My thanks to individual devs/departments for PoE

[kaiki]

Hello,

 

I wasn't sure if this belonged in Obisdian general forum or PoE forum so I'll post it here and move it if it's a problem.

 

My thanks to Josh Sawyer & Adam Brennecke: Thank you both so much for birthing this idea and shepherding it through the kickstarter process, through development and finally to launch. So many other projects funded through kickstarter have failed to reach launch, it was wonderful to see Pillars of Eternity get to launch in a strong & solid shape. I'm really interested in watching the full making of documentary to see how much work just was needed just to get through the kickstarter process to even reach development.

 

My thanks to Mark Bremerkamp, Shon Stewart and the whole animation department: The animations in Pillars were perfect in form and function. They conveyed the appropriate information, seemed natural and never took me out of the game. It must be hard at times working in animation as when it's done right I doubt many people clamor about how the naturalistic animation made them able to fully immerse themselves in the game. That was the situation I found myself in so I wanted to thank you for doing such a fantastic job.

 

My thanks to Rob Nesler, Dimitri Berman, Hector Espinoza and all the art derpartments: Sorry for grouping everyone together as I wasn't 100% sure how each of your teams responsibilities lay. I will say that the art was fantastic. Everything had a unified and evocative feel of the old IE games while having a painterly quality that stands up against any modern game. I rarely play games done in the retro style or old classics as I can't bring myself to enjoy the art. With PoE I had no problem enjoying the high quality art. The lush colors and changing environments meant I never got fatigue from viewing the same environment for long periods of time. I loved the armour and clothing styles that gave a historic feel but with their own character. Art makes up such a huge part of the audio/visual medium of video games and your passion and talent really showed in this game.

 

My thanks to Justin Bell and the audio team: Wow! The soundtrack for this game is fantastic. Even though it has an IE/fantasy feel with the music there is a quality that makes me unable to stop listening to the wonderful tracks. The environmental audio was fantastic as well. I found out that I was missing so much by listening on my PC speakers that I started playing the game on my studio headphones in order to get the full aural experience. There was a great balance struck with immersive and entertaining with the audio. It didn't distract from the narrative or gameplay while at the same time it brought a great value to the game. I also was impressed that you can hear footsteps from monsters through doors while sneaking and such. That seemed like a great accomplishment on such a, relatively, small budget game. It was noticed and appreciated.

 

My thanks to Bobby Null, Eric Fenstermaker and the designer departments: The majority of games I play, I play for story. Gameplay helps me enjoy the experiance and keeps me playing, but the promise of a good story brings me in and makes me play to finish. The story for PoE was great. I loved the themes of faith, progress, responsibility in an environment where I find narrative games don't use those themes very often. I also enjoyed how Dyrwood was an analogue to America when so many fantasy settings take place in a European style continent. It set a different feel to the game and created wonderful narrative opportunities that your teams took full advantage of. I also loved the characters and choices that were put into the game. From the wonderful companions to the street urchins. Each one helped weave a living, breathing world that took me through a tanstic journey that I will remember for years to come.

 

My thanks to Brandon Adler and the production department: My thanks to each of you for helping such a fantastic game getting made. I wish I knew the ins and outs of what the production team did so that I could have a greater appreciation of all the hard work you did. Unlike the art, designer or audio departments I struggle to point to one thing and say "the production department made that happen". I guess I have to point to the entire game and say thank you for helping the entire experience reach launch with such fantastic quality.

 

My thanks to the programming department: The systems you created and implemented in the game helped PoE soar. The mechanics and gameplay were smooth and a joy. The day & night cycles, maps like the stronghold that could change over time, the reputation system and the rest that had to be implemented added such fun to the experience. I can't think of a time when I was playing where I ran into a system and thought "this was phoned-in". The passion of your work shows through and deserves all the thanks I can give.

 

My thanks to Matthew Sheets and QA: I know Obsidian has had a reputation for bugs in their shipped products. With PoE I was able to go through my first play-through without any problems. It's a testament to the great work of the QA department that PoE shipped with such polish. I'm so grateful that I didn't need to sit at launch and say "I need to wait for a few patches before I can enjoy this game." I enjoyed it out of the gate and still enjoy it even after three play-throughs.

 

My thanks to Jorge Salgado: I really enjoyed your parts of the Dev Commentary. Your passion came through as you talked about the dungeon or Twin Elms. It was listening to your commentary that I really understood that game developers can love their jobs. All too often It seems that as a consumer I see developers talking about the negative aspects of the industry, or read about other consumers unhappy with their video games or whatever. It's a rare thing to hear a developer sound pumped about something small like designing a cool dungeon. I just smiled when I heard that and felt happy just to join in the PoE experience that so many people worked, not just hard, but joyfully to complete.

 

My thanks to Olivia Veras: Thank you for doing a fantastic recording of your commentary. When I got into the Temple of Eothas I knew I'd keep the de commentary track enabled for the rest of my second play-through. Though It bugs me to this day why designers should stay away from bell puzzles. Why? What was the problem with it, I must know D: Thanks again for your wonderful work.

 

My thanks to design intern that I can't remember name or find on credits: Thank you intern for doing a great job at doing dev commentary on the Endless Paths. I was impressed that Obsidian allowed you to record the commentary and I had the thought of how video game development is becoming more consumer facing with the likes of kickstarter. So it was cool to hear you talk about design and the challenges the team faced. Very awesome and best of luck on your career.

 

My thanks to everyone that contributed to the project that I didn't name or mention: Thank each and every one of you. In a time that games are reported to cost tens of millions the quality, scope and breadth of this four million dollar independent game blew me away. It gives me hope for the future of video games that not all games will either be AAA mega-games or 8-bit indie games. I'm also happy that Obsidian seemed to find itself in such a rough time of your history. I'm excited to see what the next ten years has in store for the company and all the wonderful games I'm sure you'll make.

[ManifestedISO]

I think you may have broken the internet with this post, perspicacity level 11. Couldn't agree more or have written it better. 

[Nonek]

I'd just like to re-iterate on the part about Kickstarter, Obsidian delivered what they promised and gave hope to those of us whom have seen Kickstarter abused by developers whom should know better and frankly spat on the hard earned money that the consumers donated. As a model Kickstarter has allowed another way of approaching reasonable development goals, and this was almost spoiled before it began by other developers misusing the funds they were entrusted with, Obsidian managed that money better, made realistic goals and actually produced on a slightly extended timeframe. They should be proud of themselves for what they have achieved here, I may have problems with some parts of the game, but I cannot deny that I got what I paid for and would back again as they have more than repaid the faith that I invested in them unlike some other industry veterans. 

 

I really think this deserves congratulations, not just from the public but from other developers whom choose to go the Kickstarter route, as such well planned success stories are a positive influence on crowd funding and its viability.

Edited April 28, 2015 by Nonek

[IndiraLightfoot]

kaiki: You're just reeling after that über-exciting feeling of having completed PoE on Triple Crown Solo. I certainly know that feeling, and I did it three days before you, mind you...

 

Nah. Disgusting, unwarranted bragging om my behalf - I'm just kidding, of course.

 

A wonderful post. I wish I had written it. I'd like to pour all that praise on the Obsidian devs all over, and then some!

Edited April 28, 2015 by IndiraLightfoot

[Swordfishtrombone]

Just registered here on this forum, having bought the game yesterday, and I can already say that I heartily agree with the sentiments of the OP. 

 

I've had real life issues take too much of my attention for the last few years, so I didn't even know about the kickstarter, and only just yesterday found out about the game. Started playing (well, after spending about an hour on character creation), and I'm loving it. It seems to have that same special *IT* factor that made BG2 my favorite game ever. The music creates a great atmosphere, and I'm taking it slow and steady, reading the lore, and the little stories you get when you interact with various people. The writing has been excellent too.

 

Ended up going with a chanter, as I remember enjoying the bard class best in NWN2 - also an Obsidian game - and I'm really enjoying the chanter class so far. 

 

So thank you Obsidian! 

[Chaos Theory]

Couldn't agree more.  Now, Obsidian...  I need me some New Vegas II.

[AndreaColombo]

Very much agreed

 

 

My thanks to design intern that I can't remember name or find on credits: Thank you intern for doing a great job at doing dev commentary on the Endless Paths. I was impressed that Obsidian allowed you to record the commentary and I had the thought of how video game development is becoming more consumer facing with the likes of kickstarter. So it was cool to hear you talk about design and the challenges the team faced. Very awesome and best of luck on your career.

 

Liam Esler?

[IrithylStarym]

Hello,

 

I wasn't sure if this belonged in Obisdian general forum or PoE forum so I'll post it here and move it if it's a problem.

 

My thanks to Josh Sawyer & Adam Brennecke: Thank you both so much for birthing this idea and shepherding it through the kickstarter process, through development and finally to launch. So many other projects funded through kickstarter have failed to reach launch, it was wonderful to see Pillars of Eternity get to launch in a strong & solid shape. I'm really interested in watching the full making of documentary to see how much work just was needed just to get through the kickstarter process to even reach development.

 

My thanks to Mark Bremerkamp, Shon Stewart and the whole animation department: The animations in Pillars were perfect in form and function. They conveyed the appropriate information, seemed natural and never took me out of the game. It must be hard at times working in animation as when it's done right I doubt many people clamor about how the naturalistic animation made them able to fully immerse themselves in the game. That was the situation I found myself in so I wanted to thank you for doing such a fantastic job.

 

My thanks to Rob Nesler, Dimitri Berman, Hector Espinoza and all the art derpartments: Sorry for grouping everyone together as I wasn't 100% sure how each of your teams responsibilities lay. I will say that the art was fantastic. Everything had a unified and evocative feel of the old IE games while having a painterly quality that stands up against any modern game. I rarely play games done in the retro style or old classics as I can't bring myself to enjoy the art. With PoE I had no problem enjoying the high quality art. The lush colors and changing environments meant I never got fatigue from viewing the same environment for long periods of time. I loved the armour and clothing styles that gave a historic feel but with their own character. Art makes up such a huge part of the audio/visual medium of video games and your passion and talent really showed in this game.

 

My thanks to Justin Bell and the audio team: Wow! The soundtrack for this game is fantastic. Even though it has an IE/fantasy feel with the music there is a quality that makes me unable to stop listening to the wonderful tracks. The environmental audio was fantastic as well. I found out that I was missing so much by listening on my PC speakers that I started playing the game on my studio headphones in order to get the full aural experience. There was a great balance struck with immersive and entertaining with the audio. It didn't distract from the narrative or gameplay while at the same time it brought a great value to the game. I also was impressed that you can hear footsteps from monsters through doors while sneaking and such. That seemed like a great accomplishment on such a, relatively, small budget game. It was noticed and appreciated.

 

My thanks to Bobby Null, Eric Fenstermaker and the designer departments: The majority of games I play, I play for story. Gameplay helps me enjoy the experiance and keeps me playing, but the promise of a good story brings me in and makes me play to finish. The story for PoE was great. I loved the themes of faith, progress, responsibility in an environment where I find narrative games don't use those themes very often. I also enjoyed how Dyrwood was an analogue to America when so many fantasy settings take place in a European style continent. It set a different feel to the game and created wonderful narrative opportunities that your teams took full advantage of. I also loved the characters and choices that were put into the game. From the wonderful companions to the street urchins. Each one helped weave a living, breathing world that took me through a tanstic journey that I will remember for years to come.

 

My thanks to Brandon Adler and the production department: My thanks to each of you for helping such a fantastic game getting made. I wish I knew the ins and outs of what the production team did so that I could have a greater appreciation of all the hard work you did. Unlike the art, designer or audio departments I struggle to point to one thing and say "the production department made that happen". I guess I have to point to the entire game and say thank you for helping the entire experience reach launch with such fantastic quality.

 

My thanks to the programming department: The systems you created and implemented in the game helped PoE soar. The mechanics and gameplay were smooth and a joy. The day & night cycles, maps like the stronghold that could change over time, the reputation system and the rest that had to be implemented added such fun to the experience. I can't think of a time when I was playing where I ran into a system and thought "this was phoned-in". The passion of your work shows through and deserves all the thanks I can give.

 

My thanks to Matthew Sheets and QA: I know Obsidian has had a reputation for bugs in their shipped products. With PoE I was able to go through my first play-through without any problems. It's a testament to the great work of the QA department that PoE shipped with such polish. I'm so grateful that I didn't need to sit at launch and say "I need to wait for a few patches before I can enjoy this game." I enjoyed it out of the gate and still enjoy it even after three play-throughs.

 

My thanks to Jorge Salgado: I really enjoyed your parts of the Dev Commentary. Your passion came through as you talked about the dungeon or Twin Elms. It was listening to your commentary that I really understood that game developers can love their jobs. All too often It seems that as a consumer I see developers talking about the negative aspects of the industry, or read about other consumers unhappy with their video games or whatever. It's a rare thing to hear a developer sound pumped about something small like designing a cool dungeon. I just smiled when I heard that and felt happy just to join in the PoE experience that so many people worked, not just hard, but joyfully to complete.

 

My thanks to Olivia Veras: Thank you for doing a fantastic recording of your commentary. When I got into the Temple of Eothas I knew I'd keep the de commentary track enabled for the rest of my second play-through. Though It bugs me to this day why designers should stay away from bell puzzles. Why? What was the problem with it, I must know D: Thanks again for your wonderful work.

 

My thanks to design intern that I can't remember name or find on credits: Thank you intern for doing a great job at doing dev commentary on the Endless Paths. I was impressed that Obsidian allowed you to record the commentary and I had the thought of how video game development is becoming more consumer facing with the likes of kickstarter. So it was cool to hear you talk about design and the challenges the team faced. Very awesome and best of luck on your career.

 

My thanks to everyone that contributed to the project that I didn't name or mention: Thank each and every one of you. In a time that games are reported to cost tens of millions the quality, scope and breadth of this four million dollar independent game blew me away. It gives me hope for the future of video games that not all games will either be AAA mega-games or 8-bit indie games. I'm also happy that Obsidian seemed to find itself in such a rough time of your history. I'm excited to see what the next ten years has in store for the company and all the wonderful games I'm sure you'll make.

Signed.

[kaiki]

Very much agreed

 

 

My thanks to design intern that I can't remember name or find on credits: Thank you intern for doing a great job at doing dev commentary on the Endless Paths. I was impressed that Obsidian allowed you to record the commentary and I had the thought of how video game development is becoming more consumer facing with the likes of kickstarter. So it was cool to hear you talk about design and the challenges the team faced. Very awesome and best of luck on your career.

 

Liam Esler?

 

He's the one that does the majority of the commentary in the Endless Paths, his title listed is "design intern" so if that's the name, then yes.

[redneckdevil]

Hello,

 

I wasn't sure if this belonged in Obisdian general forum or PoE forum so I'll post it here and move it if it's a problem.

 

My thanks to Josh Sawyer & Adam Brennecke: Thank you both so much for birthing this idea and shepherding it through the kickstarter process, through development and finally to launch. So many other projects funded through kickstarter have failed to reach launch, it was wonderful to see Pillars of Eternity get to launch in a strong & solid shape. I'm really interested in watching the full making of documentary to see how much work just was needed just to get through the kickstarter process to even reach development.

 

My thanks to Mark Bremerkamp, Shon Stewart and the whole animation department: The animations in Pillars were perfect in form and function. They conveyed the appropriate information, seemed natural and never took me out of the game. It must be hard at times working in animation as when it's done right I doubt many people clamor about how the naturalistic animation made them able to fully immerse themselves in the game. That was the situation I found myself in so I wanted to thank you for doing such a fantastic job.

 

My thanks to Rob Nesler, Dimitri Berman, Hector Espinoza and all the art derpartments: Sorry for grouping everyone together as I wasn't 100% sure how each of your teams responsibilities lay. I will say that the art was fantastic. Everything had a unified and evocative feel of the old IE games while having a painterly quality that stands up against any modern game. I rarely play games done in the retro style or old classics as I can't bring myself to enjoy the art. With PoE I had no problem enjoying the high quality art. The lush colors and changing environments meant I never got fatigue from viewing the same environment for long periods of time. I loved the armour and clothing styles that gave a historic feel but with their own character. Art makes up such a huge part of the audio/visual medium of video games and your passion and talent really showed in this game.

 

My thanks to Justin Bell and the audio team: Wow! The soundtrack for this game is fantastic. Even though it has an IE/fantasy feel with the music there is a quality that makes me unable to stop listening to the wonderful tracks. The environmental audio was fantastic as well. I found out that I was missing so much by listening on my PC speakers that I started playing the game on my studio headphones in order to get the full aural experience. There was a great balance struck with immersive and entertaining with the audio. It didn't distract from the narrative or gameplay while at the same time it brought a great value to the game. I also was impressed that you can hear footsteps from monsters through doors while sneaking and such. That seemed like a great accomplishment on such a, relatively, small budget game. It was noticed and appreciated.

 

My thanks to Bobby Null, Eric Fenstermaker and the designer departments: The majority of games I play, I play for story. Gameplay helps me enjoy the experiance and keeps me playing, but the promise of a good story brings me in and makes me play to finish. The story for PoE was great. I loved the themes of faith, progress, responsibility in an environment where I find narrative games don't use those themes very often. I also enjoyed how Dyrwood was an analogue to America when so many fantasy settings take place in a European style continent. It set a different feel to the game and created wonderful narrative opportunities that your teams took full advantage of. I also loved the characters and choices that were put into the game. From the wonderful companions to the street urchins. Each one helped weave a living, breathing world that took me through a tanstic journey that I will remember for years to come.

 

My thanks to Brandon Adler and the production department: My thanks to each of you for helping such a fantastic game getting made. I wish I knew the ins and outs of what the production team did so that I could have a greater appreciation of all the hard work you did. Unlike the art, designer or audio departments I struggle to point to one thing and say "the production department made that happen". I guess I have to point to the entire game and say thank you for helping the entire experience reach launch with such fantastic quality.

 

My thanks to the programming department: The systems you created and implemented in the game helped PoE soar. The mechanics and gameplay were smooth and a joy. The day & night cycles, maps like the stronghold that could change over time, the reputation system and the rest that had to be implemented added such fun to the experience. I can't think of a time when I was playing where I ran into a system and thought "this was phoned-in". The passion of your work shows through and deserves all the thanks I can give.

 

My thanks to Matthew Sheets and QA: I know Obsidian has had a reputation for bugs in their shipped products. With PoE I was able to go through my first play-through without any problems. It's a testament to the great work of the QA department that PoE shipped with such polish. I'm so grateful that I didn't need to sit at launch and say "I need to wait for a few patches before I can enjoy this game." I enjoyed it out of the gate and still enjoy it even after three play-throughs.

 

My thanks to Jorge Salgado: I really enjoyed your parts of the Dev Commentary. Your passion came through as you talked about the dungeon or Twin Elms. It was listening to your commentary that I really understood that game developers can love their jobs. All too often It seems that as a consumer I see developers talking about the negative aspects of the industry, or read about other consumers unhappy with their video games or whatever. It's a rare thing to hear a developer sound pumped about something small like designing a cool dungeon. I just smiled when I heard that and felt happy just to join in the PoE experience that so many people worked, not just hard, but joyfully to complete.

 

My thanks to Olivia Veras: Thank you for doing a fantastic recording of your commentary. When I got into the Temple of Eothas I knew I'd keep the de commentary track enabled for the rest of my second play-through. Though It bugs me to this day why designers should stay away from bell puzzles. Why? What was the problem with it, I must know D: Thanks again for your wonderful work.

 

My thanks to design intern that I can't remember name or find on credits: Thank you intern for doing a great job at doing dev commentary on the Endless Paths. I was impressed that Obsidian allowed you to record the commentary and I had the thought of how video game development is becoming more consumer facing with the likes of kickstarter. So it was cool to hear you talk about design and the challenges the team faced. Very awesome and best of luck on your career.

 

My thanks to everyone that contributed to the project that I didn't name or mention: Thank each and every one of you. In a time that games are reported to cost tens of millions the quality, scope and breadth of this four million dollar independent game blew me away. It gives me hope for the future of video games that not all games will either be AAA mega-games or 8-bit indie games. I'm also happy that Obsidian seemed to find itself in such a rough time of your history. I'm excited to see what the next ten years has in store for the company and all the wonderful games I'm sure you'll make.

I agree 100% and Ty because this really needed to be said and I don't think it coulda been said any better than what u did. I also wanna add my thanks along with urs and thank everybody at obsidian for this awesome and fun crpg and would gladly back them again. Time for me to get back to playing.

[Yellow Rabbit]

Bump

[monkoth]

I want to chip in my 5 penny's worth to this thread and express my impressions on having now experienced playing Pillars of Eternity.

 

Thank you Obsidian! Thank you so very much for this awesome game. It transports me back to the late 1990's when I purchased Baldur’s Gate. I have played and subsequently replayed that game for nigh on a decade a half and have wondered ever since whether I would ever get ‘that feeling’ about gaming ever again again. You guys made it happen – you did it! and I have had a truly magical experience playing Pillars.

 

I would also like to add that this isn't just a post fuelled by nostalgia and that I am genuinely impressed with how the game delivers a truly enhanced experience over previous titles - outstanding. It is a credit to a deft and talented development team that you chaps managed to get it into that coveted 'goldilocks zone' imho… and then to present a game like this, in this manner - astonishing work!

 

I would like to avoid being overtly sycophantic and therefore gush unnecessarily about this game, but I fear it is unavoidable. I lack the in-depth knowledge of the problems developers encounter both before and during production and have very little to offer in terms of any focussed critical acclaim. Therefore I would just like to express my gratitude - please continue to craft this universe and expand this franchise in a timeframe that benefits a game of this caliber.

 

Cheers and congratulations on Pillars of Eternity