I Think Obsidian is Trolling Bethesda

Hawki

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...okay, maybe not really, but I need a catchy thread title.

So, recently, we got a trailer for 'The Outer Worlds.'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcYL2HavLVA

And is it just me, or is it a bit...Fallouty? As in:

-Lawless violence

-First-person perspective

-Smuck is awakened out of cryo-stasis ala Fallout 4 to do stuff for person that rescues them (ala New Vegas)

-The oh so subtle declarations that it's made by the original creators of Fallout and the developers of New Vegas

-It's in SPAAACE!...just like Starfield...which will likely be Fallout/Elder Scrolls but in SPAAACE!

Judging by the comments, I'm not the only person joining the dots.

Is it intentional? Eh, probably not. But it's fun to speculate regardless.

(Though I'm getting kind of a Destiny vibe as well, so, go figure.)
 

Adam Jensen_v1legacy

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Of course they're not trolling anybody. They're using their collective experience to create something new. Of course you're going to see similarities to their previous work, and of course they're gonna advertise themselves in the trailer so that people know what they made in the past.

Also, it looks wonderful.
 

Samos205

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Thats not really trolling, they're just using their history to say "we've made some good games"
That same description also fits rage (minus the original fallout creators part) so are we going to say that rage is trolling too?
 
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That trailer looks fantastic, thanks for sharing it! I thought the humour and Iggy Pop soundtrack were great.
How interesting also that it's multiplatform, in light of their being bought by Microsoft (along with inXile) recently. I wonder if this was the "top secret" game they were working on during the PC Gamer Eurogamer documentary. Will all their stuff be MS exclusive henceforth? Who knows?!

There's definitely a Fallout vibe...I'm getting Fallout meets BioShock in terms of the aesthetic, the "retro-futuristic" (don't like that term) feel. There's also a Borderlands kinda world and some images reminded me a lot of the Kadara reveal in the ME: Andromeda trailer.

Without knowing how the game will play or what the RPG elements will be like (I hope they're there, but unlike PC exclusive PoE and Tyranny, these are x-platform console games, ie. "mass market appeal"). I would suspect it's a "lite" RPG like Skyrim/Fallout 4, rather than "full fat" like Morrowind or Pillars of Eternity but I'll really look forward to learning that's wrong and that it has depth, role playing and consequences. Obsidian are renowned for that, if anything.

Thanks so much for sharing that, made my day. I keep humming Iggy Pop now. That is how you make a game trailer; I think it might as good or perhaps a bit better even than the CP2077 trailer from E3 and I'm even more looking forward to 2019 now. I love the "From the original creators of Fallout" line; I'm surprised they didn't bold, italic, underline and capitalise ORIGINAL to really hammer it home.

In fairness, Interplay/Black Isle were involved in some of the really great RPGs, from Fallout to the Infinity Engine games (BG2, Icewind Dale, Planescape Torment) and so on. I would say that lot have earned just as much pedigree as the Looking Glass/Ion Storm bunch that gave us Deus Ex, Thief, System/BioShock (and their spiritual successors), etc. Fallout 4 is a good enough game but not a particularly good RPG sadly, certainly not like FO:NV. If it is a troll, then fair play to them. I hope it's taken in the spirit it's intended, and not a dig at Bethesda, maybe more of a wink.
 

B-Cell_v1legacy

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This looks cool. finally FPS/RPG hybrid that looks good. it looks better than fallout has ever been.

it also looking better than cyberpunk.
 

Neurotic Void Melody

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It would've been in development for much longer by the looks of it. I mean, I'd hope so... otherwise what the hell were the fallout 76 developers doing all that time? Now there's something else to speculate on!
 

Gethsemani_v1legacy

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KingsGambit said:
How interesting also that it's multiplatform, in light of their being bought by Microsoft (along with inXile) recently.
The game is published by Private Divsion, an indie-publisher owned by 2K. So Microsoft has nothing on this game.

To me the aesthetic feels a lot like Borderlands meets Firefly while tripping on some Evolve shrooms. As with all things Obsidian, it definitely seems to have potential. At least it doesn't look as uninspired as Pillars of Eternity did.
 

Bombiz

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Samos205 said:
Thats not really trolling, they're just using their history to say "we've made some good games"
That same description also fits rage (minus the original fallout creators part) so are we going to say that rage is trolling too?
I'm pretty sure the trolling part is the " from original fallout creators" part
 

meiam

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Yeah I don't think they could have picked a better moment to release that trailer, "Hey guys remember when Fallout was an RPG?".

I will say it's definitely more borderland than fallout in presentation. I wonder if there'll be some actual space sequence or if it's all on the planet.
 

Saelune

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They were the original creators of Fallout. They aren't trolling, people just have a hate boner for Bethesda right now.

Plus you got a ton of 'old Fallout Fans' who like to ***** about Fallout 3 and 4, but often praise New Vegas even though New Vegas is just a re-skinned Fallout 3.
 

Kerg3927

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KingsGambit said:
Without knowing how the game will play or what the RPG elements will be like (I hope they're there, but unlike PC exclusive PoE and Tyranny, these are x-platform console games, ie. "mass market appeal"). I would suspect it's a "lite" RPG like Skyrim/Fallout 4, rather than "full fat" like Morrowind or Pillars of Eternity but I'll really look forward to learning that's wrong and that it has depth, role playing and consequences. Obsidian are renowned for that, if anything.
Hoping for the same. Definitely a game to keep an eye on.

Reading the Wikipedia description, it sounds like it will have some classic Bioware-like elements...

... player character encounters and recruits different companions, each has their own missions and stories. Controlled by artificial intelligence, these companions will aid the player in combat scenarios. Each companion has their own skills and special attacks, and they can develop their own skill specializations. Only two companions can be brought to explore alongside the protagonist, while others stay on the ship. Players would make numerous dialogue decisions, which would influence the game's branching story. The player character can respond to other non-playable characters in various ways, from being heroic to maniac to moronic.
 

Erttheking

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Saelune said:
They were the original creators of Fallout. They aren't trolling, people just have a hate boner for Bethesda right now.

Plus you got a ton of 'old Fallout Fans' who like to ***** about Fallout 3 and 4, but often praise New Vegas even though New Vegas is just a re-skinned Fallout 3.
Re-skinned Fallout 3 with the writing and world building being a thousand times better.

And the hate boner is kinda justified, considering Bethesda has done things like screwed Obsidian out of bonuses because of Metacritic scores and leaked personal information on customers.

As for this game, I'm cautiously optimistic.
 

Aiddon_v1legacy

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I don't see that, I think it's just coincidence and Obsidian using their past titles as marketing. Still, looks like a fun game
 

Silentpony_v1legacy

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To be fair everyone knew Fallout 76 was going to be a disaster months ago. They probably had that 'Creators of Fallout' bit planned the entire time, and Bethesda just played right into their hands.
 
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Hawki said:
-Lawless violence
That's... videogames.
-First-person perspective
See above. Sides' New Fallouts had TPP, even though a handful of people seemed to use it.

-Smuck is awakened out of cryo-stasis ala Fallout 4 to do stuff for person that rescues them (ala New Vegas)

-The oh so subtle declarations that it's made by the original creators of Fallout and the developers of New Vegas

-It's in SPAAACE!...just like Starfield...which will likely be Fallout/Elder Scrolls but in SPAAACE!
Sure, but we could seen lots of that stuff in other games besides Fallout. IMHO, it's because after rather cold reception of PoI, New Vegas remains Obsidian's most well received, recent title.
And i was also getting Futurama vibes personally.
Is it intentional? Eh, probably not. But it's fun to speculate regardless.
It's possible. Some of these things might be intended nudges. But i think the perceived beef between Obsidian and Bethesda, perpetuated by their respective fans, has been overblown.
 
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MrCalavera said:
Hawki said:
-Smuck is awakened out of cryo-stasis ala Fallout 4 to do stuff for person that rescues them (ala New Vegas)

-The oh so subtle declarations that it's made by the original creators of Fallout and the developers of New Vegas

-It's in SPAAACE!...just like Starfield...which will likely be Fallout/Elder Scrolls but in SPAAACE!
Sure, but we could seen lots of that stuff in other games besides Fallout. IMHO, it's because after rather cold reception of PoI, New Vegas remains Obsidian's most well received, recent title.
And i was also getting Futurama vibes personally.
Honestly, the fact that Obsidian didn't go "You know how we made Fallout better than it's been in years? Yeah, we're doing that with Borderlands now" blows my mind.

This is the most Borderlands thing that has ever Borderlanded. And given that I haven't seen a Handsome Jack Equivalent yet, it has deFacto become the best Borderlands since 1 in my book.
 

Saelune

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erttheking said:
Saelune said:
They were the original creators of Fallout. They aren't trolling, people just have a hate boner for Bethesda right now.

Plus you got a ton of 'old Fallout Fans' who like to ***** about Fallout 3 and 4, but often praise New Vegas even though New Vegas is just a re-skinned Fallout 3.
Re-skinned Fallout 3 with the writing and world building being a thousand times better.

And the hate boner is kinda justified, considering Bethesda has done things like screwed Obsidian out of bonuses because of Metacritic scores and leaked personal information on customers.

As for this game, I'm cautiously optimistic.
MrCalavera said:
Saelune said:
New Vegas even though New Vegas is just a re-skinned Fallout 3.
Listen, it's perfectly fine if you still like Bethesda games. But, no, it's not just like that.
Atleast, and this is me lowballing it, 50% of New Vegas was essentially made by Bethesda. Its fine to like the writing or setting better in NV, but lets not pretend that the actual gameplay is not literally Fallout 3. New Vegas did add proper aiming though, I will give them that.