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

[Blakemoreland Hybrid Boss]

Remember this TNW update, guys? Gosh, I already thought it was a cheap publicity stunt back then and now it looks even more foolish:

But wait, there is more!

Feargus Urquhart requires no introduction but I'm going to introduce him anyway. He's been managing Obsidian Entertainment for the last 15 years and he's the reason the company is still around, which is a no small feat. Under his stewardship, Obsidian prevailed where so many other studios either have failed or were absorbed by various gelatinous cubes preying on the weak, so I have nothing but the highest respect for the man and his uncanny ability to manage business.

 

[2house2fly]

I don't have many expenses, and I don't need to work anymore - I work because I love writing for games, so I do. Shocking, I know, but... yes, it's the truth.

Answers my main question I guess. MCA doesn't give a fuck because he has no fucks to give, so why not get things off your chest without fear of repercussion. It's a very rare, very fortunate position to be in.

It's almost as if being freed of financial stress has made his life better and allowed him more freedom to pursue areas and interests he feels will best benefit himself and others

 

[Alienman]

I'm worried for Chris Avellone. I don't want him to get assassinated like MLMarkland by hired guns working for the games industry.

R.I.P

 

[azimuth]

I've never liked Feargus and I'd love to (metaphorically!) shiv him first chance I get, but I can't shake this feeling that he's done us all so much good over the years. It's not like anybody can keep a studio making niche CRPGs running for decades on end.

This guy was in charge of both BIS and Obsidian. No matter how much of a shitter he may be, many many niche studios have collapsed since then. Whereas Troika and Ion Storm vanished without a trace after a few years, Feargus has managed to stick around long enough to hire Tim Cain.

This isn't super relevant, I guess, but although I'd love to hate on Obsidian and Feargus, they get shit done that others can't, and they do it without selling out the way Bioware has.

 

[Infinitron]

I've never liked Feargus and I'd love to (metaphorically!) shiv him first chance I get, but I can't shake this feeling that he's done us all so much good over the years. It's not like anybody can keep a studio making niche CRPGs running for decades on end.

This guy was in charge of both BIS and Obsidian. No matter how much of a shitter he may be, many many niche studios have collapsed since then. Whereas Troika and Ion Storm vanished without a trace after a few years, Feargus has managed to stick around long enough to hire Tim Cain.

This isn't super relevant, I guess, but although I'd love to hate on Obsidian and Feargus, they get shit done that others can't, and they do it without selling out the way Bioware has.

In the end, I think Feargus' true failing in the eyes of somebody like Chris Avellone is that he isn't and never was a Creative Visionary, somebody who can inspire. He's just a middle manager who got to be CEO.

Brian Fargo, for all his flaws, knows how to speak like a Creative.

 

[Prime Junta]

In the end, I think Feargus' true failing in the eyes of somebody like Chris Avellone is that he isn't a Creative Visionary, somebody who can inspire. He's just a middle manager who got to be CEO.

Oh come on Infinitron, you usually spin a lot better than that.

Feargus's true failing in the eyes of somebody like Chris Avellone is that he puts unproductive family members on the payroll, spends company money recklessly, diddles with the books, alienates publishers, threatens and then executes de-ownerisation, and uses his mom's cancer to try leverage an insane NDA/non-compete out of him. He'd be thrilled if he was a boring reliable middle manager who made CEO.

 

[Blakemoreland Hybrid Boss]

In the end, I think Feargus' main flaw in the eyes of somebody like Chris Avellone is that he isn't a Creative Visionary, somebody who can inspire. He's just a middle manager who got to be CEO.

Brian Fargo, for all his flaws, knows how to speak like a Creative.

His main flaw is that he is not good at his job. He is not a middle manager, he is a pseudo-manager. Big difference. What I find surprising is that they are quite common. I always wonder why someone would end up in a risky and stressful job to which they are not qualified for. The nepotism and other failings are a bonus.

 

[Prime Junta]

I always wonder why someone would end up in a risky and stressful job to which they are not qualified for.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_principle

 

[Sextant]

How many beers, Chris?
Point out the baddies, Chris, point them out.

 

[mondblut]

Ok but riddle me this, What do you call it when you like getting sexually harassed by female coworkers?

That depends entirely on whether they are hot.

 

[Zed]

chris do you think you will get a complimentary copy of pillars 2?

 

[Infinitron]

Feargus's true failing in the eyes of somebody like Chris Avellone is that he puts unproductive family members on the payroll, spends company money recklessly, diddles with the books, alienates publishers, threatens and then executes de-ownerisation, and uses his mom's cancer to try leverage an insane NDA/non-compete out of him. He'd be thrilled if he was a boring reliable middle manager who made CEO.

Mmmm hmmm, and yet, I think Chris' earlier response to me suggests that he was in fact willing to put up with all sorts of management failures if he thought it was for a worthwhile cause - an inspiring cause.

As for Tim and Leonard (and Jason), I feel that the franchises they created (inc. Bloodlines) resonated with a lot of RPG gamers and shouldn't be ignored, but respected for what this accomplished. That's all I meant - and yes, there might be a large and uncomfortable upfront cost to that, but imo, it would prove itself out over time

I mean, let's be real here. There are many Codexers right now who are happy to point and laugh at all of Obsidian's process issues and financial mishaps, but ultimately the reason they dislike Obsidian is because their games lack the qualities they seek. That's the elephant in the room.

Without taking away from his analysis of Obsidian's management issues, there could be a similar thing going on with Chris - for example, in the past he's talked about how at Obsidian he didn't have access to the IPs he would have wanted to work on, with the implication that this was a significant problem for him.

 

[Alienman]

In the end, I think Feargus' true failing in the eyes of somebody like Chris Avellone is that he isn't a Creative Visionary, somebody who can inspire. He's just a middle manager who got to be CEO.

Oh come on Infinitron, you usually spin a lot better than that.

Feargus's true failing in the eyes of somebody like Chris Avellone is that he puts unproductive family members on the payroll, spends company money recklessly, diddles with the books, alienates publishers, threatens and then executes de-ownerisation, and uses his mom's cancer to try leverage an insane NDA/non-compete out of him. He'd be thrilled if he was a boring reliable middle manager who made CEO.

He sounds more and more like a James Bond villain.

Sitting in his obsidian mountain.

 

[Iskramor]

I imagine at this point Feargus' version would be in the lines of, Chris had threathened a project on the success of which Obsidian's future was hanging, he, Feargus, took action in order to protect the company and the people working there and counting on their management, etc. Add to that "I never wanted him to leave, even generously offered him to keep working on Tyranny. I had not and have not lost confidence in him as a designer, but I have as a manager", etc. The statement writes itself.

(creative ratings only)

This is the Codex, remember? You have to put Sawyer in it.

Wherever I go, I must also balance

Now im become death the balance of the gaming world.

 

[Prime Junta]

He sounds more and more like a James Bond villain.

Bond villains generally have more organisational ability.

 

[Iskramor]

Because communists are pure and saints, right?

Nice whataboutism

 

[Sextant]

 

[ArchAngel]

How many beers, Chris?
Point out the baddies, Chris, point them out.

I point to that guy left of Chris with a big beard. How many people did his suicide bombing take out?

 

[Hassknecht]

Hey Chris Avellone, if you'd like to write for no pay whatsoever, at NMA I tried to get a fanmade Fallout PnP started like two years ago that never really took off because I'm a lazy cunt. You could join us there and motivate us to actually do something about it

 

[IHaveHugeNick]

Avellone: muthafucka I'm so loaded I never have to work again, can sustain myself for 200 years and can easily fight 300-men corporations in courts if I so please.


Also Avellone: I left Obsidian with not a dime and deep in debt





Quite a turnaround in just 3 years, FTL guys pay that well?

 

[Sextant]

When your lead level designer draws his areas on a squared paper...
but Unity engine cant even handle that...

 

[Binky]

Interesting to see interaction between developers go from:

Tim Cain: "You're amazing. The games you've made will live long after we are naught but dust."
Chris Avellone: "When your fingers caress the keyboard the brilliance of your mind becomes apparent to every soul with a monitor."
Mark Yohalem: "Your ideas bold and original. Future generations will stand on the shoulders of giants. Your shoulders."
Vault Dweller: "Tears of joy stream down the cheeks of players when you release another game."
Styg: "I love you."
Brian Mitsoda: "Kiss me."

...inching closer to:

Tim Cain: "Bitch, Thomas Jefferson was president the last time you were relevant!"
Chris Avellone: "The only time you put any effort into anything was when you stole your daddy's wallet to buy booze!"
Mark Yohalem: "Your games (and I use that term loosely) have more bugs than a Calcutta slum, you pig-spawned freak!"
Vault Dweller: "Do you just slam your head into the keyboard or do you outsource your writing to monkeys on crack, you fucking hack!?"
Styg: "You're trash, your family is trash, your friends are trash, your fucking pets are trash!"
Brian Mitsoda: "Cunt. Cunt! CUNT! CUNTCUNTCNTCNNTTTCCUNT!!!!"

 

[Kingston]

Hey Chris Avellone, if you'd like to write for no pay whatsoever, I've tried to get a Sonic the Hedgehog mod for Half-Life 2 off the ground for like a few years but that never took off because I'm not a furry. If you could join us to write that would be great (also can you code?)

 

[Haba]

Remember this TNW update, guys? Gosh, I already thought it was a cheap publicity stunt back then and now it looks even more foolish:

But wait, there is more!

Feargus Urquhart requires no introduction but I'm going to introduce him anyway. He's been managing Obsidian Entertainment for the last 15 years and he's the reason the company is still around, which is a no small feat. Under his stewardship, Obsidian prevailed where so many other studios either have failed or were absorbed by various gelatinous cubes preying on the weak, so I have nothing but the highest respect for the man and his uncanny ability to manage business.

Notice the distinct lack of Vault Dweller in this thread.



Really makes you wonder, doesn't it?

 

[Infinitron]

Same thing happened in the inXile-gate thread.

Newsflash: Struggling indie developer prefers not to risk alienating anybody in the games industry