Making it different

[cornishr]

Every time i've read an interview/preview whatever, the questioner seems to be harping on about how/why will this game be any different, same old quests etc., as if everybody is bored sick of games like this and Obsidian are forced to defend themselves.

 

It's bloody annoying me.

 

I'm sure there are plenty of people who don't like this stuff, but they won't buy it. I'm blissfully happy for this game to be very similar in nature. I haven't encountered hardly any games of this kind over the years; just crap first person shooters and rts nonsense everywhere. I'm sure Obsidian will make as many new interesting angles as they can, but a fantasy themed game is a fantasy themed game afterall. It's exactly what i'm after. In fact the last game like Baldur's gate i played was Baldur's gate.

 

I want elves, i want Dwarves, preferably with big beards, and i want trolls. If anybody needs their daughter rescuing, i'm the man for the job (although i can't guarantee her virtue). Likewise, i'm happy to retrieve any lost tomes, clear out any abandoned temples, or stomp the living daylights out of any bandits. Haunted forest is my middle name, and God help any Dragons who don't tow the line.

 

No need to keep apologising for making a game like this, tell the interviewer it's exactly what we want.

 

 

Edited April 1, 2014 by cornishr

[C2B]

Originality is overrated.

[Kjaamor]

"This time it'll be different, just like before!"

[Nonek]

When a genre has steadily degenerated for twenty years looking to the past when it was rich with content, features and a lack of streamlining is a wise thing. Like Mr Sawyer says, one of the few things that modern RPG's have done is clarify combat, and so he intends to implement this feature in Poe. As for "Game Journalists" who have cheered on this degeneration and pandering to the lowest common denominator, personally I don't listen to a word they say anymore, whether they are lecturing on why we should be removing interactivity from games in favour of cinematics, why the honest customer should be denied access and punished for other peoples piracy, or preaching and lecturing about their hypocritical views on social justice.

[Gorbag]

That's kind of the reason why we are all here. What's there to defend?

[rjshae]

There's a certain amount of jaded perspective from some experienced gamers who have played a lot in the Fantasy genre. But to me it's all about the story--the fantasy characters and magic are just there to provide unusual elements; much like aliens and high tech in a sci-fi game. Meanwhile, the elves and dwarves will hopefully still be fresh and unique aspects for young players who are new to gaming.

[Karkarov]

When a genre has steadily degenerated for twenty years looking to the past when it was rich with content, features and a lack of streamlining is a wise thing. Like Mr Sawyer says, one of the few things that modern RPG's have done is clarify combat, and so he intends to implement this feature in Poe. As for "Game Journalists" who have cheered on this degeneration and pandering to the lowest common denominator, personally I don't listen to a word they say anymore, whether they are lecturing on why we should be removing interactivity from games in favour of cinematics, why the honest customer should be denied access and punished for other peoples piracy, or preaching and lecturing about their hypocritical views on social justice.

In all fairness people... when someone says they are a "Games Journalist" you need to basically shut them off to begin with.  You aren't in the middle east dodging IED's, you are not on Wall Street breaking some major news about a potential market shift, you aren't in DC interviewing a Senator about some new legislature.  You are sitting in an office playing Call of Duty.

 

You are not a "Journalist".

[Monte Carlo]

^ Amen, brother.

[khalil]

A games journalist is no different than a sports journalist or any other sort of boring journalist.

If you want to complain about one not doing any useful work, you have to go complain about all the others too.

[Bryy]

Originality is overrated.

Yeah, innovation is just another word for 'we hate our audience'!

[Sarex]

A games journalist is no different than a sports journalist or any other sort of boring journalist.

If you want to complain about one not doing any useful work, you have to go complain about all the others too.

 

Sadly all journalist are useless, the whole profession has become a joke. But hey let's not derail the thread.

[Bryy]

No need to keep apologising for making a game like this.

To add to my earlier snark with non-snark: 

 

It's not apologizing to say how your game is different. Josh has made it pretty clear that this game will be different in both atmosphere and gameplay. It's not apologizing to talk about how your game is accessible. It's talking about your game. Marketing your game is not "defending". People want to know what sets your game apart from the rest, and it's not apologizing to talk about any of that. Why would they apologize for making a game?

 

Yes, we funded $4.5m for this game; but at the end of the day, Obsidian has to be proud of the product they made. It has to satisfy them. 

[C2B]

 

Originality is overrated.

Yeah, innovation is just another word for 'we hate our audience'!

 

What I personally meant was that lots of people think being original or different automatically makes something great while forgetting the importance of execution. Edited April 1, 2014 by C2B

[Bryy]

 

 

Originality is overrated.

Yeah, innovation is just another word for 'we hate our audience'!

 

What I personally meant was that lots of people think being original or different automatically makes something great while forgetting the importance of execution.

 

Way to kill the joke, C2B.

[Your Best Buddy]

On the contrary, the interviews I've seen have been from guys who've gushed sentiments like, "I loved BG and y'all's old work on games like Planescape so much! This's going to be similarily good right?"

 

As for journalism, ah'd define it as investigating a matter to locate an original story and present the primary evidence which led you to the interpretation you share with your readers. In other words, investigative journalism is the only true journalism. Most "journalists" are talking heads, fluctuating their intonation at random while reading from a cue card, regurgitating what they saw on other news sites but with more exaggerated provocative claims, or compiling lists of what an online search turned up.

 

Recognize interviews serve mainly as advertising exposure which's why interview formats have been used to make presentations for videogames and other products in videos made in-house to hype customers before release.