Wasteland 2 - Interview @ Zero1Gaming

[Couchpotato]

Zero1Gaming took the time to interview Project Lead Chris Keenan of InXile, and asked him a few questions about the released RPG game Wasteland 2.

What was the biggest challenge during the development process?

I think our biggest challenge was the moving goal posts of a release date. We originally asked for $900,000 when we began the Kickstarter. We felt like with that amount of development budget and the initial design, we would be able to complete it in 18 months. It was quite a bit more popular than we thought and we now had a budget of 3 million. This creates a very different production plan. As we worked on the game, we had a few other influxes of cash that allowed us to continue to improve it. We were selling late backer copies and also had a solid showing in Steams Early Access. Brian wanted to make Wasteland as good as possible so we rolled all of this money back into the game instead of booking it as profit. His goal the entire time was to build something that would blow people away.

More information.

 

[esterhasz]

Close to finishing the game, really had a blast. A lot of commenters seem to prefer D:OS (which I also finished), but for me, WL2 has been the greater experience.

I did not really encounter any bugs and I feel that the story is much more coherent than D:OS. And the writing is really great.

I also don't understand some comments about boring/dated graphics. WL2 looks gorgeous on 25x14 with AA, at least if you play fully zoomed out like myself.

My favorite game in years.

 

[EvilManagedCare]

Close to finishing the game, really had a blast. A lot of commenters seem to prefer D:OS (which I also finished), but for me, WL2 has been the greater experience.

I did not really encounter any bugs and I feel that the story is much more coherent than D:OS. And the writing is really great.

I also don't understand some comments about boring/dated graphics. WL2 looks gorgeous on 25x14 with AA, at least if you play fully zoomed out like myself.

My favorite game in years.

I'm also about done and echo your sentiments. I don't have the same complaints about the graphics either, except during character creation the models are just crude-looking at that scale. It's not perfect, but this was the game I've been waiting for.

 

[Morrandir]

You really make me want to complete my D:OS playthrough quickly!

 

[ds77]

I have to agree with you all! D:OS was good, but I was confused at times trying to figure out what to do next and it was a bit short for me.

Wasteland 2 is gritty and the consequences of your action are awesome! The story is compelling and I love walking around the Wasteland with my bad ass Ranger self. lol

 

[mbpopolano24]

I am one of those who felt in love with D:OS, and find it the best game in recent years, thus better than W2.

I like W2 very much, I like the setting, the graphic, the story. There are some issues with it (stupid AI, lack of transparency inside buildings), but certainly a very good game. The thing is that D:OS game mechanics and battles are just so much better than most other games, including W2. Partly is due to the fact that in a fantasy setting you can do so much more in terms of battle choices; partly is due to the fact that W2 left out a lot of complexity in the way combat is represented. Leveling up is underwhelming (yeah, I got a few % point in accuracy....), the cover system is broken, and the weapons so... unassuming. Take a look at what can be done with a futuristic setting based on weapons by playing XCOM. So much creativity and attention to details.

In sum, W2 is good mostly for the story and setting, but D:OS (or XCOM) are excellent because they have fantastic combat systems.

 

[fatknacker50]

20 odd years in waiting to play the sequel. Well worth it, thanks to people like Brian Fargo who helped shape my love of RPG's.

 

[EvilManagedCare]

@mbpopolano24: I agree with all those criticisms as well. The second half of the game imo allowed all of WL2's flaws to really shine. Luckily it wasn't enough to take too much away from the enjoyment of it.

All this talk of how great D:OS is makes me want to put this in my 'must play' list.

 

[Sacred_Path]

Wasteland 2 has superior character (and thereby party) building over D:OS, as so many skills are simply redundant/ inefficient in the latter game.

 

[Arkadia7]

Nice to read all the positive semi-reviews. I'm looking forward to playing both these games when I have time. I suspect I will like WL 2 better, just because from what I've seen in a few gameplay videos, the goofy humor in Original Sin may start to get annoying to me. You can only have that kind of humor so much before it starts to get annoying and stupid. Plus, I just prefer a darker setting than Original Sin's light-hearted setting and design. I still think I will enjoy the game of D:OS, looks like really good combat, but WL 2 seems more appealing in setting, tone and theme.