Gentleman on 19/8/2009 at 21:05
Since many people want a Garrett storyline, and others wouldn't care whether the main character is Garrett or not, and others don't want Garrett back at all in Thief 4, wouldn't it be worth considering having two or three storylines? :idea:
I mean, playing as Garrett in one campaign, playing with a different character in a completely different campaign, and maybe having a third and different campaign that includes both characters.
Or is that too complicated? :)
PotatoGuy on 19/8/2009 at 21:17
I would rather not have something like that. I like to have one main story to focus on, that way you can remember and udnerstand everything you run across, without getting confused.
But: the more side stories, the better. :cheeky:
jtr7 on 19/8/2009 at 21:47
It's too complicated for Thief, but if it were possible to make expansion packs, that would be the best bet.
TDS had more texts and voice-acting than the earlier titles combined. Now double that or triple that and think of who would write it all, act it all ($$$), and lay it into the missions. :eek: At least DX3 was granted more time (MONEY!) to develop the game further.
Stath MIA on 20/8/2009 at 03:42
I'm leaning towards no, the devs would be force to spread their efforts too much and none of the storylines would be as good as they could have been had they focused all their attention on just one. That is, unless they drag on the production process for many additional years.
Gentleman on 20/8/2009 at 20:02
I see your point. But as for the amount of work that could go into each storyline, there could be a lot of dialogue and books that could be used in all three storylines, but viewed from a different angle.
It could also be a different variation of the same storyline, keeping only the approach to each level or mission different. For example, the same mission with a different starting place and different objectives. :erg:
Still, I agree that Thief 4 is a game that everyone would want sooner than later, so maybe keeping it simple is in order. :cheeky:
Stath MIA on 21/8/2009 at 19:46
Catch is that they would still have to divide their efforts which would, naturally, decrease the quality all around.
jtr7 on 21/8/2009 at 21:36
Double or triple the work in the same amount of time, and I can guarantee the development time will not even be doubled to make it great. That would be looking at 5 or six years from now before a release. Double a developer's intensive workload on any given 8 to 14-hour workday and tell me how it's possible to get it all done at the same quality as one average game developer's workload.:sly:
Not to mention they aren't going to hire more than their goal of 80 people, when they have to sell the game to recoup all the money spent on all those paychecks and all the other company expenses. And then after they make back the millions of dollars spent on making the game, they have to make a decent profit.
