Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy Interview

Welcome back, members and non-members. 

It has been a while since we did an interview, and this time, it's with Alexander from Atom Team about their latest game, Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy, which launched on Kickstarter.

RPGWatch: Welcome back to RPGWatch! The last time we did an interview was for Atom RPG; can you briefly introduce yourself again to our readers?

Atom Team: I'm Alexander, one of the writers and designers for Swordhaven.

RPGWatch: After ATOM RPG, how did you get the idea for Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy? Do you have any plans to revisit the post-apocalyptic setting?

Atom Team: The idea for Swordhaven came from different sources that I'll avoid naming so as not to spoil some parts of the game, but mainly we wanted to try and develop something new.

And due to our love for fantasy and classic adventure literature, the decision of which setting to use for our upcoming game was simple.

I'm pretty sure there will be an ATOM 2 eventually. But it won't be soon.

RPGWatch: Based on comments and other sites it seems Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy looks to emulate games like Baldur's Gate?

Atom Team: To a certain extent, yes. Emulate in the sense that it is a fantasy RPG where you travel the land, meet new companions to add to your adventuring party, and solve all manner of quests.

There are other games in that category like Pillars of Eternity or Black Geyser, but they all trace their history back to Baldur's Gate 1. Well, and many other titles (same as we are), but let's keep it simple!

RPGWatch: The game promises to be both turn-based and RTwP. Why do you implement both combat styles?

Atom Team: While we love turn-based systems, we do agree that some encounters can become tedious with them.

An example of this: going through a location a second time your party stumbles upon a bunch of low level enemies you forgot to clear out before. They offer no challenge, require no strategic thought, but they still drag you into a long and slow paced combat sequence.

With Real Time as an option you can just switch to real time and watch your party wipe them out in seconds, letting you save the turn-based mode for those encounters that truly make it pay off.

RPGWatch: Will the game areas be larger than ATOM RPG, and do you have an estimate of how long it takes to finish the game?

Right now, I'm estimating that one playthrough will take around 40 hours. Perhaps a little less, but more likely a bit more, based on our past games. Though take this estimate with a grain of salt, as we are still in the early stages of development.

RPGWatch: Does the game have its own ruleset?

Atom Team: Yes, it does. They are closer to GURPS than DnD, though.

RPGWatch: This will be your third game using Kickstarter. Can you share any wisdom on how to be successful nowadays? As it seems harder to get funded.

Atom Team: I'd love to offer people helpful pointers, but I don't have any special secrets myself. My advice would be to buy some ads on social media, send news about your campaign to the press and influencers, and then just hope for the best, I suppose.

If you are honest and your product is interesting to someone, then there is a chance that it will be noticed. Virtu and Fortuna are your guides.

RPGWatch: According to the roadmap, Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy will have a year of Early Access. I understand early access can be a good way to get feedback, but what's your opinion? Is it helpful to developers, and how do you deal with gamers who say otherwise?

Atom Team: We benefited from every time we got into Early Access. Our credo is working hand in hand with the playerbase, that provides invaluable feedback, helping us tailor-make the game for them.

RPGWatch: I hope the game gets funded. If not, is there a backup plan?

Atom Team: Sure. But we hope to avoid it!

RPGWatch: Thank you for answering our questions. Do you have anything to add before we finish?

Atom Team: First of all, we would like to thank you guys for an opportunity. It's always fun to go through a coherent and multifaceted questionnaire like this. Hope we'll have a reason to chat again!

And to your readers, we really appreciate you going through this interview and we hope you will give Swordhaven a try!