Writer Colin McComb has answered a question on Wasteland 2 on his Formspring.<blockquote>Hi Colin. I can't believe nobody has asked this before (maybe they have?) Will Wasteland 2 have a factional or regional reputation system? I think many people have assumed that it will but I don't recall seeing it actually confirmed.
In general, we'll be handling reputation on a location by location basis. If you're an enemy to the Red Scorpion Militia, they'll remember this and deal with you appropriately. Your actions in other parts of the wasteland will find echoes in specific locations, but we're not going to track capital-R reputation as such. People will deal with you on an individual basis, though your actions will certainly precede you.
Keep in mind that widespread communication is sketchy in Wasteland 2, so people in distant locales won't necessarily know about some of your activities anyway.</blockquote>Project lead Kevin Saunders talks Torment: Tides of Numenera.<blockquote>If the new Torment is successful, is the plan to move on to a different setting if the series continues or will Numenera be the continuing setting,in your opinion??
An interesting question. As you might guess, for the foreseeable future, I’m concentrating on making sure that first “if” becomes a “when.” =) It’s far too early to say, but you gave me an out by saying “in your opinion.” =) Therefore, so as to not completely evade your question, I’ll offer my opinion: It could be either – or both!
As Brian has mentioned, our long term vision is to develop Torment as a thematic franchise. This could be done either across various settings or by continuing to explore Numenera, which is certainly rich enough. One thing I like about the latter is that it would allow for appropriate tie-ins between different Torment titles. While Colin is focused most on this present game, as he is crafting the creative vision, story, and characters, he is keeping in mind possible extensions. (That said, this game will tell a complete story with a satisfying conclusion, much as Planescape: Torment or Mask of the Betrayer did.) Additionally, I’m excited about Numenera and Monte has been great to work with, so for those reasons, too, my current thought is that I’d like to continue in this setting.
But I would venture that our decision for a future Torment would be based upon what speaks best to the players. We’ll be learning more about what this Torment’s backers want throughout the course of development, and we’ll be listening to their (and latecomers’) feedback after they’ve played the final game. Work on the next one probably wouldn’t begin until some time after launch and we’d craft the next Torment in the direction the players crave. The ability to do so is one of the most appealing aspects of creating games as an independent developer.
Any Ideas on what the name would be Numenera:Torment ????
Well, as you have seen by now, we’ve gone with Torment: Tides of Numenera. =) You may wonder what the significance of "Tides" is. (These are not a core Numenera concept, though they are compatible with the setting in multiple ways.) The Tides are key levers (but not the only ones) in the choices and consequences system we’re designing. They could be loosely compared to D&D's alignments or Ultima IV's principles and virtues. But unlike alignments, they are not in direct opposition to each other and unlike the virtues, you won’t necessarily want to achieve them all. Nor can you, really... you’ll have to decide what’s most important to you.
The Tides are more nuanced and complex, with the “best” choice for any situation being a personal decision for you (or how you want to play) rather than a decision that we as designers judge. Now, NPCs in the game will certainly judge you based upon their own beliefs and agendas, but we will strive for the game itself to be impartial. We want to provide satisfying reactivity and allow you to explore your own answers, for you to play as you wish and have the game’s story unfold accordingly. We’ll talk more about the Tides down the road and there are aspects of the system for which we’ll be seeking backer input.</blockquote>And as a final tidbit, Game Delver offers a writeup exploring Mark Morgan's musical stylings.<blockquote>I think the reason why I didn’t remember Mark Morgan’s name as well as say Nobuo Uetmatsu for the Final Fantasy series or Jeremy Soule for the Elder Scrolls series is because all of these songs perfectly capture and blend into the mood of the game. With only a few exceptions (such as “Deionarra’s Theme” from Planescape), his music is not what I’d want to listen to outside of its exact context.
I hope that doesn’t sound like I hate it, because it’s honestly the complete opposite of hate. I feel like Soule’s epic score for Skyrim was absolutely amazing and I can listen to anything by Nobuo Uetmatsu at any time, but neither work on the deeper level of Morgan’s Fallout soundtracks. In the first two cases, the music is in a way a character in the game. You follow its arch, listen to its back story, and see where it grows as the game progresses. Morgan’s music is not a character – it is the setting itself, personified audibly and crafted to pull you into a dark and isolated world.</blockquote>
In general, we'll be handling reputation on a location by location basis. If you're an enemy to the Red Scorpion Militia, they'll remember this and deal with you appropriately. Your actions in other parts of the wasteland will find echoes in specific locations, but we're not going to track capital-R reputation as such. People will deal with you on an individual basis, though your actions will certainly precede you.
Keep in mind that widespread communication is sketchy in Wasteland 2, so people in distant locales won't necessarily know about some of your activities anyway.</blockquote>Project lead Kevin Saunders talks Torment: Tides of Numenera.<blockquote>If the new Torment is successful, is the plan to move on to a different setting if the series continues or will Numenera be the continuing setting,in your opinion??
An interesting question. As you might guess, for the foreseeable future, I’m concentrating on making sure that first “if” becomes a “when.” =) It’s far too early to say, but you gave me an out by saying “in your opinion.” =) Therefore, so as to not completely evade your question, I’ll offer my opinion: It could be either – or both!
As Brian has mentioned, our long term vision is to develop Torment as a thematic franchise. This could be done either across various settings or by continuing to explore Numenera, which is certainly rich enough. One thing I like about the latter is that it would allow for appropriate tie-ins between different Torment titles. While Colin is focused most on this present game, as he is crafting the creative vision, story, and characters, he is keeping in mind possible extensions. (That said, this game will tell a complete story with a satisfying conclusion, much as Planescape: Torment or Mask of the Betrayer did.) Additionally, I’m excited about Numenera and Monte has been great to work with, so for those reasons, too, my current thought is that I’d like to continue in this setting.
But I would venture that our decision for a future Torment would be based upon what speaks best to the players. We’ll be learning more about what this Torment’s backers want throughout the course of development, and we’ll be listening to their (and latecomers’) feedback after they’ve played the final game. Work on the next one probably wouldn’t begin until some time after launch and we’d craft the next Torment in the direction the players crave. The ability to do so is one of the most appealing aspects of creating games as an independent developer.
Any Ideas on what the name would be Numenera:Torment ????
Well, as you have seen by now, we’ve gone with Torment: Tides of Numenera. =) You may wonder what the significance of "Tides" is. (These are not a core Numenera concept, though they are compatible with the setting in multiple ways.) The Tides are key levers (but not the only ones) in the choices and consequences system we’re designing. They could be loosely compared to D&D's alignments or Ultima IV's principles and virtues. But unlike alignments, they are not in direct opposition to each other and unlike the virtues, you won’t necessarily want to achieve them all. Nor can you, really... you’ll have to decide what’s most important to you.
The Tides are more nuanced and complex, with the “best” choice for any situation being a personal decision for you (or how you want to play) rather than a decision that we as designers judge. Now, NPCs in the game will certainly judge you based upon their own beliefs and agendas, but we will strive for the game itself to be impartial. We want to provide satisfying reactivity and allow you to explore your own answers, for you to play as you wish and have the game’s story unfold accordingly. We’ll talk more about the Tides down the road and there are aspects of the system for which we’ll be seeking backer input.</blockquote>And as a final tidbit, Game Delver offers a writeup exploring Mark Morgan's musical stylings.<blockquote>I think the reason why I didn’t remember Mark Morgan’s name as well as say Nobuo Uetmatsu for the Final Fantasy series or Jeremy Soule for the Elder Scrolls series is because all of these songs perfectly capture and blend into the mood of the game. With only a few exceptions (such as “Deionarra’s Theme” from Planescape), his music is not what I’d want to listen to outside of its exact context.
I hope that doesn’t sound like I hate it, because it’s honestly the complete opposite of hate. I feel like Soule’s epic score for Skyrim was absolutely amazing and I can listen to anything by Nobuo Uetmatsu at any time, but neither work on the deeper level of Morgan’s Fallout soundtracks. In the first two cases, the music is in a way a character in the game. You follow its arch, listen to its back story, and see where it grows as the game progresses. Morgan’s music is not a character – it is the setting itself, personified audibly and crafted to pull you into a dark and isolated world.</blockquote>
