Matt Chat 171: Josh Sawyer on Icewind Dale and Neverwinter Nights
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- Опубліковано 15 вер 2024
- This is the second part of my interview with Josh Sawyer. We chat about Josh's key influences, his time at Black Isle and Midway, then talk about his first jobs at Obsidian. We also cover the issue of party vs. single-character CRPGs and his mixed feelings about adapting his favorite genre for console play. We also cover the cancelled Project Jefferson and Aliens RPG games.
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The weapon descriptions were some of my favorite bits of Icewind Dale.
My friend got me icewind dale 2 for christmas when I was around 13. I remember it being too sophisticated for me though back then. Wouldn't mind giving it another go now that I'm 25 and can appreciate it.
Josh Sawyer and Chris Avellone are my heroes!
I love that these games require so many intricate details in them. I just got NWN today and am eager to learn!
I picked up Baldur's Gate when I was like 11, and it totally melted my head. I didn't really have the patience for the system, or for playing tactically, but I just loved the world and managed to shamble through some of it. When I was 16 I reinstalled and loved it all over again, completed it and then promptly acquired the sequel and any other infinity game I could. Jump back in!
I dont understand why most people find NWN2 boring and a drag. I think its one of the best crafted CRPGs ever made. I think its the best DnD style game out there. I could play that anytime, anywhere. Same with IWD2. Its a fantastic gem! Its like if Boulders gate and NWN had a baby. I know people are entitled to their opinion but IWD2 is very fun, emmersive, and complex and just pure thrilling fun on a CRPG. And the people who dont think so are out of their bleeping mind. But I kidd...sorta...;)
What a fantastic success story, where there is a will (and talent) there's a way! Great episode Matt.
The Icewind Dale games are incredible. Now, my brother and I often talk about these. Our motto pretty much is that we play Baldur's Gate for the story, and we play Icewind Dale I&II for the combat scenarios. Even thought Icewind Dale is more "combat oriented" like fans like to say, the combat scenarios are better in it as well. Areas were bigger, meaning that combat was easier to do, and places seemed to have a more undead feel to them.
Yeah that is the huge part of icewind dale, the areas feel far better in general for me and memorable but baldurs gate 2 just has that brilliant story.
i was pumped for that aliens RPG back in the day, even though there wasn't much info
Really loved New Vegas' writing. I think I posted 4 questions on his formspring a couple of years ago and he answered 3 of them in detail. Great guy. I prefer sci-fi to fantasy, but I know with him that even the fantasy will have the engagement of good sci-fi and not just be random magical nonsense. Sci-fi is about a socially revolutionary premise that inspires intellectual curiosity, fantasy is usually more about a journey and character development and isn't as thought provoking or memorable.
Sawyer is just awesome.
Great as always!
Lesson here...never move out of your home state to live with a girl at the expense of your dreams. He got dumped two weeks later? How awful. True love is a thing of fantasy found only in books, movies, and games. Never put someone else above your own dreams.
Awesome interview, these are some of my favourite games, ones that I have actually finished (well bar Icewind Dale II - got distracted by something else and then didn't go back - so probably need to start again fresh).
can't wait for the part three
so strange that ive just got into these types of games, at 21 years old, after them being released so long ago..
Great show.:)
isnt this the guy from lost
Nice, a Krull clip at the end.
Those where the days. ahhh
i loooove icewind dale
Cancelled Black Isle games are depressing.
I know right... Baldurs gate 3:Black hound, Van Buren and who knows what else...
Notice that all the developers that worked on the series (Trent Oster, Brian Fargo, Josh ) all say they liked Icewind Dale the best?! Why?
Probably because its a very well made D&D dungeon crawler more focused on gameplay over story. I don't know much other reasons.
Because it distills D&D down to it's essence:
Story based dungeon crawling.
It's straightforward and executed to perfection.
I love the other infinity engine games to death, but most of them are not reflective of what a D&D game is like,
Icewind Dale on the other hand, is down to the letter of how a D&D adventure goes; just a party of strangers banding together to fight against something greater than them, navigate mazes, kill monsters, save the land.
Heroic, unapologetic and unpretentious.
Josh Holloway is Sawyer on Lost and this guys name is Josh Sawyer, that's pretty funny.
Ima go ahead and click like before I even watch this
Don't forget about Tim Cain.
It's been too long for me to remember exactly, but I did find the first one boring when I first played it. The 2nd one, though, was much better. I'd take either one of them now over the dreck we have to suffer with now though.
Nice shirt!
Nice video
Aliens RPG - man, they should do it! That would be overkill :P
What the hell, Matt. I just listened to episode 2 of your podcast and there you said Icewind Dale II is even more boring that the first one. And in this video you said it's one of your favourite games! Way to asskiss this guy.
Also holyshit that podcast episode was hard to listen to. I've listened to many gaming podcasts over the years but never have I come across someone so bitter and jaded about video games.
This is bullshit, this podcast is highly underrated and should have way more attention. What is up with that? There's so much dumb shit on youtube with a shitload of undeserved attention.
I have to agree with you about the podcast tr1umph. Absolutely moronic, Bartons interviews are great but honestly it's as if his view of what makes a cRPG is fucking isometric perspective and turn based combat.