Obsidian at PAX 2008

[funcroc]

http://frifri.livejournal.com/506560.html

 

Beginning and Ending in Game Design

 

Interested in how to get into the industry and what the future holds in store? Join a selection of junior designers and the creative director from Obsidian Entertainment about what game devs look for in design candidates, how to break into the industry, what you can expect in your first year of development, and what the future can hold in store with a decade of game development behind you. Expect war stories along with practical advice.

 

Panelists include:

Annie Carlson* [Junior Designer, Obsidian Entertainment]

Joe Bulock* [Cinematics Designer, Obsidian Entertainment]

Chris Avellone [Creative Director/Lead Designer, Obsidian Entertainment]

Fryda Wolff* [sound Engineer, Obsidian Entertainment]

 

It takes place in Serpent Theatre (PSA Level 3) from 3:30pm until 4:30pm on Friday, August 29th.

[Sharen the Exile]

Thanks funcroc! You're the best stalker out there! Always providing us news the fastest! :D

Edited August 15, 2008 by Sharen the Exile

[funcroc]

PAX '08 - Beginning and Ending in Game Design

 

[Xard]

MCA is such a handsome devil

 

Bulock is now my new favourite developer thanks for his mutt chops

 

And Obz has TWO woman designers? Awesome

 

 

no, I didn't even read the link yet lol

[Gfted1]

Ms. Carlson's pretty easy on the eyes too. Im such a sucker for blondes.

 

Guess Ill read the article now too.

[kirottu]

Brunettes pwnzor blonds.

[Pidesco]

I wonder when Obsidian will allow Annie to develop a Blue RPG.

 

 

Also, Fryda Wolff is an absolutely awesome name. Like a superspy, or something.

[kirottu]

Now I know why moderator tags are brown.

 

ZING!

[Pidesco]

Brown?

[kirottu]

Brown.

[Gfted1]

Brown?

 

 

I believe kirottu is insinuating that you are "brown nosing" (kissing butt) because of this comment:

 

Also, Fryda Wolff is an absolutely awesome name. Like a superspy, or something.

[Pidesco]

But it's golden with a bit of blue and a gray background.

 

 

And you don't have to be jealous. Not after all the love we've shared.

 

Edit:

 

Brown?

 

 

I believe kirottu is insinuating that you are "brown nosing" (kissing butt) because of this comment:

 

Also, Fryda Wolff is an absolutely awesome name. Like a superspy, or something.

 

I believe I got that.

[Deadly_Nightshade]

Ms. Carlson's pretty easy on the eyes too.

 

Fryda Wolff is better, and has a great name.

[samm]

Ack, but we shouldn't be discussing the exterior appearance of designers when all we want is good games Mr. "Dan" is in some kind of pityable position (handwritten sign, between the tables....), is he in QA?

[Gfted1]

Haha, I noticed that too. A late addition to the podium is my guess.

[Joseph Bulock]

Haha, I noticed that too. A late addition to the podium is my guess.

 

Dan Rubalcaba was at PAX with us, we had an extra spot, and Dan is a gameplay programmer on AP, so he added a lot to our conversation.

[funcroc]

http://www.nsrealm.com/public/ns/viewtopic...7&p=1012081

 

PAX Day 1

 

All of the OEI folks I met were super nice, Matthew (Marketing/PR), Chris Avellone (Co-founder/Creative Director), and Joe Bulock (Cinematics Designer). There were a few more OEI folks there like Annie Carlson (Designer), Fryda Wolf (Sound Engineer), and Dan Rubalcaba (Programmer) but I didn't get a chance to talk to them one on one.

 

So here's some of the Q&A with Chris Avellone which might be of interest to the Neversummer and NWN2 Communities. Keep in mind I am paraphrasing from memory because I (stupidly) didn't bring any type of recording device for the questions.

 

Q) Would Obsidian Entertainment be interested if Atari wanted to work with them on a game based on D&D 4th Edition?

A) Chris Avellone: Yes, definitely. We've had a great relationship with Atari.

 

Q) Has Atari approached Obsidian yet about a 4th Edition game?

A) Chris Avellone: No.

 

Q) Will there be a third expansion pack for NWN2?

A) Chris Avellone: Maybe.

 

Q) If there is a third expansion pack for NWN2, will the level cap be raised?

A) Chris Avellone: Probably, it's definitely one of the features that players like to have in an expansion pack.

 

Q) Would it be raised to 40 like NWN1 was or something higher?

A) Chris Avellone: It's hard to say, obviously for some games like World of Warcraft, it's easy to pick a new level cap because of their game mechanics.

 

Q) Will Obsidian Entertainment ever make another multiplayer game that comes with a toolset and a dm client?

A) Chris Avellone: Probably not, these types of games are very complicated, time consuming, and expensive to make.

 

I asked Chris Avellone about instant feats being added with NWN2 Storm of Zehir. He didn't know since he's working on other projects right now. None of the other OEI folks at PAX were working on SoZ except for Annie Carlson, but Mr. Avellone didn't think Annie Carlson (Designer on SoZ) would know either since she focuses mostly on the writing side of things. I tried to catch Ms. Carlson and ask her some questions, but her schedule was very busy so I didn't get a chance.

 

Again, I am paraphrasing from memory so accuracy is not guaranteed (sorry folks).

 

 

PAX Day 2

 

However, I ran into Annie Carlson (OEI Designer) and boy was I glad I did. We had a good long chat about NWN2 Storm of Zehir. These are the things I learned from Ms. Carlson:

 

1) There will definitely be three new tilesets and perhaps four.

2) One of the new tilesets is a fusion of Indonesian and Moroccan architecture.

3) The Overland Map system is multiplayer friendly.

4) The Overland Map graphics have been optimized so that you can have quite large Overland Maps.

5) The Storm of Zehir single player campaign is full of very imaginative story lines.

6) New item icons.

7) New clothing, robes, etc.

8 ) Watching the Megaraptor stomp through the jungle is *really* cool.

9) Dinosaur Companions!

 

 

If anyone ever has a chance to talk to Annie Carlson, I encourage you to do so. She was super nice and very enthusiastic about NWN2 and its fans.

 

 

PAX Day 3

 

I've been very fortunate to have the opportunity to get some more Storm of Zehir questions answered by Obsidian's Rob McGinnis.

 

Q) Are there any new head variations in SoZ (besides Yuan-ti Pureblood and Gray Orc)?

A) We do have some plans to add some new heads to the game for players to use. It is not a guaranteed thing at this point and, if they do get added, they would likely be added in a patch after SoZ is released.

 

Q) Will ActivatePortal() be fixed in SoZ?

A) This is something we have talked about many times, internally. It is definitely something our lead programmer and I would like to do, the problem is finding the time to do it.

 

Q) How many new tree types are in SoZ?

A) We have added approximately 30 new trees.

 

Q) Will SoZ introduce instant feats (free actions) like NWN1 did in patch 1.6x?

A) I do not believe we did.

 

Thanks Rob!

Edited September 15, 2008 by funcroc