Obsidian Entertainmentis best known for its RPG titles, but the studio has branched out and covered numerous genres over the course of its history. Even its RPG titles have covered fantasy CRPGs, post-apocalyptic FPS RPGs, espionage-themed third-person RPGs, science fiction RPGs, and the comedic turn-basedSouthPark: The Stick of Truth. Of course,Obsidian Entertainmenthas also ventured into survival games, action RPGs, mech games, tabletop conversions, and even MMOs.
With how manyquality titles Obsidian Entertainment has released, there are many examples of what defines its games and makes the studio so successful. One of the biggest strengths of the studio is its writing. Games likeThe Stick of Truth,Fallout: New Vegas, andThe Outer Worldsall feature vastly different themes, characters, tones, and voices. However, the writing stands out in all three for its creativity, engaging nature, and how deep characters. Obsidian Entertainment games also usually feature great mechanics with a lot of depth for players to explore and learn. Games likeGrounded,Pillars of Eternity, andTyrannyall take their own spin on their associated genres and bring a lot of new options and ideas to it that players haven’t experienced before. With these two elements in mind, there is hardly any genre that Obsidian seemingly couldn’t tackle. However, there are a couple that make perfect sense.
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Obsidian Entertainment Should Make a Game Like BioShock
BioShockis a series well known for its philosophical themes, deep worlds, interesting combat, and fantastic dialogue. Obsidian Entertainment would flourish if it made a game that is similar to theBioShockseries. Obsidian’s writing prowess would excel greatly when fleshing out the game’s world and characters. The studio has made plenty of fascinating and original settings for its games, and players venturing into a new dystopia from the studio would be fascinating to explore. Of course,video games are not new to dystopiasat all, but Obsidian could bring a breath of fresh air to the genre.
It would also be interesting to see what themes Obsidian could explore in such a setting. There are manyphilosophies thatBioShockhas not explored yet, and seeing Obsidian Entertainment tackle one of these would be just as interesting. It also would be great to see what sort of combat mechanics Obsidian would put into the game. If it followedBioShock’s blend of conventional weapons and mystical powers, Obsidian could greatly expand on the system and doubtlessly come up with great new combat features.
Obsidian Entertainment Should Make a Cyberpunk Game
Whether or not the game would be set in the tabletop roleplaying gameCyberpunk’s universe, similar toCyberpunk 2077, Obsidian Entertainment would do great making a cyberpunk title. Of course, games likeDeus Ex,Cyberpunk 2077, andShadowrunhave shown the potential for the genre, and Obsidian Entertainment is well equipped to meet that potential. Cyberpunk as a genre thrives on complicated worlds, gray morality, beautiful worlds, and mystery. It is easy to imagine Obsidian Entertainment making a fascinating futuristic world run by corporations and plagued by rampant crime. Of course, the studio did feature some similar themes inits sci-fi RPGThe Outer Worlds, but a truly cyberpunk title from the studio would embrace the darker side of the genre to great effect.
The genre would also allow Obsidian Entertainment to introduce some really fascinating gameplay mechanics. Cyberpunk worlds feature a collision between humanity and technology that leads to humans having blades come out of their arms or integrating their consciousness with the internet to hack faster. The possibilities are limitless, and Obsidian could let its creativity fly free, allowing players to explore numerous playstyles while exploring a grim and detailed cyberpunk world. Many fans have beenpining forDeus Exto make a comeback, and Obsidian Entertainment may be the perfect studio to do so.
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Obsidian Entertainment Should Make a Live Service Looter Game
There have been numerous live service looter games that have come and gone. The live service genre has become rather crowded, and the games industry can doubtlesslyonly support so many live services, but Obsidian Entertainment could very likely make one that sticks. Obsidian Entertainment is very skilled at making interesting worlds that players love to spend time in. The very nature of a live service title would allow the studio to make its deepest world yet, and to continue expanding it through updates and events while players explore and learn about it. It would also give the studio a chance to create a more livable world that changes as time goes on, and that players could have a real impact on through limited-time events.
Obsidian Entertainment would also be able to excel if the game was a looter shooter, similar toWarframeorDestiny 2. The studio’s ability to make deep mechanics with a lot of player choice would allow for the game’s loot and activities to be deeply engaging and challenging. Obsidian Entertainment has championed deep andunique RPG mechanics in games likePillars of Eternity. Similar new features and fresh ideas could be exactly what the looter shooter genre needs to be refreshed now that it has found its identity in the established games that have already been released within the genre.
Of course, there are alreadymany projects in development at Obsidian Entertainment, and there is no telling where the studio will want to go in the future. With the studio being acquired by Xbox it is in a great position to do just about anything that it wishes, and the possibilities for its future are seemingly limitless. The studio has enjoyed a fantastic track record throughout its history, and it will be fascinating to see where the studio goes in the future. It would be great to see the studio surprise its many fans, and, hopefully, those same fans will get some news on what the studio will do next sometime soon.
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