Obsidian Interview at GameBanshee

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GameBanshee has interviewed John Morgan, Ferret Baudoin and Chris Avellone from Obsidian. They talk about the need for more employees and applications coming from friends and colleagues from the former Fallout team after closures. GameBanshee also asks about the single player campaign in Neverwinter Nights 2, the multiplayer mode, character advancement opportunities, henchmen and all the goodies. What is also worth noticing is the Feargus Urquhart seems to have bought some licenses from Interplay before the collapse. Here's a snip:

GB: Tell us a bit about the general storyline behind the single player campaign in Neverwinter Nights 2. Have you decided on any particular areas of the Forgotten Realms to include in the campaign?

FB: The storyline of Neverwinter Nights 2 starts simply enough in the middle of the Mere of Dead Men in your home town, the humble village of West Harbor. Only the brave and strong manage to eke out a living in such a dangerous monster-ridden swamp and Harbormen are tougher than standard folk, maintaining a certain pride in their perversity. But one night trouble comes knocking – and it’s looking for a long-buried relic, a remnant of a dark war fought when you were but a child. When the night-time raid is staged the enemy underestimates the strength of your village, but victory comes with a price of blood. You are sent on a desperate mission to Neverwinter to unearth the secrets of the relic, all the while being hounded by opposition. From there a chain of events force you into the role of a hero, giving you the strength, the power, and the knowledge you need to strike back against the forces gathering against you – and the people of the Realms.

Neverwinter 2 features many locations familiar to fans of the Realms, as well as many bonus areas created especially for the game – there’s plenty of adventure to be had, from the Mere of Dead Men, to the murderous back-alleys of Neverwinter, to the mountainous crags of Old Owl Well… all the way to the epic confrontation at the end of the game.

And about the licenses:

GB: We've heard a rumor that you may have acquired the Icewind Dale license from Interplay. Is there any truth to this?

JM: Feargus had the foresight to buy several assets from Interplay as it collapsed. It's a great opportunity for some of that work and effort to shine when otherwise it might not ever see the light of day.

Read the whole thing at GameBanshee.

I look forward to NWN2 myself and I must say I love the style of concept art from Obsidian. I've always loved this kind of drawing. If other aspects of the game are getting the same touch in the development, we're going to get something great in the end. It would be really nice if they did the same with the Icewind Dale license. Go Obsidian!

[ May 13, 2005, 13:07: Message edited by: chevalier ]