At the PAX West convention this past weekend,Tyrannydeveloper Obsidian Entertainment and publisher Paradox Interactive held a highly informative panel on player choice in gaming, specifically as it relates to the sometimes nebulous RPG genre.
The panel consisted of members of the current team who also worked on past games like Fallout: New Vegas, Alpha Protocol, South Park and Tyranny’s progenitor, Pillars of Eternity. Things began with a discussion of what defines an RPG, a discussion that has increased in complexity as the genre has grown into a multitude of subgenres and mechanics. Some of these mechanics are considered more superfluous than others but the general consensus was one where a player takes on the role of a character and affects outcomes on the game’s story.
The remainder of the panel is an illuminating window into the world of RPG design. The panel looked at managing player options and choices while moving the story forward. They also took some time to discuss how they work with player expectations. One particular struggle is balancing tracking all of the variables and possibilities within a branching RPG. Limiting factors like time constraints lead them to remove uninteresting choices, like sweeping an inn. A a result they look to provide choices that lead to good experiences, and then reconcile the choices with building anticipation for the story. A given example was whether to allow a character to attack and kill a major villain from the get go, and the inherent problems or possibilities with that scenario.
They also discussed when to restrict choices to avoid frustration and when to allow players the choice to make game altering choices. In Obsidian’s case, the focus is to create the scenario and tension, but give the player the options to resolve it themselves without railroading them into a forced choice or outcome. It’s a collaborative approach to the game, similar to tabletop experiences.
Further topics related to the nuance of story and choice development were explored, and the entire hour long vid merits a watch for anyone interested in what goes into designing an RPG. Folks with a background in tabletop DM roles will immediately connect the similarities between DM’ing a dynamic roleplay experience and designing a captivating RPG video game. The challenges are intensified in the digital sphere as the video game can’t improvise when faced with the unexpected player choices, and so the game must be designed with much more proactive care. Tyranny is looking to build off of the success of Pillars of Eternity by refining those classic, tabletop inspired RPG elements with a focus on branching story and meaningful dialogue and choices. Check out ourpreviewfrom E3 for a closer look at how the game is evolving from Pillars of Eternity. We’ll keep bringing more updates on its development as it nears its 2017 release on PC, so be sure to check back with us.
