When it comes to Nightingale, the upcoming game from Inflexion Studios and Aaryn Flynn, it turns out that the game was originally conceived with “aspirations to build that huge MMO-style game and then realizes that's not what our team is truly passionate about". In recognizing this, the concept was narrowed down to a survival and crafting focused sandbox game with an emphasis on interdependence.
In an interview with IGN, Flynn says his experience at BioWare give him some lessons learned from games like Mass Effect or Dragon Age, and even cited the lessons from releasing Anthem all impacted this vision. In finding the right mix, their questions settled on how they can build a game and a world that is based on survival crafting gameplay, to make this game and this type of gameplay compelling and still rooted in lore even if it’s not going to be as narratively focused as a BioWare game.
The original concept intended to be a massively multiplayer online world but it just didn't pan out. Flynn notes that they have some friends on the New World team, and while that began as more of a survival game and then Amazon decided to turn it into an MMO, Nightingale went in the reverse direction. The game is about solving puzzles and working together, crafting and interdependence to help humanity reach the last human bastion known as Nightingale. Expect wildlife, a need for base building, and for the environment and more impacting your journey. While it won’t be a massive MMO style game, it will be multiplayer and emphasize cooperation and figuring things out together on the journey.
Flynn and the Inflexion team emphasize that player choices are important and will matter here. “The more we can, as developers, offer autonomy and real meaningful chances to impact and change the world of the game, and see those choices reflected back in compelling ways, the better a job we've done, “ he says.
For more on Nightingale, visit the official site.
