A Phillip Daigle interview about SoD for 148Apps
JuliusBorisov
Member, Administrator, Moderator, Developer Posts: 22,754
http://www.148apps.com/news/we-talk-to-beamdog-about-siege-of-dragonspear-for-mobile-classic-dandd-rpgs-and-why-a-level-editor-wont-be-coming-any-time-soon/
Read the whole interview, here're a few highlights:
-What was it like working on the first piece of new content for Baldur's Gate in over a decade?
It was exciting, frightening, fun, and dangerous.
During the development of Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition and Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition we had spun up some content teams for building small-scale Infinity Engine adventures, but Siege of Dragonspear was far beyond anything we had attempted before.
Not only were we trying to build a solid design team from almost the ground up, but we were also trying to build a solid design team that could produce retro-style games where the graphics are sometimes intentionally made worse in order to match the style of the rest of the game.
And on top of that we were adding onto a beloved, complex story with hundreds of thousands of dedicated fans that would crucify us if we trampled on it. Not only did the story have to flow with the existing narrative but it also needs to expand things in a meaningful way. It felt roughly as daunting as adding a new book to the Bible.
- What's been the most difficult part of porting the game over to mobile?
Performance issues. I made some, lets say "questionable" calls regarding the size of battles and crowd scenes in the original game which murdered the performance of the game on lower end tablets. As such we had to increase the minimum requirements for the game.
You can blame this one 100% on me. Send all hate to @ daigledopple on Twitter. But the crowds were so cool!
- Having played the game on my iPhone 7, I've found that the text is sometimes a little difficult to read. Is this a game you'd suggest people play on larger screen mobile devices?
I think all of the Infinity Engine games play better on larger screens because of the amount of written text. Tablet is the preferred platform for me, but on the iPhone 7 Plus and larger Android devices it's still an enjoyable experience.
- There was some backlash about certain characters and storylines when Siege of Dragonspear initially came out for PC. Is that something you're expecting this time round?
Beamdog made missteps with the character Mizhena from a variety of perspectives, and we adjusted her accordingly in the latest update. It's likely that people who want to open up old wounds will find reasons to do so, but I believe that many of the contributing factors to the response Mizhena received when the game was initially released are no longer relevant.
One day, perhaps after I've been plied with alcohol, I'll show the ticket I filed for Mizhena before release that addressed many of the criticisms that were later levied at at her. Unfortunately, as with all game development, some tickets can't get dealt with in time for release and that was one of them.
- What's the one tip you'd give to someone starting out on their Siege of Dragonspear adventure?
Talk to everyone, explore every corner, and make sure you've only got a party of 5 before the final battle starts.
Read the whole interview, here're a few highlights:
-What was it like working on the first piece of new content for Baldur's Gate in over a decade?
It was exciting, frightening, fun, and dangerous.
During the development of Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition and Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition we had spun up some content teams for building small-scale Infinity Engine adventures, but Siege of Dragonspear was far beyond anything we had attempted before.
Not only were we trying to build a solid design team from almost the ground up, but we were also trying to build a solid design team that could produce retro-style games where the graphics are sometimes intentionally made worse in order to match the style of the rest of the game.
And on top of that we were adding onto a beloved, complex story with hundreds of thousands of dedicated fans that would crucify us if we trampled on it. Not only did the story have to flow with the existing narrative but it also needs to expand things in a meaningful way. It felt roughly as daunting as adding a new book to the Bible.
- What's been the most difficult part of porting the game over to mobile?
Performance issues. I made some, lets say "questionable" calls regarding the size of battles and crowd scenes in the original game which murdered the performance of the game on lower end tablets. As such we had to increase the minimum requirements for the game.
You can blame this one 100% on me. Send all hate to @ daigledopple on Twitter. But the crowds were so cool!
- Having played the game on my iPhone 7, I've found that the text is sometimes a little difficult to read. Is this a game you'd suggest people play on larger screen mobile devices?
I think all of the Infinity Engine games play better on larger screens because of the amount of written text. Tablet is the preferred platform for me, but on the iPhone 7 Plus and larger Android devices it's still an enjoyable experience.
- There was some backlash about certain characters and storylines when Siege of Dragonspear initially came out for PC. Is that something you're expecting this time round?
Beamdog made missteps with the character Mizhena from a variety of perspectives, and we adjusted her accordingly in the latest update. It's likely that people who want to open up old wounds will find reasons to do so, but I believe that many of the contributing factors to the response Mizhena received when the game was initially released are no longer relevant.
One day, perhaps after I've been plied with alcohol, I'll show the ticket I filed for Mizhena before release that addressed many of the criticisms that were later levied at at her. Unfortunately, as with all game development, some tickets can't get dealt with in time for release and that was one of them.
- What's the one tip you'd give to someone starting out on their Siege of Dragonspear adventure?
Talk to everyone, explore every corner, and make sure you've only got a party of 5 before the final battle starts.
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Comments
"Siege of Dragonspear tells the story of the events between Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition and Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition. The Forgotten Realms is in a time of strife as a crusade marches from the north, seizing supplies, forcing locals into military service, and disrupting trade along the Sword Coast. A charismatic warrior known as Caelar Argent leads this army, her background shrouded in mystery."
I edited my previous post because I realized that my judgment could be biased by my own experience with the game.
But if anyone comes to read this, let me tell you:
It is a great game. I had one expectancy that wasn't fulfilled, but I know that it is impossible for a company to strike the mind and the heart of every single one of its costumers. In my humble opinion, the games have its flaws, but I never played a flawless game in my entire life and those presented by SoD are not bigger than the ones I found in Fallout (my favorite game ever).
I had tons of fun playing SoD and my overall opinion is that it worth your money.
There is no such thing as "too many Baldur's Gate games".