Logically speaking, don't all these stretch goals push back the release date...

[NerdBoner]

....significantly?

 

I mean adding a new class alone + expanding the world with factions and story...I imagine that each time a stretch goal is met the game just gets that much farther away from release right?

 

the 1.1 mil game was slated for a Q1 2014 (w00t hoverboards soon!) release correct? Well we're def gonna hit at least 2.55 mil...that's a singnificantly larger game with many more things to implement.

 

I hope Feargusaurus and the Obsidiraptor's can pull it off but, I'm worried.

 

 

 

...someone hold me...

Edited October 8, 2012 by NerdBoner

[santanzchild]

I think the more fleshed out game the better. Its been a number of years since we have gotten anything like this a few extra months to make it more epic and throw some extra polish on wont kill any of us. Hell the more they can get put in there the more value it will have for replayablity as we wait for the (hopefully) next game.

[Gorth]

Not necessarily. It's all guesswork though without knowing the specifics of the economy and resources available. More money means more people to throw at the project. As any developer worth his salt will tell you, that's fine up to a point. It's a "curve" where you can get more done until you reach a point where throwing more people at a project gobbles up any benefit due to overhead.

 

So to a point, the difference in time is marginal. Beyond that point, managing the increase in resources and overhead means pushing the planned date.

 

Edit to add: Got ninja'd... post was a response to OP

 

[nikolokolus]

Even with a 3 million dollar budget, that's still pretty small potatoes in today's world of computer game development. So as Gorth noted, more money probably just means more warm bodies diverted to the project: artists, programmers, scripters, modelers, etc.

 

The initial goal of 1.1 million was going to be a pretty lean game I'd reckon.

[ddillon]

@Gorth: That concept is called "diminishing returns" iirc. It usually applies to increasing only a single production factor and can sometimes be avoided by increasing factors in appropriate proportion to one another... or something like that... It's been some time since microeconomics.

 

Or you might have been referring to the general decrease in efficiency in larger organizations and bureaucracy... which to my knowledge has no cure and is the cause of much human woe.

Edited October 8, 2012 by ddillon

[Gorth]

The latter (speaking from experience, so yes it's anecdotal)

 

[Darth Trethon]

We don't know for sure and if so we don't know by how long but I am willing to wait however long Obsidian deems appropriate to make this game be perfect as it will undoubtedly be.

Edited October 8, 2012 by Darth Trethon

[bronzepoem]

If they can make the game much better. I can wait for 2015.

[Sarkus]

They keep repeating the April 2014 release date so I'm sure they are confident they can reach that. Plus, Sawyer has said in several interviews that people should not view the money raised by each stretch goal as having a "1 to 1" relationship with what is being added. Even if they reach $3m this is still a small game (as noted by others) and one well within Obsidian's capabilities.

 

To be honest, my biggest concern with PE is not that they will have to delay the game, its that something will happen at Obsidian that will endanger the project. If they suddenly get a big project from a major publisher, that could impact how much time guys like Avellone and Sawery can spend on this. And the flip side is what happens if they don't have anything lined up after South Park ships - can they keep the studio going.

[Darth Trethon]

They keep repeating the April 2014 release date so I'm sure they are confident they can reach that. Plus, Sawyer has said in several interviews that people should not view the money raised by each stretch goal as having a "1 to 1" relationship with what is being added. Even if they reach $3m this is still a small game (as noted by others) and one well within Obsidian's capabilities.

 

To be honest, my biggest concern with PE is not that they will have to delay the game, its that something will happen at Obsidian that will endanger the project. If they suddenly get a big project from a major publisher, that could impact how much time guys like Avellone and Sawery can spend on this. And the flip side is what happens if they don't have anything lined up after South Park ships - can they keep the studio going.

 

I am certain they will always have something lined up....their games are too good. I look forward to still buying new games from them 30+ years from now when I'm an old man.

[Gatt9]

They keep repeating the April 2014 release date so I'm sure they are confident they can reach that. Plus, Sawyer has said in several interviews that people should not view the money raised by each stretch goal as having a "1 to 1" relationship with what is being added. Even if they reach $3m this is still a small game (as noted by others) and one well within Obsidian's capabilities.

 

To be honest, my biggest concern with PE is not that they will have to delay the game, its that something will happen at Obsidian that will endanger the project. If they suddenly get a big project from a major publisher, that could impact how much time guys like Avellone and Sawery can spend on this. And the flip side is what happens if they don't have anything lined up after South Park ships - can they keep the studio going.

 

I wouldn't worry too much about that. I'd be surprised if Obsidian would work with Bethesda again, and I'd be even more surprised if they worked with EA. I suspect we'll see Obsidian go independent here shortly. Which makes me a very happy panda, because I think these guys are creative geniuses being hamstrung by Publishers.

 

Edit:

 

Although, the wildcard is...I wouldn't rule out Hasbro starting to shop around for experienced Dev's to do a D&D game based on 5th edition. Obsidian would definitely be on their shortlist, and we already know Hasbro wants a digital presence.

Edited October 8, 2012 by Gatt9

[NerdBoner]

The initial goal of 1.1 million was going to be a pretty lean game I'd reckon.

Even if they reach $3m this is still a small game (as noted by others) and one well within Obsidian's capabilities.

damn, you guys have been pissing on my campfire a lot lately...between this, people withdrawing due to the cooldown debacle and some lunatic "hoping" for a solid 8 hour gaming experience I'm starting to feel like I was the only cat expecting a game the length and breadth of the IE classics. Those were no shorter than at least 40 hours, way more if you took the time, explored and read the lore.

 

To be honest, my biggest concern with PE is not that they will have to delay the game, its that something will happen at Obsidian that will endanger the project. If they suddenly get a big project from a major publisher, that could impact how much time guys like Avellone and Sawery can spend on this. And the flip side is what happens if they don't have anything lined up after South Park ships - can they keep the studio going.

now listen here sir, you shut your filthy mouth in my wholesome thread... I'll have none of this kind of talk!

[alanschu]

A lot of stuff can be scalable though. Even if someone like Avellone or Sawyer is key on designing the traits of one of the companions, you don't need to have the same artist do concepts and models as the other character(s).

 

If their core team was pretty small to begin with, adding on additional staff doesn't see that much for diminishing returns anyways.

[Gatt9]

The initial goal of 1.1 million was going to be a pretty lean game I'd reckon.

Even if they reach $3m this is still a small game (as noted by others) and one well within Obsidian's capabilities.

damn, you guys have been pissing on my campfire a lot lately...between this, people withdrawing due to the cooldown debacle and some lunatic "hoping" for a solid 8 hour gaming experience I'm starting to feel like I was the only cat expecting a game the length and breadth of the IE classics. Those were no shorter than at least 40 hours, way more if you took the time, explored and read the lore.

 

Actually, I think they said they expect to be able to get pretty close to IWD/BG1 length.

[aVENGER]

IIRC, it was stated that they will increase the size of the development team as more funds become available which should compensate for the additional work.

[Baeus]

damn, you guys have been pissing on my campfire a lot lately...between this, people withdrawing due to the cooldown debacle and some lunatic "hoping" for a solid 8 hour gaming experience I'm starting to feel like I was the only cat expecting a game the length and breadth of the IE classics. Those were no shorter than at least 40 hours, way more if you took the time, explored and read the lore.

 

Once you subtract kickstarter's cut plus the costs of the boxes/shipping/assorted swag, they'll probably end up with about $2million. That's less that the budget of most xbox live arcade games that'll last you a few hours. 8 hours might actually be on the optimistic side. But then, maybe they can save a lot of money in some areas. Who knows.

[santanzchild]

The sad truth is $3mil isnt much and the fact they can build an IE style RPG on anything close to that budget is amazing. Hell Red Orchestra cost almost that much and it was a MP mod that only had a handful of maps.

[Sensuki]

I thought that the higher the budget goes the more people they hire / bring in from their company to work on the project.

 

Sure it makes more work for quite a lot of people but yeah.

[Gyges]

Not to be a d*** but i did not just donate 160$ for an 8 hour game. Remember, they dont have to market the game beyond word-to mouth, there are very few steps between them and us when concerned with sales and hey dont have to pander to gfx who**s, plus the Unity engine is free. So costs should be relatively low.

We are also talking about a relatively big team of veterans, developing a game for over two years without being hindered by publishers and license-holders. And they are virtually given free reign, which might encourage a lot more enthusiasm among the people there.

Edited October 8, 2012 by Gyges

[melkathi]

Shadowrun Returns had it's release date pushed back because people gave them too much money

[YourVoiceisAmbrosia]

How much did it cost to make Infinity Engine games anyways?

Edited October 8, 2012 by YourVoiceisAmbrosia

[Hiro Protagonist II]

I'd be very surprised they could do a game similar to BG1 or IWD with less than 3 million across three different platforms and include all the extra physical stuff like cloth maps, boxes, etc and post the games all over the world. The digital distribution costs would also have to be taken into consideration with the download tiers as well. Obsidian would have to be relying on after market/kickstarter sales to turn a profit.

[Gyges]

I'd be very surprised they could do a game similar to BG1 or IWD with less than 3 million across three different platforms and include all the extra physical stuff like cloth maps, boxes, etc and post the games all over the world. The digital distribution costs would also have to be taken into consideration with the download tiers as well. Obsidian would have to be relying on after market/kickstarter sales to turn a profit.

 

Pretty sure they are, kickstarter funds is supposed to be ear-marked for development, its not part of the profit.

[Haerski]

@Baeus: Really? You are comparing this to some Xbox Live Arcade games? Those are completely different kind of games made by completely different kind of companies. Too much variables to compare lengths or budgets.

 

I'm 100%... well, lets say 99,9% sure Obsidian will make great game once again. They are realtively big and stable company, which has relations, contacts and business partners all over the industry. They have best possible situation to make this game.

 

How much did it cost to make Infinity Engine games anyways?

I don't know about actual IE games, but I have heard Fallout 1 was made with 3 million, but it doesn't compare because of inflation and all that other boring economical stuff. EDIT: This means today they would need probably more money if we presume development process would be exactly the same. But industry has changed and evolved and I think in overall you can make this kind of game with less money today. They have ready engine and decades of experience on how to make RPGs. They'll also save lots of money in marketing which they probably won't need at all since main audience (us;)) already know about it and already paid for it.

Edited October 8, 2012 by Haerski

[Boof]

Doesn't matter, the longer it takes the better it will hopefully be. I'm in no rush to play it.