sawyer wants rpg to evolve

[Brother Rat]

For Sawyer, role-playing games are defined by the player’s ability to alter the storyline of the game through his or her actions, rather than the amount of stat tweaking or hit points a player delivers in combat.

But this is called a "choose your own adventure" game, not an rpg.

 

[Quillon]

Well, I hope the video will be available soon. Wasn't last Reboot Develop where Tim Cain introduced the "shapes" thing?

Tim's presentation was live just as Sawyer's but his attended panel wasn't, nor its video so I don't think we'll have a vid of this panel either.

 

[2house2fly]

Maybe after POE2 he will leave Obsiddian and join Bethesda hence those talks.

After what he pulled with New Vegas and the minor controversy that happened when he discussed its engine and the PS3's memory issues, I doubt Josh will ever be welcome at BGS.

Nonsense, I'm sure they'd love to employ the man who tainted their brand by delivering a buggy, unpolished product.

 

[Infinitron]

Well, I hope the video will be available soon. Wasn't last Reboot Develop where Tim Cain introduced the "shapes" thing?

Tim's presentation was live just as Sawyer's but his attended panel wasn't, nor its video so I don't think we'll have a vid of this panel either.

We might get a video, as we once got a video of Chris Avellone's "beachside chat" MONTHS after it happened. Don't bet on it though.

 

[ga♥]

Months you say? By that time Sawyer would be already Todd Howard personal assistant I am afraid.

 

[Ulfhednar]

Josh, please release your game so I can stop getting triggered by fake news.

Also, the lesson from T:ToN is that character expression takes a back seat to combat mechanics for cRPGs.

 

[CRD]

“The hardcore RPG audience is very traditional,” said Sawyer at Reboot Develop this week, discussing the evolution of genres.

“Fans tend to skew towards the more hardcore cases and they tend to be fairly resistant to change. I don’t want to paint too broad of a stroke there but RPGs can be a lot more than we have done with them so far. There’s much more than we can do and its much more radical.

“I’m also contributing to the problem,” he added. “Pillars of Eternity 1 and 2 are very traditional role playing games. But the genre can go in a number of different directions it’s just a matter of framing the project size and things that meet up in the same place.”


For Sawyer, role-playing games are defined by the player’s ability to alter the storyline of the game through his or her actions, rather than the amount of stat tweaking or hit points a player delivers in combat.

“So many games use RPG elements, stat progression and characteristics that are defined by those in RPGs. I start to question about whether that is the heart and soul of what a role-playing game is about,” he said.

“The way that I work on role-playing games, they tend to be more about playing a character that has a range of personalities and a way of going through a story that changes that story in a very significant way. The amount to which things like statistics or combat systems interact with that, really can be much more fluid.

He pointed to Bethesda’s success with Fallout and The Elder Scrolls games as examples of a developer taking role-playing games in a different direction.

“The traditionalists probably get angry about this stuff, but Bethesda’s RPGs are very different from isometric RPGs.

“They’re much more action orientated, much more focused on the immersive experience. That shows there’s more room for RPGs to grow than just to be what they were 20 years ago. It’s really a matter of finding an audience that matches up with that,” he added.


https://www.vg247.com/2018/04/21/rpg-players-resistant-to-change-says-obsidian/

 

[Sentinel]

Sawyer confirmed Lead Designer on The Elder Scrolls VI: Hammerfell

 

[Ezeekiel]

You know what would be *really* radical? Taking what has come before, keeping what works fine and actually improving on it (especially on the flaws) in ways that make some damn sense rather than creating boring knock-off shovelware or Call of RPG or trying to re-invent the wheel in idiotic ways.
Or Christ I dunno, just not making things WORSE than before, and that goes for almost every Genre.

 

[Viata]

I'd complain about what he said, but I think Sawyer is the kind of retard that thinks Wizardry is not an RPG. And that is reason enough to ignore any shit he says.

 

[Fedora Master]

Why do I get the feeling he's talking about turning RPGs into walking simulators with stats?

 

[Infinitron]

Everything old is new again

 

[Roguey]

Why do I get the feeling he's talking about turning RPGs into walking simulators with stats?

The merging of walking and hiking sims, e.g. New Vegas.

 

[Sentinel]

What else are RPGs supposed to be? Golden Axe with stats?

 

[Beastro]

What else are RPGs supposed to be? Golden Axe with stats?

Isn't there a Genesis game that was like that?

Lemme look for it...

Edit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadash

Cadash is an early example of what would become a fairly common trend in Japanese-made arcade games of the early 1990s: the "platform-RPG". Cadash borrows many principles of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link's gameplay, combining side-scrolling platform action with an RPG system of statistics, levels, money and magic.

Four characters can play at once in the arcade version, and up to two players may select from four different characters in the console versions: fighter, mage, priestess, and ninja, each with different attacks, statistics and skills. Players then proceed through each level, killing monsters and bosses, collecting keys to unlock doors and collecting gold and experience. Gold is also taken from slain foes and treasure chests. Villages sell items, weapons, armor and (in the console versions) extra lives, with each village encountered providing better equipment. Some villagers and benevolent creatures will also provide information. The arcade version has a limited game time, which can be extended by buying progressively more expensive hourglasses at shops, or by picking up rare bonuses. In shops, and in hidden places, are medicinal herbs which restore 10 HP if brought to zero, and antidotes which cure poison inflicted by specific foes. There are also two elixirs in the game that act like medicinal herbs, except that they restore all HP.

 

[fantadomat]

,RPG genre doesn't need more openworld popamoles! In needs improvement of old systems and ideas,while adding a few new things from time to time.

 

[Roguey]

Edit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cadash

Cadash was extremely garbage. One would be much better off with Capcom's arcade D&D games.

 

[Quillon]

Ok now I get it. He's specifically talking to codex/old skool audience otherwise "RPGs taking different directions" isn't news; Bethesda open worlders are around for 15 years ffs and there is mass effect and all that other shit. I think Sawyer overestimate potential old-skool backlash if they see some concept they won't like. Because numbers. f.i. If Cainarsky game will be a mainstream hit, most the codexers who made fun of the "shapes" will play that game, some of them won't tell tho If it gets shit on it'll be limited to around here.

Or he's just trying to convince Obs upper management who might be afraid of losing current audience.

 

[Urthor]

Can an RPG evolve into something where the game industry doesn't work 6 days a week 12 hours a day and instead follows the French 35 hour week with 10 weeks of holidays????

 

[mondblut]

That shows there’s more room for RPGs to grow than just to be what they were 20 years ago. It’s really a matter of finding an audience that matches up with that,” he added.

Apparently he just awakened after 20 years of coma. That actually explains POE.

 

[aweigh]

Imagine an RPG where every time you press a button...

 

[Urthor]

An a serious note, part of a problem is that all the grognardy aspects have traditionally involved all the challenging, in depth and rewarding parts of gameplay which would "reward" the players who did 5 playthroughs of a game with new insights and cool stuff the "noobs" who only did one playthrough did.

If you want to take the math out of RPGs you have to replace it with source of in depth entertainment for those hardcore fans who find all the tips and tricks, master the mechanics and like the complexity that bring on duh math brings. And nobody has ever done that as far as I know, ever time someone takes out the math and the tabletop mechanics they've replaced them with action adventure mechanics or else severely dumbed it all down overall.

 

[frajaq]

I guess we've to see Pillars of Eternity 2 sales to check this out

I wonder if Josh is genuinely scared of how this game is going to perform sales-wise, these comments are a bit weird

 

[Generic-Giant-Spider]

Josh strikes me as the type of guy that is too nice to tell you your idea is utter shit.

 

[Cael]

But when you're immersed to the neck in shit....

Bethesda will tell you to get on your knees.