Torment: Tides of Numenera - Tumblr Interview

Th Tumblr page for Torment: Tides of Numenera posted a new interview with Colin McComb about the games narrative. As usual here is a small sample of his answers. 

So, first thing first, “What does one life matter?” is a fascinating question, which also matches perfectly with a CRPG heavily focused on choices & consequences. Was that connection a factor when you picked the main theme of ToN or it is just a coincidence, and  how far you want to go down this road (I mean, with C&C)?

It was intentional from the start. We picked our theme of legacy first, but tied in with that was the knowledge that legacy is strongly tied to the choices one makes throughout life. We knew early on that we wanted intense and long-reaching reactivity in the game, and we’ve been building connections both large and small throughout. We’re planning on doing various passes through the game to make sure we’ve got plenty of responses to the player’s choices.

One issue with a purely story-related game is that we do have to maintain some control over the plot, so we have to limit some of the reactivity or risk watching the whole thing explode.

I’m under the impression that the Endless Battle is going to play a huge role in Torment’s story. Can you tell us a little more about this conflict?  Additionally  -  given the fact that ToN is a game about legacies - is it safe to assume that the player will be able to influence the outcome of the war? 

It’s funny that you should ask about that, because the Endless Battle came up in story meetings just recently. At the risk of handing out spoilers: It does play an important role in the game, both symbolically and narratively. Born out of an argument between the Changing God and the First Castoff, it has become essentially a feature of the landscape over the last several centuries. Much like the everlasting storm of Catatumbo, it’s almost a force of nature by this point. Think of the trenches and craters of World War I, and then add time distortions, gravity fields, sentient machines, and nightmare creatures released from other dimensions, and you’ll start to get an idea what it’s like.

At this point, the two sides are at a stalemate, but they push and prod for incremental advantage. Victory isn’t in sight for either side, but neither are they willing to admit defeat – they are fighting for ideological principles now, for their reputations, for some other reason – and so, despite the First being dead and the Changing God not involved in the fight, the Endless Battle continues.