Brian D. Lawson interview about NWN 2 and stuff

[Volourn]

I could do a lot of things better. But, then I wouldn't be me. :D

 

My bottom line point is while the graphics may new; the overall engine isn't (though it's all been updated). Even with the graphics - while they are better and not even tileset (for the outdoor areas anyways); there is still something NWNish aout them. But, in the good way.

[Drakron]

J.E. Sawyer when will you learn that trying to argue with Volourn is like trying to argue with a wall ... except the wall being more likely to change its mind.

[kirottu]

Volourn isn

[Ellester]

Huh? Won't argue too much about DS; but MW's graphics are horrible. Brown poo on my screen does not equal good graphics. period. MW had horrid graphics. I darn near puked.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You've already lost that argument a while back, Vol. We had a Poll on these forums and NWN got stomped!

[Volourn]

Popular Opinion Does Not = Fact

 

All that proves is the 9 other people are actually using their brains.

 

Again, how can anyone think that the brown crap that passes as MW be better than anything.\

 

Hahahaha.

[metadigital]

BTW

Brian mentions that they decided to ditch old graphics engine, because it was unmaintainable, the result of Bioware writing it from scratch and later rushing the development cycle.

 

I really hope it will not be the same with NWN2.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

3D graphic engines become old in matter of years and due the long developement cycle of nwn the aurora engine wasn

[Kaftan Barlast]

Oh, you programmers and your code. I consider myself most fortunate to have bagged the position of lead artist for our first real game project. And thus I grip my wacom pen firmly and rejoice.

[metadigital]

You may not be so happy when you see what the lead programmer has done with your beautiful drawings ... "

[Kaftan Barlast]

Oh, Ill be just fine if he sees to it that model X moves from point A to point B using walk animation Y

 

 

 

...the koncept art is just for fun )

[Reveilled]

The only thing I'd really like to see out of NWN2 is hills. Proper hills. I hated the constant cliff thing present in almost every outdoor area. If the game has hills, I'll be happy.

[metadigital]

And variable force attributable to the coefficient of the gradient and the perpendicular gravitational force of the planet in whatever multiverse it inhabits. Boy that burns me when it ain't there.

[ShadowPaladin V1.0]

The only thing I'd really like to see out of NWN2 is hills.  Proper hills.  I hated the constant cliff thing present in almost every outdoor area.  If the game has hills, I'll be happy.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

That always used to remind me of playing warhammer. You had to have flat hills because figures wouldnt sit properly on "real" hill shapes.

[kumquatq3]

http://pc.ign.com/articles/666/666403p1.html

 

New preview

[Cantousent]

Let me enter Ramza mode. *Shrug* You really can't stop me anyhow.

 

I really tire of the way developers treat the stories. There were two ideas in the Black Hound that I found particularly noteworthy. One was a truly sliding scale of reputation that the design team translated into an extensive library of epithets. The second was that the story wasn't all about saving the world. It was about the main character. Under that guideline, the team had the opporunity to fashion an appealing story for more player types.

 

I guess the fact is, either the players don't want anything new or the publishers don't want to take a chance that the players don't want anything new. In either case, we're denied a setting that transcends the age old formula of a single character (or party) saving the kingdom (or the world or the Universe).

 

I plan on purchasing NWN2. It's shaping up quite nicely. ...But I really can't help but think that the developers have played the "savior" card too often. It's not that saving the universe is bad. It's that it requires so much saving. How about I save myself? How about I take over the city for my own evil ends? How about I decide it's time to clean up my own little area of the world? We don't need a character who starts as a farmer and saves the kingdom. We need a character who starts as a farmer and needs to fight like hell to save his farm.

 

Sure, provide an opportunity for a little fame and celebrity. Give the players who need to be the golden haired savior in every game their due. ...But have a thought for those of us who might be willing to shell out some cash just to save our wife. Maybe something for those folks who just want to run a crime syndicate in one of the cities of the realm. The sky is the limit when we can rise above the need to save the whole enchilada. Maybe we don't need saving at all. Maybe someone else needs saving from us.

 

I agree that there should be a cogent story, but that story need not be the same story told over and over again.

 

Meanwhile, it was the novel approach that the Black Hound promised more than anything else that appealed to me. We'll never see that game. That ship has sailed, been caught in a storm, and sunk already. Nevertheless, one ship does not make the whole fleet. We can still look for something more from our games. Saving the world is a great idea. Sometimes I want to turn on my computer and save the world. It might be nice, however, to expect a little more variety from our computer games.

[Atreides]

^Isn't the nobody saving his/her farm's just a nobody saving his/her kingdom/world/universe on a (much) smaller scale?

 

Plus have you heard of the legend of the Black Pearl

[Cantousent]

No, saving the kingdom is about the Kingdom. Saving the farm is about you. There is far more opportunity to explore a character when you save the farm than when you save the world. Unless you save it very, very slowly I suppose. ...Or maybe stick your finger in a dike and then have several hours to reflect on your life while the kingdom flees the flood. Then you die.

 

I have not, as yet, heard about the black pearl. You should start a new thread and then I will find out about it. Or you could just pm me.

[Kaftan Barlast]

If you want to save creativity in games, start a publishing company that doesnt pressure Developers into making tried&tested recipies inside tried&tested franchises on too short a timeframe.

Edited November 14, 2005 by Kaftan Barlast

[Reveilled]

But...but I like saving the world. :'(

 

I dunno. Personally, the concept I'd like to see isn't so much savg the Kingdom as helping the kingdom to Ascendancy. Instead of killing the Huge Ancient Dragon to rescue the kingdom from certain doom, you go kill the last surviving member of a royal family in another country to allow your King to inherit. Or sneaking into a city in the dead of night so you can open the gates to let your liege's army in, ending the siege before winter comes. Or, in order to avert a war the country isn't ready for, the king requires tribute be delivered to the Emperor of the neighbouring country, and you must escort the jewels through bandit-infested hills. Instead of starting as a dirt farmer, you could start as one of the guards of the Crown Prince, sneaking him out of the palace before his younger brother's plan to make himself crown prince can be fully realised. Y'know, an RPG where the quasi-medieval setting goes hand in hand with a game involving quasi-medieval politics.

 

Damn, I'm in a mod-making mood now, and NWN2 won't be out for ages! <_<

[Weiser_Cain]

Get working on climbing jumping and flying for the expansion packs*rubbs two twenties together*

[mkreku]

Gothic had an awesome story. You weren't the savior or the chosen one. You were a lowly criminal tossed into a prison, and your main goal was to break out. Of course, as time progressed, it became clear that it wasn't possible to break out without breaking the entire prison and releasing every prisoner in there, but still.. You were no hero! You could even kill anyone or anything in the game. I love that fact.

 

So I agree with Eldar: less of the heroes and saviors, please.

[Kaftan Barlast]

Im just hoping it will be out before summer so I can use the time off from Uni to properly develop my own NWN2 campaign as a design demo.

[Cantousent]

Excellent idea. I know one of the designers at Bioware had to create a NWN module as part of his hiring process. It's probably standard practice to do things like that. Of course, being at the university, it occurs to me that you know more about that than I do. :D

[Atreides]

No, saving the kingdom is about the Kingdom.  Saving the farm is about you.  There is far more opportunity to explore a character when you save the farm than when you save the world.  Unless you save it very, very slowly I suppose.  ...Or maybe stick your finger in a dike and then have several hours to reflect on your life while the kingdom flees the flood.  Then you die.

 

I have not, as yet, heard about the black pearl.  You should start a new thread and then I will find out about it.  Or you could just pm me.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It seems to me that the two are closely related. If you don't save the kingdom, your farm will be forfeit anyway so even a self-centered individual would have reason to do so. Unless of course you find out that selling out would gain you more.

 

Also some would say that you find out more about yourself in adversity than if you were to just continue living life. Could adversity on a grander scale lead to more discovery?

 

Plus the Black Pearl is a pirate ghost ship with Captain Ramza at its helm :ph34r:

[ShadowPaladin V1.0]

I really enjoyed the GC fire emblem story. It is about saving the world , sort of. But that dosnt even become apparent until a couple of chapters from the end.

 

If you pace the story right, then you can pull off both the epic save the world plot as well as more personal things (although it's much easier to do with a pregen) some sort of hook should be able to accomplish the same task.

[Meshugger]

I want NWN2 to give the player the option on either ending the game as the valiant savior/destroyer of worlds or ending as a local drunk in the gutter.

 

Possible scenario: The end-boss is sitting in his floating castle, having the world at its grip. The main character can choose between:

 

1) Fight valiantly and save the world, and become crowned as the new king. The End.

2) Fight ferociously and slay everything, and become the new emperor of torment. The End.

3) Conspire some morons to do the dirty work, leaving you taking all the credit for their work. (Works both for good/evil). The End.

4) Ignore everything, get drunk and see some other guy get crowned as king/emperor. You puke on your own pants in the gutter and laugh at yourself and your party-members leave you. The End.

Edited November 15, 2005 by Meshugger