{"id":102519,"date":"2019-10-25T23:00:17","date_gmt":"2019-10-25T23:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.xbox.com\/en-us\/?p=127728"},"modified":"2019-10-25T23:00:17","modified_gmt":"2019-10-25T23:00:17","slug":"storytelling-in-space-a-qa-with-co-director-of-the-outer-worlds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sickgaming.net\/blog\/2019\/10\/25\/storytelling-in-space-a-qa-with-co-director-of-the-outer-worlds\/","title":{"rendered":"Storytelling in Space: A Q&A with Co-Director of The Outer Worlds"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The release of Obsidian Entertainment\u2019s The Outer Worlds<\/em><\/strong><\/a> is upon us, and we\u2019re already having a great time exploring the game\u2019s vibrant universe while meeting (and occasionally fighting) some of its fiercest inhabitants. The game combines a darkly humorous narrative and deep RPG elements to create a unique experience. We recently had the chance to chat with Obsidian Entertainment\u2019s Co-Game Director Leonard Boyarsky about the game\u2019s narrative focus, how some of the endings play out, and the ultra-hardcore Supernova mode.<\/p>\n

Xbox Wire: How much dialogue was written for The Outer Worlds<\/em>?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Leonard Boyarsky:<\/strong> I don\u2019t know how much was written<\/em> (which would include iteration, cut content, etc.), but we have approximately 420,000 words of dialog, including player lines, and approximately 600,000 words total.<\/p>\n

Xbox Wire: How do the dialogue trees work in The Outer Worlds<\/em> compared to your other titles? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Boyarsky:<\/strong> Obsidian has been using the same dialog tool for quite a long time, so I\u2019m not sure there\u2019s much difference in the overall creation of the dialogs. On TOW<\/em>, though, we tried to get away from using question node hubs in order to get a more conversational feel.<\/p>\n

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Xbox Wire: How often will players be able to use the gift of gab to get around situations that might lead to combat? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Boyarsky:<\/strong> Players can get through the main story arc pretty effectively using their dialog skills, and there\u2019s a good bit of side content that they can talk their way through as well. We\u2019ve also included passive dialog combat skills for those instances when they do happen to find themselves fighting for their lives, and a disguise system that allows high dialog skill players to talk their way through some specifically combat-related \u2018restricted areas\u2019.<\/p>\n

Xbox Wire: Have you discussed how many endings The Outer Worlds<\/em> will have? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Boyarsky:<\/strong> There are two main endings players can play<\/em> through, but, depending on their skills, there are several approaches they can take within those two endings.  And this isn\u2019t counting all the different permutations of end slides players can get, which we have not calculated. Let\u2019s just say there\u2019s a lot.<\/p>\n

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Xbox Wire: Are those endings dependent on choices you make with dialogue? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Boyarsky:<\/strong> All the endings (including the slides) are dependent on both dialog and gameplay choices the player made throughout the whole game, not just their dialog choices.<\/p>\n

Xbox Wire: So, what\u2019s the deal with Supernova Mode?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Boyarsky:<\/strong> Supernova is the hardest difficulty in the game and offers the ultimate challenge for The Outer Worlds<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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Xbox Wire: What sort of gameplay challenges will players face when they play Supernova Mode? <\/strong><\/p>\n

Boyarsky:<\/strong> There\u2019s a bunch:<\/p>\n