It Lives! - Project Eternity In Motion
My old-school RPG gland's been engorged with excitement for many reasons lately, but the past few weeks have seen Torment race to the front of the pack - and not just because it's chock full of twisted sights and sounds not of this world. In something of a revolution, it also moves. Like, its pictures just sort of do things, without the assistance of a flip book, finger puppets, or any of the other traditional methods. So imagine my elation when I discovered that Project Eternity will, in fact, employ similar motion gremlins to sow the glorious song of movement into its lush mountains, valleys, and plains. See everything dance, wiggle, and jiggle after the break.
I want to go live under those waterfalls. I'm not sure if that would entail seeking refuge in nearby caves or simply sprouting gills and an incredibly hardy spine, but I'm feeling up to the challenge regardless. They're just so foamy and inviting. If only all bodies of water made me feel so desired.
It's all quite striking, though - and certainly akin to what my brain wants to remember old Infinity Engine games as looking like, free of the wrinkles and warts that age inevitably cleaves into skin. That, unsurprisingly, is exactly what Obsidian's going for. Project director Josh Sawyer explained:
"The Infinity Engine games were known for their art, and we wanted to hit the high standard of visual quality established by games like the Icewind Dale series. We also wanted to introduce dynamic elements into the environment that were mostly absent from the classic games, like dynamic water, movement in foliage, and dynamic lighting of the scene."
"In a 2D game, this required our programmers and artists to come up with some creative solutions. What they came up with surprised us initially and it continues to amaze us. While we are still working on refining some of the dynamic elements, we're very happy with the progress we've been able to make and hope you feel the same way."
Waterfalllllllll. Aka, yes. Admittedly, however, these are pretty standard fantasy environments, but that kind of seems to be Eternity's shtick. Its wheelhouse doesn't reinvent the wheel, but its roots are so firmly wrapped around the pounding pulse of nostalgia that I'd be shocked if it did anything differently. I see no problem with that, though. It's what people paid for, and Obsidian's chops in this area are second-to-none.
How about you, though? Are you still chomping at the bit for Eternity? For me, Torment's taken away a bit of the sheen (so much weird stuff and completely out-there lore and grossness and and and), but there's more than enough room for both. Now it's just a matter of patiently waiting, which is total cake when you're someone who's the exact opposite of me.