As the director of many breakout hits such asFallout: New Vegasand the more recentPentiment, Josh Sawyer has had a crucial role at Obsidian Entertainment, an authority on RPG narratives in the modern era of gaming.
In arecent interviewwith rpgsite.net, Josh Sawyer discussed a litany of topics, such as his current work as a studio design director and his involvement in the development of recent Obsidian games such asPentimentand the upcoming title in thePillars of Eternityuniverse,Avowed.
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Since the release ofPentiment, a game Sawyer washeavily involved in, it’s clear he is taking more of an advisory role at the company. That said, he still provides a lot of excellent insight, such as new IPs after the release ofAvowedand even the cooperation withXboxin the company’s most recent endeavors.
BecauseAvowedtakes place in thePillars Of Eternityseries of games, a series rooted in moreclassic CRPG gameplay, many people are now wondering about the future of the series:whether Avowed is a one-time venture or if it shows an ultimate break from tradition for Pillars.
On this topic, Josh Sawyer stated that he is not so sure about the isometric or 3D future of the series, stating that:
I feel like now Avowed is where the Pillars universe has kind of gone. And it’ll be interesting to see where the audience picks up on that, and maybe that’s where the Pillars universe kind of goes in the future.
So, even thoughAvowedis a step in an alternative direction, its success may result in this being the new direction for the series. As much as fans may want the company to keep its large focus on isometric RPG experiences,Avowedand other plans likeThe Outer Worlds 2suggest that the company may stick with this modern RPG approach.
In the same answer, Sawyer stated, “I do think that I am more interested in doing original IP necessarily, than existing IP.”
With so many recent Obsidian gems popping out from their core beliefs of venturing out of comfort zones, such as theco-op survival game Groundedor the unique murder mystery ofPentiment, it’s relieving to hear this.
But for those of you curious if Obsidian could ever delve back into isometric CRPGs and if their new relationship with Microsoft could even call for this, Sawyer has some positive insight that Obsidian’s creative design is still being upheld despite being in the hands of a more powerful publisher.
Obsidian’s Relationship With Microsoft
Back in 2018,Microsoft acquired Obsidian Entertainment, an act that has since given the developer’s titles a larger presence on Xbox hardware.Avowed, for instance, will be initially released solely in Windows and Xbox Series S/X.
When asked how game pitching has goneunder the eye of XboxGame Studios publishing, specifically with more unique projects like isometric CRPGs, Sawyer states that the team hasn’t “really had that problem as far as I can tell, which is great.”
Sawyer went on to state that he had “been in situations where they’re not clear and we pitch and they’re like ‘Yeah, yeah, yeah, that’s great, but now let’s talk about what we like. We have a license and we want you to use it for something.’”
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Even though Xbox definitely acquired Obsidian for its creativity, now that we’re a bit down the road and seeing what the developer is capable of with greater resources, it’s interesting to see that Xbox is still expecting these unique, high-level pitches and ideas. However, this all still has to align with Xbox executives' expectations.
For instance, with theunique title Pentiment, Sawyer discussed that “if it could find its audience, that audience would like it.” But at the same time, he wasn’t expecting it “to be a mainstream game that everybody loved,” but instead a smaller offering by the company.
Suppose you want to know more about Obsidian’s present and future plans or are interested in Sawyer’s involvement, like his massive undertaking of Pentiment. In that case, we highly suggest you check out the original interview on rpgsite.net.
Overall, it’s very pleasing to see that such a prominent developer, under the heavy reigns of Xbox, is still capable of the groundbreaking experiences we love them for, and we’re excited to see what results whenAvowedreleases in early 2025.
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