Pillars of Eternity - Preview @ Eurogamer

[Couchpotato]

Eurogamer posted a preview of the new Documentary Preview Video for Pillars of Eternity this week. So in-case you missed the video from yesterday then read on.

I had no idea things at Obsidian Entertainment had been so bad. I knew things weren't great before the record-breaking Project Eternity Kickstarter campaign, but I didn't realise that game had saved the company - that without it the studio would have closed.

"We had a date in mind where, like, if we pass this date [without signing a project], we're basically screwed," revealed key Obsidian person Adam Brennecke, during a preview of the Road to Eternity documentary film. "We were basically going to run out of money."

This was in spring 2012, following a string of cancelled games, most notably the cancellation of an Xbox One game (which isn't named, but has been potentially labelled North Carolina in the past).

"It was really exciting but it was a lot of work," said Obsidian boss Feargus Urquhart in the documentary clip. "And unfortunately the game got cancelled."

"With these larger budgets, when you crash, you crash hard," added Josh Sawyer, director of Fallout: New Vegas and now Pillars of Eternity. "And for a company the size of Obsidian, to have a project cancelled like that, it had a big impact on us financially."

More information.

 

[Darkheart]

Does anybody know which game they were working on? (The AAA title that got cancelled.)
Or is this a case of NDA?

 

[azarhal]

Does anybody know which game they were working on? (The AAA title that got cancelled.)
Or is this a case of NDA?

It was internally called Project North Carolina, they were working on it for 7 months went it was cancelled. The rumors is that it was to be a release day Xbone exclusive game and it was funded by Microsoft.

 

[Darkheart]

It was internally called Project North Carolina, they were working on it for 7 months went it was cancelled. The rumors is that it was to be a release day Xbone exclusive game and it was funded by Microsoft.

Thanks for the info! Guess we will hear more about it in 10 years or so then.

If Pillars is successful the company should be good for the years to come, given it's their own IP. As long as the combat system isn't fundamentally flawed this should do at least as well as Divinity: Original Sin. Funnily, Larian was saved as well by their kickstarted game...

 

[Syron]

I sincerely hope they'll make the money they need from this. The asking price is a bit high (says I, the man who backed them at over 150 bucks), but with enough exposure they should see some good money from this. I hope. Once reviews pop. Maybe.

 

[Gorath]

The thing with niche products is that you have to give hose who want to spend a lot of money the chance to do so.