"Weird West Developer Breaks Down this new Immersive Sim | Developer Breakdown" is a video published by Noclip Crew featuring an interview with Rafael Colantonio, co-founder of Arkane Studios and founder of WolfEye Studios. The video discusses the development process of Weird West, an immersive sim game, as well as the challenges faced by the small indie team in creating an open-ended narrative and addressing criticisms of the game's combat and controls.
Rafael Colantonio explains that immersion in video games is achieved through a combination of different layers, including the first-person camera and the atomic level of actions. He believes that the tediousness of these actions creates gameplay and opens up a possibility space for players. The game Weird West aims to provide players with a high level of control over the story and the fate of characters, making choices that can lead to varied outcomes. Colantonio mentions that the team had to pre-plan branching storylines and accommodate different player choices to create an immersive experience.
The game's world, Grackle, serves as an introduction to the grim world of Weird West, providing a rich environment for players to explore. Colantonio cites influences from games like Ultima 7 and Divinity: Original Sin in creating Grackle.
Weird West's original concept was a roguelike game with one run and multiple characters, focusing on side quests rather than a main quest. However, the team found that the procedural approach was limiting and opted for a combination of authored stories and procedural elements.
One area of criticism for Weird West has been its controls during combat, particularly on mouse and keyboard. Colantonio acknowledges these issues and explains that they stem from the intersection of multiple systems and AI. The team aimed to provide player agency, allowing them to shoot at anything and have a sandbox experience, which proved to be complex in real-time with the game's camera angle. They worked on decluttering the combat and making it more digestible for players, but some players still struggled with the aiming system. Colantonio mentions that they are working on a different aiming system to be released in the next update.
In conclusion, Weird West is an ambitious immersive sim game that pushes the envelope in terms of player choice and narrative possibilities. The small indie team at WolfEye Studios faced challenges in creating an open-ended experience and addressing criticisms of the game's combat and controls, but they continue to work on improvements and updates to enhance the game's immersion and playability.
