Move over peanut butter and chocolate. Sayonara, Mountain Dew and Doritos. I have a new favorite combination: Paradox (Crusader Kings II) and Obsidian (Fallout: New Vegas).
Yes, these two titans of PCdom are combining forces for Pillars of Eternity, Obsidian’s upcoming back-to-isometric ’90s throwback RPG that was Kickstarted to the tune of nearly $4 million.
This is actually a fascinating pairing. Paradox is known primarily for mechanics-driven games like Europa Universalis and Crusader Kings, with the story relying typically on emergent, player-driven narratives. Obsidian, on the other hand, is primarily known for fantastic dialogue and stories, even though its games are also mechanics-heavy.
“We are absolutely going to ship this year,” said Obsidian CEO Feargus Urquhart during the announcement at this week’s Game Developer Conference in San Francisco. “It’s not going to ship in the early summer, but it’s not going to be the day before Christmas either.”
Fred Wester, CEO of Paradox Interactive, said of the partnership “It’s Obsidian’s project. They remain in creative control, it’s [their] IP, and we’re just happy to help with this great project.”
And it doesn’t necessarily stop with Pillars of Eternity, Wester added: “We look at this relationship as something long-term. We’re not sure where the relationship is going, but we have a good feeling so far.”
“All independent developers are trying to find their way in this new world of Steam and tablets and free-to-play. A lot of us look at ‘Is there money in making the $150 million console game?’” Urquhart said. “With the interest people have had in Pillars of Eternity, we’re looking at how we can work in this space and make the type of games we want to play.”
“We’re awesome at making games,” he continued. “But there’s absolutely parts of getting games out there, we’d have to staff up.”
If you want to know more about Pillars of Eternity, feel free to check my lengthy interview with Obsidian’s Josh Sawyer from back in December.