Torment: Tides of Numenera - Colin McComb Interview

Gamefront interviewed Colin McComb on Torment: Tides of Numenera and the Kickstarter.

Given Torment: Tides of Numenera’s pedigree – it’s the spiritual successor to Planescape: Torment – it’s not difficult to understand just why so many luminaries want to have a hand in making it. Planescape: Torment was highly acclaimed for the quality of its writing, the development of its setting, and richly textured characters. Tides of Numenera represents a rare chance to revisit the past, but also to improve on it.

For example, combat: Planescape: Torment’s combat system is widley acknowledged as one of its weaker points. “At best,” McComb says, combat was “a slog in PST”. He says the team plans to address that by integrating combat more fully into the seam of the narrative. “Since we’re using a different base system in Numenera’s rules and have the liberty to craft something specifically designed for a cRPG, I anticipate that we’ll have a combat system that will be far more entertaining,” he promises.

Combat isn’t the only thing that’s getting overhauled in Torment. Character attributes will also be getting a change-up from the Dungeons & Dragons-based system of its predecessor. “We’ll be seeing them, though not in the familiar AD&D Strength, Dexterity, etc combination,” said McComb. “From the core systems of Numenera, we’re looking at three pools: Might, Speed, and Intellect. We also have a Type (a character class, with a choice between the warrior-like glaive, the jack, and the wizard-like nano), a Descriptor (smart, fast, cunning, tough, etc.), and the Focus – a special ability that elevates your PC above the run-of-the-mill citizenry of the world. In addition, we’ll have skills and other abilities under the hood (for instance, the Tides and Legacy system).”