortunately, their very, very expensive lawyer charges by the hour, which is unfortunate, but he knows, remora-like, what to attach himself to to get the most financial gain.

But it's all okay - Paradox has already been in touch, and they aren't too happy with how Obsidian handled the work they asked for. Future revelations will likely be much more fun than mine.

Every time I think this thread has run its course, it keeps taking a new, interesting turn. So we potentially have resignation drama and paradox drama to come? Oh lawd.

 

[fantadomat]

Chris Avellone have you thought about working with CD Project Red?

 

[Kyl Von Kull]

lawl

MCA 2008: Obsidian can't make good games because of publisher interference

MCA 2018: Publishers can't make good games because of Obsidian interference

TTWO really have their shit together—big enough to have a ton of resources but not so huge that they lose focus like EA or some parts of ATVI. Most important, TTWO has no problem with developers taking their time to get a game right (even when they should have a problem with it like on Bioshock Infinite).

Wouldn’t be surprised if some of Obsidian’s early publisher woes were related to Feargus overpromising, like telling Microsoft they could work huge multiplayer raids into Stormlands.

 

[Mebrilia the Viera Queen]

Of all the things Chris said in this thread, this hit me the hardest. That is pretty damning shit. Lucky for me, I won't have time to play Pillars 2 for a while, so I can follow your advice and play it after a few DLCs.

Again, not trying to be a dick, but it is for the best.

We found with PoE1 that the patches, later updates, and expansions fixed a lot of problems people had with the initial release.

If the story also comes back as a plus (which shouldn't be affected by this), am happy to give it a shot.

No problem, I appreciate your honesty. It is true that PoE1 also needed some extra polish time, after patch v3 and the DLCs, it is a massively better game. (although I also enjoyed it in vanilla state)

Chris what is your favourite character on Planescape Torment?

I liked them all, but after working with Beamdog on potential sequels, I did find myself gravitating toward Xachariah again and again.

Fall-From-Grace is always an easy win, however. She's the nicest, kindest succubus in the multiverse.

Jesus Christ, there is a companion called Xachariah in Torment? I missed so much in that game, I have never heard about it. XD Great, another good reason to replay it.

He's the blind archer who accompanied the previous incarnation (neutral one) that turned zombie in the morgue.
He will hand you some items if you recalled his identity but I'm not sure much is known about his background apart from the fact that he didn't make it back from the fortress of regret.
He was the one sacrificed? Though I'm never sure whether the neutral incarnation meant Deionarra or him.

I'm just... wow, fan-girling so hard right now.
Torment is one of the first western rpg I've played. I was fortunate enough to receive a copy from a rich uncle in America, but it was all in English and an Asian kid just entered high school had to look up dictionary to know what the characters are saying word by word.
There are solid translation now by the same guy who translated LoTR but man those stuff left some serious impressions. It was weird (especially given how asians are more exposed to the colorful jrpgs) but it was cool, and still thought-provoking even after all these years.

This agreement stuff is beyond my league and it stinks, but glad to know the guy who made PS: T is doing okay now.
Will definitely look forward to what Ghost Story has to bring to the table.

Oh yes fan girling myself too... Chris Avellone active presence in this thread actually make me scream with joy!

 

[Bocian]

And he never got back to us after getting on that plane.

He crashed the plane. With no survivors.

 

[GarfunkeL]

" If people don't use it, then you give them feedback, then adjust their raises next paid period as necessary, either positively or negatively."
I dont think this is a smart move , because of motivation.
I believe that could harm productivity immensly if the wrong people get a raise(positively or negativley).
Also envy....

I also disagree with a too strong hierarchy, because the information the top person receives is always filtered,
that means if the filtering is not done properly the whole project could take a wrong direction.
And the higher the hierarchy the stroger the filtering.

That's true but only when the hierarchy becomes several layers deep. The creative advantages and agility that startups have with minimal hierarchy is big part of what makes them succesful, but it can be taken too far and that's what MCA is arguing against. You have to have at least 2 layers of hierarchy - the project lead who ultimately decides what is in the game, and department leads who oversee their teams. That's still a pretty minimal hierarchy that shouldn't filter uncomfortable truths out, while being strong enough to offer guidance and direction to all employees.

 

[felipepepe]

Obsidian can keep doing whatever it is they do best. I wasn't sure what that was before my departure. I'm still not sure, beyond "I think it's a BG thing"... but there's often no mention of BioWare and their design principles when this is said. I will say Black Isle (Studios) would never have survived without what BioWare licensed to them (the Infinity Engine).

My take? I wish the developers well, but upper management? Get your shit together because the future is uncertain if you can't even develop and rely on your own tech.

Let me play devil's advocate a bit here: Obsidian is probably the least innovative RPG studio to ever exist, but it's also one of the oldest ones that's still open and remains independent (it only loses to Larian & Spiderweb). Isn't there some credit to that?

I much prefer bold games, but it's never fun when the studio closes down after 1-2 titles and everyone is out of work... how was this seen from the inside?