"Core" KOTOR Devs Working on New Bioware IP

[StewShearerOld]

"Core" KOTOR Devs Working on New Bioware IP

Bioware's new game will be backed by some of the developer's most experienced staffers.

While for some the specter of controversy still looms over Bioware, there are many who still consider the developer and its various studios to be the cream of the crop when it comes to role-playing games. It's not hard to see why. Despite arguable problems with its past few games, Bioware's library includes some of the most revered RPGs of all time. For Star Wars devotees the star of the Bioware collection is, without a doubt, Knights of the Old Republic.

Those same fans that loved KOTOR may be interested to know that Bioware's new and, as of yet, <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/122893-Bioware-Working-on-a-New-IP>under wraps IP, will be employing the talents of the core team behind the development of Knights of the Old Republic. Casey Hudson, speaking in a <a href=https://twitter.com/CaseyDHudson/status/356875582753091585>Tweet to celebrate KOTOR's tenth anniversary, stated that "most of our core team that worked on SWKOTOR has been together throughout the Mass Effect series, and now our new IP project."

While it had previously been announced that Bioware's new IP would be a product of its main office in Edmonton, the confirmed presence of the "core" KOTOR team suggests that the new game will, in the least, have a lot of experienced people working on it. Granted it was those same experienced people that gave us the <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/columns/experienced-points/9506-Mass-Effect-3-Ending-Controversy>ending-that-shall-not-be-named, but aside from that misstep Hudson and friends have generally delivered quality work and there are doubtless many gamers excited to see what Bioware comes out with next.

Source: Official Xbox Magazine


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[MCerberus]

New Bioware IP.
Oh boy, here we go again.

A completely flawed game that people will wonder what the appeal was years from now but is loved for setting up an awesome setting. Then the sequel won't be as good for most people. Then the last one will have to appeal to a broad audience so the budget and/or schedule gets completely borked.

Actually, I'm okay with this rollercoaster.

 

[viranimus]

Honestly, color me interested because truth be told for me the KOTOR franchise was the exception that actually made the star wars mythos tolerable. So while many do yearn understandably for KOTOR 3 (which you basically got it in TOR and you really want KOTOR 4) for me personally I see much greater potential in crafting a new universe and not be ham stringed by an intellectual property.

I can see limitless potential for new IPs that would not infringe on the "domains" of their existing active IPs such as DA for fantasy and ME for space faring sci fi. In fact it would be nice to get a narrative in an RPG-ish format that does not boil down to such well worn ground. Perhaps something..../gasp centered more in modern reality?

 

[r_Chance]

I can see limitless potential for new IPs that would not infringe on the "domains" of their existing active IPs such as DA for fantasy and ME for space faring sci fi. In fact it would be nice to get a narrative in an RPG-ish format that does not boil down to such well worn ground.

The phrase "well worn ground" in relation to genres as broad as "fantasy" and "space faring sci fi" strikes me as wrong. You could construct incredibly different settings within those broad categories. I think I'll just wait and see what they come up with myself. Fantasy, space faring science fiction or what have you.

 

[2clueless]

Mechanically, I have enjoyed every stand alone Bioware game I have played. Visually, I have loved the art style and aesthetics. The music has been awesome, the voice acting superb.. for the most part. From these points, Bioware games have been a joy to behold, a wonderful experience, and fun to play.

But, I play games for two main reasons: mutiplayer games for the social aspect, or single player games for the story aspect. If these basics are not fulfilled, are not satisfying, then I will not like the game I am playing.

A new iP sounds interesting. I will be watching for it. But between a mass of talent taking their leave of the company, the utter disaster of a certain ending, and the machinations of EA influence, I will be wary.

Good luck and gods' speed, Bioware. Make a good game worth playing.

 

[Xdeser2]

Honestly, every dev makes bad decisions and fucks up every once in a while. I can forgive DA2 (Just dont fuck up DA 3 bioware -_-) and ME3's ending (The rest of the game was damn good) so....count me in

 

[Godhead]

I read that title way to fast and got way to excited. Thought they were saying KOTOR 3, and then I read the title again. Damnit BioWare just give the damn IP to Obsidian, KOTOR 2 was better anyway. *goes back to play kotor2 with rcm and widescreen patch*

 

[Ishal]

Honestly, KOTOR II is way better. It's true.

Bioware has fallen, I doubt very much they will be able to recover even if they do in fact make a good game. They revealed their hand with DAII and ME3, people aren't going to just throw money at them anymore. They are going to be very critical.

I'm afraid if they don't deliver on DA3 or this new project, EA will dismantle them the way they did Maxis, Bullfrog, and Westwood. Oh well.

 

[viranimus]

I can see limitless potential for new IPs that would not infringe on the "domains" of their existing active IPs such as DA for fantasy and ME for space faring sci fi. In fact it would be nice to get a narrative in an RPG-ish format that does not boil down to such well worn ground.

The phrase "well worn ground" in relation to genres as broad as "fantasy" and "space faring sci fi" strikes me as wrong. You could construct incredibly different settings within those broad categories.

Oh, without a doubt. There are plenty of interesting ways and places to take either theme that can work out well.

However...

Bioware is known for their extensive dialog centric RPGs and writing, Fantasy and sci fi have been the heart and backbone of RPGs basically as long as RPGs have existed. What I was driving at is that it would be a refreshing change of pace to see such a "world" be crafted from a theme of say a group of people trying to survive a hostile invasion force occupying your home country something like Homefront with depth or a stealth/sabotage type RPG something like a non super hero batman AA or non cybernetic Deus Ex centered around a group trying to survive the nazi holocaust, Or a crime story where you are being hunted by the mafioso for unpaid gambling debts. Or a historical retelling of say The War of the Roses It would be nice to see a company noted for RPGs try approaching something that has rarely if ever been scratched upon by RPGs.

So while bioware has flagship properties that amply cover both fantasy and sci fi, I was just thinking it would be nice to see what they could come up with if they were to push both their own and their genre of choice's boundaries and tropes.

 

[BehattedWanderer]

I guess I look forward to an amazing first installment, a shit second installment with a couple of shining character moments, and a questionable third installment, if it goes that far. If this is the same team responsible for writing DA2 and ME2, then I look forward to it being an anthropocentric pile of garbage that has to have a poorly written human antagonist in a rich world full of other, more interesting species.

 

[Andy Shandy]

Well I've enjoyed every Bioware game I've played so consider me interested in this, Bioware.

 

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

Without any information at all about the setting it's a little hard to get excited. And since EA takeover, the days of unbridled joy that the announcement of a new BioWare game would get without any more information than that, are over.

I'll be interested to hear more about this in the future when there's something to tell. Until then, pfffhh. Will be most interested to learn if it's a generic, mass-market audience affair, or something else.

 

[Smiley Face]

BioWare doing new IP - excellent. When it comes right down to it, the thing that draws me into their games is the strength of their world-building, and it's the first games that have that be a big thing.

Also, frankly, I'm tired of the whole 'BioWare is now a soulless husk grafted onto the abomination that is EA' argument, because so far it's being made entirely on speculation. At least with new IP, we'll have some actual evidence to look at, we'll actually be able to make a proper decision about whether they've still got it rather than making mountains out of molehills.

 

[Lunar Templar]

color me, indifferent, KoToR was boring, but then, 'boring' is pretty much every Bioware game I've played.

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

I do wonder what sort of world they'd be doing. They've already got basic fantasy with Dragon Age and space-faring sci-fi with Mass Effect, so they'll have to do something a bit different. Maybe Cthulhu-esque horror, maybe something like World of Darkness, steampunk could also be fun as could cyberpunk.

 

[Fdzzaigl]

The only BioWare game that I was truly disappointed in was SW:TOR, and that was run (into the ground) by an offspring studio.

They made some missteps recently, but I'm definitely looking forward to what they came up with.

 

[roguewriter]

Granted it was those same experienced people that gave us the <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/columns/experienced-points/9506-Mass-Effect-3-Ending-Controversy>ending-that-shall-not-be-named, but aside from that misstep Hudson and friends have generally delivered quality work and there are doubtless many gamers excited to see what Bioware comes out with next.

Small correction here: It was, in fact, just Hudson and Walters who gave us the "ending that shall not be named." Thanks to the Penny Arcade forum/Reddit leak from Patrick Weekes we know that Walters and Hudson slapped that atrocity together on their own with little to no peer review due to aspects of the "original" ending getting out on the web and their desire to be "artsy." We all know how important that artistic integrity is to them...

Also, most of the brain trust behind what made KOTOR so spectacular are no longer employed at BioWare, Drew Karphysyn first among them. So, really, I have little to no hope for this IP, especially if it's revealed to be a new Star Wars RPG (given EA's new exclusivity deal with Disney). With the exception of a few of the folks working on the Dragon Age team I think BioWare's golden era of exceptionally written/executed RPGs is nearly dead in my humble opinion.