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Game News MCA On Wasteland 2 And Kickstarter

Jaesun

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Tags: Chris Avellone; Kickstarter; Obsidian Entertainment; Wasteland 2

MCA shares his thoughts on inXile's proposed Wasteland 2 and Kickstarter at the Obsidian Blog:

Recently, I was asked about Wasteland, and the answer became complicated enough that I decided to respond to here.

In short, I’d kill for another Wasteland.

Not just because it was a post-apocalyptic RPG, but because it did so much that was refreshingly new with conventional tech, something that Fallout did as well, and there’s a big lesson to be learned there.

I’m a big fan of using non-video-card-and-non-engine-innovations to drive development, and sometimes it only requires stepping back a second and taking a fresh look at the game to pull it off – as an example, my favorite example of non-tech innovation is low-INT dialogue options in Fallout. Brilliant. Wasteland did the exact same thing, except with skill progression and location setting – it allowed your character to grow in new ways, and it took you to places in its low-rez world that I haven’t seen rivaled or done half as well in contemporary games.


So the whole Kickstarter model, Double Fine’s adventure game, and now the hopes of Fargo bringing Wasteland on-line is amazing. It’s probably no secret after Old World Blues how much I enjoyed Wasteland and giant scorpions and proton weapons, but Wasteland has a lot of my childhood tied up in it. To explain: I was in early high school, I was coming off of the Bard’s Tale series and needed another fix... and from what I saw of Wasteland on the back cover of the package, it seemed to fit the bill. I was wrong.

Why? When I booted it up, I found it confusing and not like Bard’s Tale at all - (well, beyond the combat), and the navigation especially threw me off a bit at first. Separate the party? What did all these skills exactly do? Where was I supposed to go? I was prepared for several more hours of disappointment and thought I’d wasted my money. I was used to the faux-3D corridors and environments... then a number of things happened that woke me up to what this title was doing, and I realized Interplay had made something different and well on par with Bard’s Tale.


In any event, hats off to Fargo and InXile, I’m definitely putting my money down when they start up their Kickstarter fund, and I’ll donate just as much as I did to Double Fine. Give me Wasteland 2 already.

You can read the full article here as well as some of his personal observation with the original Wasteland.
 

hoverdog

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Zed

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I was wondering when he'd comment on it :)
The only thing speaking against Wasteland 2 is the developing team. I'm not saying they're bad or anything, I just don't know anything about them. Untested, kind of. I sure as hell hope they can pull it off though.
 
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For a moment, I had hopes that MCA and Brian Fargo have to each other for a collaborative project for W2.

I'd rather have two separate projects. My brain can't handle too much awesomeness all at once (especially seeing how it's been starved of it lately). Planescape 2 from Obsidian and Wasteland 2 from InXile. Just. Imagine.
 

Jaesun

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For a moment, I had hopes that MCA and Brian Fargo have to each other for a collaborative project for W2.

I'd rather have two separate projects. My brain can't handle too much awesomeness all at once (especially seeing how it's been starved of it lately). Planescape 2 from Obsidian and Wasteland 2 from InXile. Just. Imagine.

Obsidian do not own the rights to Planescape, nor can they do a game in that setting without the permission of WotC/Hasbro. Which then put's us back to where we are already in. Shitty publishers demanding shitty action game #3555664 because that's what sells.
 

hoverdog

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Besides, I'm pretty sure the God-Emperor MCA could easily come up with his own magnificent setting even more suitable to his deconstructionism needs :mca:
 

Stinger

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Now tweet that image to Brian Fargo and Chris Avellone.

Obsidian do not own the rights to Planescape, nor can they do a game in that setting without the permission of WotC/Hasbro.

Well, seeing as "Planescape 2" or "Torment spiritual successor" was the most popular response to Avellone's kickstart questions thing there's always the possibility of a prose heavy, well written RPG in a similar vein to Torment.
 

Shannow

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Obsidian do not own the rights to Planescape, nor can they do a game in that setting without the permission of WotC/Hasbro. Which then put's us back to where we are already in. Shitty publishers demanding shitty action game #3555664 because that's what sells.
Are you sure about that? I'd expect a promise to stay "true" to the setting and a licensing fee to take care of everything.
While staying "true" to the setting has some potential to put up restrictions, it's Planescape, ffs. Anything goes in Planescape.
It's not like WotC/Hasbro had to risk funding and publishing the game (leading to risk aversion, resulting in yet Another Action Adventure) with the potential of losing money. They'd have the choice between licensing the setting, getting some money without risk; and not licensing the game, not getting any money. Now I'm sure even your average run-of-the-mill manager would chose the money. But perhaps I don't understand the industry/am too naive?
 

DwarvenFood

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Gotta love this one:
Well, since Wasteland is my favourite game of all time, I felt I needed to write a comment here even though I really have nothing to add.

And Jaesun, why u so jaded man ?

Shitty publishers demanding shitty action game #3555664 because that's what sells
We are talking about games without big publisher backing this time.

Obsidian do not own the rights to Planescape, nor can they do a game in that setting without the permission of WotC/Hasbro.
It does not have to literally be Planescape 2, there is a lot of room to maneuver in here, you should be able to see that.

Which then put's us back to where we are already in.
No, now we have a chance of two potentially awesome, probably good, and most likely better-than-average games.
 

commie

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For a moment, I had hopes that MCA and Brian Fargo have to each other for a collaborative project for W2.

I'd rather have two separate projects. My brain can't handle too much awesomeness all at once (especially seeing how it's been starved of it lately). Planescape 2 from Obsidian and Wasteland 2 from InXile. Just. Imagine.

Obsidian do not own the rights to Planescape, nor can they do a game in that setting without the permission of WotC/Hasbro. Which then put's us back to where we are already in. Shitty publishers demanding shitty action game #3555664 because that's what sells.

I don't know about WotC..It's not like their IP's have had a lot of use of late; Daggerdale notwithstanding; and we all know what a great advert for D&D that was. I think WotC would jump at some decent game coming out to advertise their wares which are for a niche market anyway. It's different that trying to make a Fallout game with that being tied up by Bethesda and having its own next gen expectations already.
 

Azalin

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For a moment, I had hopes that MCA and Brian Fargo have to each other for a collaborative project for W2.

Why not,after all Obsidian is more or less a sequel factory so making Wasteland 2 would be just a continuation of their formula
 

Grim Monk

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Now tweet that image to Brian Fargo and Chris Avellone.

I don't have a Twitter account.

Anybody who do's is free to do so, as well post the image anywhere they want...


Gotta love this one:
Well, since Wasteland is my favourite game of all time, I felt I needed to write a comment here even though I really have nothing to add.

If your talking about me, lets be realistic.

1. Brain Fargo left Interplay in 2002, in the 10 years since his company released only 2 major games.
Both of them according to Codex Consensus are mediocre.
Links:
http://rpgcodex.net/content.php?id=140
http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/inde...steland-2-and-kickstarter.69611/#post-1973248

2. Obsidian Entertainment was formed one year later, and in 9 years they made about 7 major games.
Codex reactions have been varied, but the consensus is that some are pretty good.

3. inXile got the rights to Wasteland in 2003, and has basically sat on them ever since. Jason Anderson came and went, we got to look at some artwork and thats about it.
Now they've hired Michael Stackpole, and dug up some more (old) artwork.

4. But neither Fargo nor, Stackpole is a substitute for a whole development team. Plus, both (as far as I know) were last active in day to day development in the early 90's.
The other people they have we've either haven't heard anything about, or have reasons to mistrust with this project.
Link:
http://gamasutra.com/view/news/3427...r_Matt_Findley_On_Hunted_The_Demons_Forge.php

5. Obsidian has most of Black Isle, and is now getting parts of Troika aswell. Most of the people there have been actually working on games up to the present day.

That's it for now, I'll think up and post more points latter on...
 

IronicNeurotic

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5. Obsidian has most of Black Isle, and is now getting parts of Troika aswell. Most of the people there have been actually working on games up to the present day.

Not to mention, even the people Obsidian hired with no connection to these companies have garnered quite a bit of respect on the codex. (Fenstermaker, Ziets)
 

Lexx

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Obsidian / inXile cooperation on Wasteland 2 would be fantasticular.
 

crojipjip

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I have observations of MCA's observations.

A. He is right
B. He could be more richous.

Today is tomorrow. Hire Brian Fargo or not. Use Tim Cain for sure. Don't listen to your fans about the past. You have proven you know , yes you know. But to take a game as far as possible that is your goal. Kaioken the talent man. 10x the intensity man. Get the talent you deserve and fly away. Make it happen.
 

Serious_Business

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Besides, I'm pretty sure the God-Emperor MCA could easily come up with his own magnificent setting even more suitable to his deconstructionism needs :mca:

What, he would make a setting and then deconstruct it? :lol:

MCA just takes this antagonist position on a setting when he has it handed to him. It's his ways of breaking the barriers and not being limited by others' stupid shit, I guess, and this is why I'm sympathetic to the guy. But was Alpha Protocol's setting crafted by him? If so, there wasn't that much in the way of deconstruction, was it? It was clear cut and cliché if anything at all
 

IronicNeurotic

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But was Alpha Protocol's setting crafted by him? If so, there wasn't that much in the way of deconstruction, was it? It was clear cut and cliché if anything at all

It wasn't crafted by him. First off it's a modern day setting. So, there isn't all that much to "craft". Secondly, while he rewrote it, he basically inherited the entire framework from Mitsoda/whoever did it and just repurposed it.
 

commie

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Someone explain to me how a modern Wasteland would be any different from Fallout

Why would it have to be radically different? It seems like a sneaky way of making a new 'Fallout' game in the style of 1 and 2 without worrying about Bethesda. Fallout itself was supposedly a spiritual continuation of 'Wasteland' so it would just be going full circle.
 

Albers

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And cheaper than licensing the Road Warrior.
 

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