Obsidian Announces New RPG

[Andy Chalk]

Obsidian Announces New RPG

Obsidian Entertainment [http://www.obsidianent.com/]has announced it is working on a new RPG set in the modern-day world of espionage entitled Alpha Protocol.

Being developed in conjunction with Sega Europe [http://www.sega-europe.com/], Alpha Protocol will tell the story of Michael Thorton, a young agent who finds himself cut off from his agency and his government as he struggles to stop an international catastrophe. Players' actions over the course of his missions will determine what kind of agent Thorton will become, with every choice made carrying consequences for his future and the fate of the world.

"Alpha Protocol blends Obsidian's knack for intricate stories, engrossing characters and significant character advancement with fast-paced modern combat," said Obsidian CEO Feargus Urquhart. "Alpha Protocol embraces everything we enjoy about making RPGs from a fresh perspective. We are confident our talented staff at Obsidian will enable us to deliver this exciting RPG experience."

Gary Knight, marketing director at Sega Europe, added, "Working with Obsidian Entertainment on a project of this stature is incredibly exciting for Sega. We have one of the best independent developers working on what will be one of the definitive games of 2009. With innovative RPG action and an incredibly interactive storyline to match the very best spy-thrillers, Alpha Protocol delivers a heart thumping high definition experience."

Founded in 2003 following the collapse of famed RPG developer PlayStation 3 [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Isle_Studios]and PC, and is targeted for release in 2009.


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[Dectilon]

When I saw Obsidian, new RPG and modern-day world all in the same sentence my heart skipped a beat, but then I saw they are working with SEGA it pummeled out of my chest during breakfast, wiggled away into some secret crevace on the starship and grew into a hideous monster.

I expect this to be released far to early, thus being a buggy sack of crap and be dismissed in favor of less awesome game ideas.

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

Well, as long as it has an actual bloody ending...

It should. KOTOR II being unfinished was Activision's fault for forcing Obsidian to have the game out earlier than Obsidian expected to be able to release it, thus forcing them to rush it.

 

[runtheplacered]

When I saw Obsidian, new RPG and modern-day world all in the same sentence my heart skipped a beat, but then I saw they are working with SEGA it pummeled out of my chest during breakfast, wiggled away into some secret crevace on the starship and grew into a hideous monster.

I expect this to be released far to early, thus being a buggy sack of crap and be dismissed in favor of less awesome game ideas.

Here's a game you'd love...

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

Where the hell do people find all these pictures?

 

[Echolocating]

Two of my favorite franchises were kind of ruined at the hands of Obsidian. I don't know if Bioware just has more clout and was afforded extended deadlines, but Obsidian didn't finish KotOR II and NWN 2 was full of poor design decisions, performance issues and serious bugs.

I honestly have no faith in Obsidian.

 

[Tarmanydyn]

Well, as long as it has an actual bloody ending...

It should. KOTOR II being unfinished was Activision's fault for forcing Obsidian to have the game out earlier than Obsidian expected to be able to release it, thus forcing them to rush it.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Activision had nothing to do with KotORII. I think you're thinking of LucasArts.

Two of my favorite franchises were kind of ruined at the hands of Obsidian. I don't know if Bioware just has more clout and was afforded extended deadlines, but Obsidian didn't finish KotOR II and NWN 2 was full of poor design decisions, performance issues and serious bugs.

I honestly have no faith in Obsidian.

I'll concede that the ending of KotORII was absolutely abhorrent, but I found the prestige classes added a bit to the gameplay, and the game itself is stable now. The Kreia character alone was worth playing the game for, but that's just me.

As for NWN2, have you played the Mask of the Betrayer? Pretty much all the bugs have been ironed out, performance increased to a noticeable degree, and the story is a bit more interesting, but character development lacking. However, overall it's better than the vanilla game.

I can understand the criticisms of Obsidian, but consider than NWN1 and KotOR had an equal amount of technical problems during launch. The vanilla NWN was lacking in the story department, but HotU imo, made up for it.
Also, while Obsidian Ent should theoretically have some clout in determining their dev cycle (being Black Isle luminaries after all), they are still (technically) a new studio, hence, publishers have more elbow room, specifically regarding release dates. That clearly cuts into polish time.

Basically, don't count Obsidian out so early in their life. Or at least, not until their first original IP is out, judge them then.

 

[Zoomy]

When I read the thread title, I was hoping it would be the news that finally some beautiful person clocked onto the idea of re-releasing Planescape: Torment on the NWN2 engine.

Instead I learn Sega's involved.

Am I the only one that feels cockslapped?

 

[Chilango2]

I mean, I know this has already been said, but it bears repeating. I hope it's "Obsidian announces new RPG." Not, "Obsidian announces 4/5ths of a very good RPG, after which, you're on your own, man."

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

Sorry, you're right, Lucasarts.

 

[WhiteTiger225]

I mean, I know this has already been said, but it bears repeating. I hope it's "Obsidian announces new RPG." Not, "Obsidian announces 4/5ths of a very good RPG, after which, you're on your own, man."

With sega filling the last 1/5 with cheap flashy colors.

 

[IrrelevantTangent]

Um...was bumping this after roughly a year really necessary...?