Alpha Protocol - Community Interview @ Kotaku

You may recall Kotaku collected some reader questions for Alpha Protocol a week or two back and the answers are now in, with responses from various Obsidian developers:

SirJD
Recent RPG’s have been met with cries from both crowds, on whether they are moving towards what some would say is a simplification or “dumbing down” of the genre, due to the lack of classic “RPG” elements. Others take the view that they are moving in the opposite direction, and becoming more of a natural role-playing experience. What can you tell us regarding Alpha Protocol’s position, and more specifically both of your thoughts on this current back-and-forth?

Chris Parker: Personally, I’m a terrible person to take sides in this particular discussion. I think some games benefit from a simple RPG scheme and yet I love other games that are more complicated. For example, I have no numerical idea what any of the upgrades in Bioshock 2 do, but I still feel like my character is growing and I’m picking how he does that (yes, that’s RPG-lite, but appropriate). In Fallout 3 there are tons of numbers for me to look at and analyze, along with a bamillion items and a gigantic open world. I love both those games, and as long as games are still being made on that broad spectrum, I’m happy.

Alpha Protocol did stay away from some “hard-core” RPG elements. We wanted you to get equipment, but have specific types of guns. And we didn’t want you to be stuck with a class but we wanted you to have skills. The story is very reactive to the decisions that you make all the way up to the end. Is it as hard-core as some of the golden oldies? Nah, but I think it’s the appropriate amount level for the game we made.

In other AP news, CVG has a new weapons trailer they made using their review copy.