Obsidian Entertainment - Josh Sawyer Interview

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RPG Site interviewed Josh Sawyer, studio design director at Obsidian:

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"I want to make more games. I don't know how many more I got in me." - Josh Sawyer on Pentiment's second anniversary, and what's next

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RPG Site: So for those who don't know you, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do at Obsidian Entertainment right now?

Josh Sawyer: My name is Josh Sawyer. I'm studio design director at Obsidian. I'm also a game director. I've been in the industry for 25 years. I started at Black Isle Studios in 1999. I worked briefly at Midway San Diego, but for the last 19 years I've been at Obsidian. Notably, I've directed Fallout New Vegas, Pillars of Eternity I and II, and Pentiment.

RPG Site: So what exactly does a studio design director do?

Josh Sawyer: That's a good question. It varies. At Obsidian, it's an advisory position, so I don't really tell people what to do, although I do tell them what I think they should do.

So I will look at the projects and talk to either individual designers or the director about specific design features or directions.

Anything from system design to narrative to UI/interface, things like that, and I give feedback. I also asked them questions like what are you trying to accomplish with this? What is your intended audience? How do you think they're going to react to this? But it is their choice what to do with my advice. So it's largely an advisory position which is why I'm able to also direct games. Because it's not a full time job really.

RPG Site: In the past you mentioned how after Pillars of Eternity II you kind of were in burnout for a long time and you needed a break. I want to know what a day in your life looks like right now, and how it differs from just after Pillars II shipped when you were in that burnout phase.

Josh Sawyer: So in the post Deadfire phase, I was not doing a lot of direct work. I wasn't doing any direct work really, so I was focusing more on playing. You know there were DLCs for Deadfire that were being developed with Brandon Adler as the director of those. The Outer Worlds was in development at that time, so I was playing those games and getting a lot of feedback on them. But I really wasn't in a mental position to come up with new ideas for games or much less do work on them or direct anything. That's not the case now. So I am, you know, like I'm helping on Avowed. I am in an advisory role still, but I did a little bit of writing on Avowed. I've helped out with some system design and things like that.

Basically, wherever they needed help. I am doing more hands-on work there and then just thinking and talking about ideas for future projects.

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