14 DAY TRIAL // Project Eternity is set to launch in a little more than one year but the team working on the role-playing game at Obsidian says that if the first game is successful, it is considering creating new content based on it for as long as the studio exists.
Chris Avellone, a veteran of the genre, tells Eurogamer that the developer estimates that an entirely new game will cost the same as Project Eternity and might include a much expanded world and better mechanics.
He states, “And the energy and resources that are usually spent on programming the systems and getting the framework all set up: they can devote that to creating much more player-seen content - more spells, more ways of casting and reacting to the environment and things like that.”
Obsidian says that it will use the time required to create and launch an expansion after Project Eternity is out to evaluate its sales success and decide exactly how to expand the universe.
Avellone adds, “The way we structured the plan is I don't think there's ever an instance where it would be put on hold, because as soon as the first game is completed then we're still working on the expansion.”
Project Eternity is being created using money gathered from fans, who have given more than 4 million dollars (2.9 million Euro) via both Kickstarter and PayPal.
The game is designed around an entirely new universe, which includes familiar fantasy elements but also a few surprises, and is positioned as a successor to the titles created by Black Isle.
Obsidian has offered information about a number of mechanics for Project Eternity and invites all players to comment on their choices on the official forum.
The game will be launched on the PC in 2014 and a number of exclusive pieces of content will be offered to Kickstarter backers.