So is Obsidian going to make good profit with this game?

[Sheikh]

Any opinions?

 

I hope so mainly because its a kickstarter project and its a worthwhile one (and a good one).

 

I mean the people that backed it mainly just funded it, obviously obsidian isnt going to make profit off of the 4m$ that it was funded with, but if it turns out as a pretty well done game then the potential is there to attract all sort of players, I think.

 

Of course IMO the main point of the project hopefully is to make a good game, not profit but it would be great if those two things went hand in hand too for Obsidian.

[mtroman85]

Well, that mostly depends on them.

 

I for one hope it makes a huge profit and allows them to make sequels, expansion packs, future cRPGs, etc. 

[illathid]

Well pretty much any copy sold at release will pretty much be pure profit, so even a relatively modest release will still get obsidian a fair chunk of cash. I'm pretty optimistic considering what I've seen so far.

[rjshae]

My expectation is that they will at least recoup the original KS funding, and maybe more. Enough for another game at any rate.

 

But I'm a 'glass is too large' kind of guy...

[HoonDing]

There's no reason why the game won't sell at least as well as Divinity: Original Sin.

[Night Stalker]

I have to admit I have doubts. D:OS and Wasteland 2 looked somewhat modern by using 3D graphics, something PoE explicitly avoids. For many it might end up sitting uncomfortably between the charming lo-res aesthetics of indie games, and the 3D spectacle of modern games. Also Obsidian has to dodge their reputation for making buggy, unfinished games, and release the game when there is not too much competition in the RPG market.

 

I do hope PoE becomes a top seller within its niche, and I am sure a lot of old IE fans will buy it, but I am not certain it is going to break any records.

[Malekith]

I have to admit I have doubts. D:OS and Wasteland 2 looked somewhat modern by using 3D graphics, something PoE explicitly avoids. For many it might end up sitting uncomfortably between the charming lo-res aesthetics of indie games, and the 3D spectacle of modern games. Also Obsidian has to dodge their reputation for making buggy, unfinished games, and release the game when there is not too much competition in the RPG market.

 

I can (maybe) accept that reasoning for DOS, but Wasteland 2 looks like ****. I still liked it better than DOS, but visuals aren't it's strong points.

[Sheikh]

Just to add here I personally really dont think visuals are very important. I love the graphics of some of the old 2d games (not infinity engine games, they really had poor graphics) and Id be surprised if there werent a fair chunk of people out there who agreed with me on this.

 

E: Or look at the approach of League of legends for example - the game is extremely popular and most people do not seem to mind the graphics it has, me included.

Edited October 1, 2014 by Sheikh

[Quantics]

@Sheikh +1 I'm hoping to play this on my 2011 macbook so I surely hope it will not be a resource hog as well

[Malignacious]

Any opinions?

 

I hope so mainly because its a kickstarter project and its a worthwhile one (and a good one).

 

I mean the people that backed it mainly just funded it, obviously obsidian isnt going to make profit off of the 4m$ that it was funded with, but if it turns out as a pretty well done game then the potential is there to attract all sort of players, I think.

 

Of course IMO the main point of the project hopefully is to make a good game, not profit but it would be great if those two things went hand in hand too for Obsidian.

 

If they treat it as a real project and start to completely ignore the nostalgia fetish people, they could make at least 5 times as much as they got from the kickstarter.

 

But I don't know how long would it take to create all the animations and effects from scratch so it can approach a level of quality most people expect now.

[rjshae]

In terms of graphical quality, the level of immersion is an important factor. If you are engaged with the plot and the characters, then the graphics can look mediocre and (after a little while) you probably won't care. Otherwise, no amount of eye candy is going to provide satisfaction.

[Namutree]

 

Any opinions?

 

I hope so mainly because its a kickstarter project and its a worthwhile one (and a good one).

 

I mean the people that backed it mainly just funded it, obviously obsidian isnt going to make profit off of the 4m$ that it was funded with, but if it turns out as a pretty well done game then the potential is there to attract all sort of players, I think.

 

Of course IMO the main point of the project hopefully is to make a good game, not profit but it would be great if those two things went hand in hand too for Obsidian.

 

If they treat it as a real project and start to completely ignore the nostalgia fetish people, they could make at least 5 times as much as they got from the kickstarter.

 

But I don't know how long would it take to create all the animations and effects from scratch so it can approach a level of quality most people expect now.

 

Ignoring your target audience is a sure way to ensure failure.

 

Hitman: Absolution- Revamped graphics at the expense of features the core audience likes.

Dragon Age 2- Revamped the graphics and animations at the expense of features the core audience wants.

Splinter Cell: Conviction- Revamped visuals at the expense of more important features.

 

These games attempted to capture an audience more interested style than substance. As a result they sold as well as the leading brand of bottled farts. Obsidian should not choose neat visuals at the expense of it's actual appeal; nostalgia. Your idea would lead to complete failure.

 

By all means though; keep insisting that Obsidian try to reach an audience never in danger of being interested. Why you think Obsidian can compete with Bioware/Bethesda is beyond me, but who am I to judge?

[forgottenlor]

 

Any opinions?

 

I hope so mainly because its a kickstarter project and its a worthwhile one (and a good one).

 

I mean the people that backed it mainly just funded it, obviously obsidian isnt going to make profit off of the 4m$ that it was funded with, but if it turns out as a pretty well done game then the potential is there to attract all sort of players, I think.

 

Of course IMO the main point of the project hopefully is to make a good game, not profit but it would be great if those two things went hand in hand too for Obsidian.

 

If they treat it as a real project and start to completely ignore the nostalgia fetish people, they could make at least 5 times as much as they got from the kickstarter.

 

But I don't know how long would it take to create all the animations and effects from scratch so it can approach a level of quality most people expect now.

 

The nostalgia fetish people are the ones who gave them the money to make this game. If they hadn't, Obsidian was in the position where they would have had to lay off a number of their staff. This game was made on a 4 million dollar budget (circa). Games like Skyrim are made with 25X that budget. Who is going to finance all the fancy animations and effects?

 

That having been said they'd want to make at least 2 million dollars for a sequel (I'm assuming with the assets for this game already made, creating a sequel wouldn't cost as much as the base game.)

Edited October 1, 2014 by forgottenlor

[Ink Blot]

 

 

Any opinions?

 

I hope so mainly because its a kickstarter project and its a worthwhile one (and a good one).

 

I mean the people that backed it mainly just funded it, obviously obsidian isnt going to make profit off of the 4m$ that it was funded with, but if it turns out as a pretty well done game then the potential is there to attract all sort of players, I think.

 

Of course IMO the main point of the project hopefully is to make a good game, not profit but it would be great if those two things went hand in hand too for Obsidian.

 

If they treat it as a real project and start to completely ignore the nostalgia fetish people, they could make at least 5 times as much as they got from the kickstarter.

 

But I don't know how long would it take to create all the animations and effects from scratch so it can approach a level of quality most people expect now.

 

Ignoring your target audience is a sure way to ensure failure.

 

Hitman: Absolution- Revamped graphics at the expense of features the core audience likes.

Dragon Age 2- Revamped the graphics and animations at the expense of features the core audience wants.

Splinter Cell: Conviction- Revamped visuals at the expense of more important features.

 

These games attempted to capture an audience more interested style than substance. As a result they sold as well as the leading brand of bottled farts. Obsidian should not choose neat visuals at the expense of it's actual appeal; nostalgia. Your idea would lead to complete failure.

 

By all means though; keep insisting that Obsidian try to reach an audience never in danger of being interested. Why you think Obsidian can compete with Bioware/Bethesda is beyond me, but who am I to judge?

 

It's all about the graphics, animations, and the ragdoll physics, man! Haven't you seen the light yet? The world has moved on. Gameplay, story, and characters don't matter. All you need is flash and no substance to make a game that everyone wants to play. That's progress, man! Progress!

[Monte Carlo]

I predict this game will make AT LEAST WL2 levels of profit. Maybe more, as fantasy is a more mainstream genre.

[Malignacious]

It's all about the graphics, animations, and the ragdoll physics, man! Haven't you seen the light yet? The world has moved on. Gameplay, story, and characters don't matter. All you need is flash and no substance to make a game that everyone wants to play. That's progress, man! Progress!

 

You make no sense.

Dungeon Siege 3 had an enthralling atmosphere and story, supremely addictive and physical combat, relying on your skill as much as how you built your character. It had excellent voice acting, variety of enemies, branching plot lines, and best boss fights you could wish for.

 

So, why not go that route instead of returning to this decrepitude of reminiscence?

[Monte Carlo]

 

It's all about the graphics, animations, and the ragdoll physics, man! Haven't you seen the light yet? The world has moved on. Gameplay, story, and characters don't matter. All you need is flash and no substance to make a game that everyone wants to play. That's progress, man! Progress!

 

You make no sense.

Dungeon Siege 3 had an enthralling atmosphere and story, supremely addictive and physical combat, relying on your skill as much as how you built your character. It had excellent voice acting, variety of enemies, branching plot lines, and best boss fights you could wish for.

 

So, why not go that route instead of returning to this decrepitude of reminiscence?

 

 

A solid B. You get better with every post. PM me your real identity, I won't tell.

[Malekith]

 

It's all about the graphics, animations, and the ragdoll physics, man! Haven't you seen the light yet? The world has moved on. Gameplay, story, and characters don't matter. All you need is flash and no substance to make a game that everyone wants to play. That's progress, man! Progress!

 

You make no sense.

Dungeon Siege 3 had an enthralling atmosphere and story,(sorry, no, it was mediocre at best) supremely addictive and physical combat(bwahahaha, no), relying on your skill as much as how you built your character. It had excellent voice acting (true), variety of enemies (sorry, no,), branching plot Lines(as cosmetic as Bioware's), and best boss fights you could wish for.(bwahahaha, no)

 

So, why not go that route instead of returning to this decrepitude of reminiscence?

 

Because even if your delusions were true, still Dungeon Shiege 3 wasn't a commercial success, and there will be no DS4. And you know what played a big part in that?

The game wasn't what the nostalgia people wanted. The game played differently than its archaic predecessors, but it had better animations and rag-doll physics man! And no one gave a ****.

Even if i believe it was miles better than the first two games (but no thanks to rag-doll physics), it was not what the original fanbase wanted, nor did it have that extra "something" most other Obsidian games have, so not even all Obsidian fans liked it much.

And the mythical "2014 animations-ragdoll physics-graphicz crowd" never bothered, they just continued playing CoD and GTA V

Edited October 1, 2014 by Malekith

[Malignacious]

 And you know what played a big part in that?

 

Misguided, reflexive hostility due to game being labeled as part of the Dungeon Siege series, so it was never judged on its own merit?

[Namutree]

 

 And you know what played a big part in that?

 

Misguided, reflexive hostility due to game being labeled as part of the Dungeon Siege series, so it was never judged on its own merit?

 

That, and it had little commercial appeal.

[redneckdevil]

Sigh, each time preaching waving bait around and people still get suckered in to bite lol.

 

Yes i hope they make a profit off this game because i want sequels and expandsions and dlcs ) just give me good content for me to throw money at )

[mtroman85]

Yes i hope they make a profit off this game because i want sequels and expandsions and dlcs ) just give me good content for me to throw money at )

That sums it up pretty much for me.  If the game is good, I hope it sells well. 

[Quantics]

I don't think new gamers will stop at the fact that it's a 2D game.

 

I mean look at the games in the tablet world, they're all mostly unimpressive compared to modern flagship console games. Yet it's still a very profitable market.

 

There is definitely room for diversity in the gaming industry today. 

 

And don't forget that PoE will be playable on slightly older computers, which is a non-negligible aspect as well. At least I do not own a very powerful computer, so I'm happy that I'll actually be able to play this one !

Edited October 2, 2014 by Quantics

[Elerond]

I don't think new gamers will stop at the fact that it's a 2D game.

 

I mean look at the games in the tablet world, they're all mostly unimpressive compared to modern flagship console games.

 

There is definitely room for diversity in the gaming industry today.

 

And don't forget that PoE will be playable on slightly older computers, which is a non-negligible aspect as well. At least I do not own a very powerful computer, so I'm happy that I'll actually be able to play this one !

 

It is bit simplistic to say that PoE is 2D game, as it uses pre-rendered 3D modeled backgrounds that are rendered in an axonometric projection, so that people see depth in the map, and game uses 3D rendered character models and effects. 

 

Tablet games are usually designed to different kind of playing than your typical big budget console and computer games. But some of popular games these days use similar isometric style gameplay that PoE uses so it's quite safe to say that such style should not hinder too much PoE's sales

 

But anyway it is quite probable that PoE will sell quite well, because it release window is excellent (at least with current knowledge) , as it is following big AAA fantasy rpg, that will leave great hype wave smaller fantasy rpgs to surf on, and addition to that it is released about same time with very anticipated fantasy movie, which will also give strength to that fantasy hype wave. And Obsidian is well known and respected studio with games that have million sellers on it belt.

 

So if PoE isn't absolute train wreck of a game I would predict it will sell relatively well. It probably will not achieve similar sales figures as AAA games with their millions of dollars worth of advertising, but will sell very good numbers for game with quite minimalistic marketing budget.

[Bryy]

Original Sin paid back its investors and made $2 million in three days. It's possible.