RPGCodex posted a rather hilarious picture-filled "interview" (if I can refer to it as such) with our dear beloved Chris Avellone, which brought up that well-remembered painful subject that is New Reno:<blockquote>SERGE: Let's go briefly through your career-defining moments. Fallout 2, New Reno. (...) I feel that organized crime and "families" are too much for a post-apoc setting. Organized crime, in my opinion, requires a much more developed social infrastructure. In a less developed one, there is no reason for bandits and raiders to form anything higher than a gang.
CHRIS: Okay, well that's no fun. I completely disagree with that. I think if you have the organized structure for towns, cities, caravans, religious cults, water merchants, then you can either have some structure that equates to that or a predator that feeds on those structures (like Decker was in the Hub, and he was many, many years before New Reno). I was going off a one-page design outline for the area that Tim Cain had done, but I agreed with it, and I am sure Tim would still agree with it on principle, if not on execution.
(...)
Secondly, I (and Tom French, now a rockstar at Pandemic) had a lot of fun working on New Reno. I think it presents a lot of fun role-playing opportunities and things to do, no matter what "type" of character you are, but does it fit in the setting? No, probably not. It's too sexually over the top, too much profanity, and the look and attitude of some of the characters is too modern-day to complement the feel of the Fallout world (the Mordino family, the fedora hats, the porn studio, the tommy guns, shivs). In that respect, I would consider it an immature design, and while I had fun with it, I don't think it was the best rendition of a section of the Fallout world. It also had horrible load times because I crammed too much stuff in there.
But I still think it was fun to play, and it was fun to design. And I think it was cool to be able to go back there after the game was over and have some fun. And killing the crime bosses in secret ways was fun. And I liked Golgotha, even if the name was inappropriate. And I liked Lenny's Dad (thanks, French).</blockquote>Oh, dear. But on a subject closer to our hearts *right now* (and RPGCodex will have to forgive me quoting so much, but it's good stuff);<blockquote>SERGE: Isometric vs anything else. How important the camera angle is? Does it add anything to gameplay? Some people believe that a true Fallout sequel should be isometric, some say that it's not very important? What's your opinion as an ex-Fallout developer?
CHRIS: Camera angle is critical to gameplay. Isometric is more tactical, less immersive, but better for any game where you have to manage more than one companion.
Is it important to Fallout? Beats me. When we were doing Fallout 3, we were doing isometric just because that's the game we wanted to make. Josh can probably say more, if you wanted to ask him.
I don't think what makes Fallout great is tied to its camera angle. </blockquote>There's more mention of Fallout and other interesting stuff in there, be sure to check it out!
Link: Interview on RPGCodex, part 1
Link: Interview on RPGCodex, part 2
CHRIS: Okay, well that's no fun. I completely disagree with that. I think if you have the organized structure for towns, cities, caravans, religious cults, water merchants, then you can either have some structure that equates to that or a predator that feeds on those structures (like Decker was in the Hub, and he was many, many years before New Reno). I was going off a one-page design outline for the area that Tim Cain had done, but I agreed with it, and I am sure Tim would still agree with it on principle, if not on execution.
(...)
Secondly, I (and Tom French, now a rockstar at Pandemic) had a lot of fun working on New Reno. I think it presents a lot of fun role-playing opportunities and things to do, no matter what "type" of character you are, but does it fit in the setting? No, probably not. It's too sexually over the top, too much profanity, and the look and attitude of some of the characters is too modern-day to complement the feel of the Fallout world (the Mordino family, the fedora hats, the porn studio, the tommy guns, shivs). In that respect, I would consider it an immature design, and while I had fun with it, I don't think it was the best rendition of a section of the Fallout world. It also had horrible load times because I crammed too much stuff in there.
But I still think it was fun to play, and it was fun to design. And I think it was cool to be able to go back there after the game was over and have some fun. And killing the crime bosses in secret ways was fun. And I liked Golgotha, even if the name was inappropriate. And I liked Lenny's Dad (thanks, French).</blockquote>Oh, dear. But on a subject closer to our hearts *right now* (and RPGCodex will have to forgive me quoting so much, but it's good stuff);<blockquote>SERGE: Isometric vs anything else. How important the camera angle is? Does it add anything to gameplay? Some people believe that a true Fallout sequel should be isometric, some say that it's not very important? What's your opinion as an ex-Fallout developer?
CHRIS: Camera angle is critical to gameplay. Isometric is more tactical, less immersive, but better for any game where you have to manage more than one companion.
Is it important to Fallout? Beats me. When we were doing Fallout 3, we were doing isometric just because that's the game we wanted to make. Josh can probably say more, if you wanted to ask him.
I don't think what makes Fallout great is tied to its camera angle. </blockquote>There's more mention of Fallout and other interesting stuff in there, be sure to check it out!
Link: Interview on RPGCodex, part 1
Link: Interview on RPGCodex, part 2
. It did have some fun moments, but didn't really fit.
