Slashdot Mirror

Jfarro writes "The vidcast Downstairs Theater has posted their coverage of the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) which just recently passed. Inside, the crew has several interviews with developers there on such games as Guitar Hero 2, Neverwinter Nights 2, Castle Crashers, Warhammer Online: Age of reckoning and Brooktown High. Also included are outtakes from the "Pitch your game idea" panel, cosplay interviews, and a few skits to round out their coverage of the event."

An anonymous reader writes "Looks like Atari has just announced Neverwinter Nights 2, to be developed by Obsidian Entertainment, the same ex-Black Isle folks who are making Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic 2 in conjunction with BioWare. However, it's 'scheduled for release in 2006', so we've got a while to wait." A post on the Obsidian forums has a single piece of concept art, and it's confirmed that "[Original developers] BioWare will provide tools, technology, and game assets from the original Neverwinter Nights as well as lend creative input and oversight to the development process."

An anonymous reader writes "Looks like Atari has just announced Neverwinter Nights 2, to be developed by Obsidian Entertainment, the same ex-Black Isle folks who are making Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic 2 in conjunction with BioWare. However, it's 'scheduled for release in 2006', so we've got a while to wait." A post on the Obsidian forums has a single piece of concept art, and it's confirmed that "[Original developers] BioWare will provide tools, technology, and game assets from the original Neverwinter Nights as well as lend creative input and oversight to the development process."

Thanks to Winterwind Productions for its two-part interview with Chris Avellone, former RPG designer for Interplay's Black Isle division, discussing the continued turmoil at that company ("Projects getting cancelled just happens, but the reasons that projects were getting cancelled at Interplay never felt like good reasons"), his new home at Obsidian Entertainment ("I think our starting line of titles are going to be a good foundation to build Obsidian on... and should help when pitching new ideas to publishers"), and his work on Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic 2, including more specific endings compared to KOTOR ("The current game mechanic we're playing around for the endings with is something similar to Fallout, but it will be presented a little differently.")

An anonymous reader writes "The Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic official forums are buzzing with new details on the Obsidian Entertainment-developed Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords for Xbox/PC, as discussed in this month's new EGM and CGW magazines [not yet available online, sadly]. Apparently, 'you will not play the same character', although 'you pilot the Ebon Hawk.. [and] start out as a Jedi' - the game 'picks up 5 years after the end of the first KOTOR', and returning roles are also confirmed for 'R2-D2-esque droid T3-M4' and 'another bot that bears a suspicious resemblance to the original's irascible 'meatbag'-loathing HK-47'."

Thanks to GameSpot for its article discussing the challenges facing independent videogame studios. The piece explains: "The game industry is moving toward greater and greater consolidation... Increasingly, an independent studio capable of turning a profit from the advances-against-royalties formula is the exception rather than the rule." It goes on to talk to Bill Roper (formerly Blizzard, now at Flagship), Feargus Urquhart (formerly Black Isle, now at Obsidian) and others, with Urquhart claiming independent developers are at no special disadvantage in current times: "I sort of look at it like babies and houses, there probably never is the perfect time to have a baby or buy a house. You just have to decide to do it and then do it."

Thanks to GameSpot for their two-part interview with Obsidian Entertainment's Feargus Urquhart, discussing his former leadership of Black Isle Studios, and his new work as a founder of Obsidian. He discusses Black Isle's creeping demise amidst the cancellation of Fallout 3 ("I would assume that they are changing Black Isle from a studio to purely a brand that they can put on certain products that are published or developed by them. Whether that's a good thing or the same thing as shutting the studio down is up to debate"), muses on the future of the RPG ("I think even the PC RPGers want to see that the games they play are easier to play"), and mentions Obsidian's plans, aside from their BioWare-engine powered, rumored but unannounced game ("We... are actively looking for a second project [and] are also starting to work on our own internal technology.")

Thanks to C+VG for their interview with BioWare founders Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk, discussing "their thoughts on the videogames of the past year [and] potential future developments" for their own company. They lament that "one of the most unfortunate things happening in the industry today is the demise of the small independent developer", and note they're "working on three new games, all set in BioWare-created intellectual properties, right now" (lending credence to the previous rumor that the BioWare-affiliated Obsidian Entertainment may be creating the sequel to Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic, which sports an external IP.) The internal BioWare projects include the already-announced Xbox action-RPG Jade Empire, as well as "a PC RPG inspired by our own past work on both the Baldur's Gate series and Neverwinter Nights."

Thanks to IGN PC for their hands-on preview of the PC version of Star Wars: Knights Of The Old Republic, which is currently due to ship on the 18th November. Apart from increased game resolution (up to 1600x1200) and texture detail, "about thirty new items will be added to the game, including two new lightsaber types", and "the space station around Yavin (from the first film) is a new locale" for this conversion of BioWare's immensely popular Xbox RPG. GameSpot also has a brief preview of the PC version, and elsewhere, IGN Xbox has an interesting, but very unconfirmed rumor that a sequel to KOTOR "...is not being developed internally at BioWare, but in Orange County at Obsidian Entertainment", the Black Isle-rich company who recently announced a co-development deal with the KOTOR creators.

Thanks to IGN RPGVault for their continuing series quizzing videogame creators about single-player RPG character development. Respondents include Chris Avellone of Black Isle/Obsidian, who rants on CRPG spell conventions: "Almost every spell system I have encountered in an RPG has done wonders for sucking all the mystery and enjoyment out of magic", and Star Wars:KOTOR producer Mike Gallo, who suggests: "I think that somewhere, at some time, a type of stat-less main player character development will make it into an RPG."