Recently, indie developers have been getting a lot of buzz lately with pcs, consoles and mobile based Oss making it easier for them to debut their games. Mist of Stagnation is one such game. Mist of Stagnation, a multiplayer RPG that’s based in a post-apocalyptic, steam punk-esque type world, is scheduled to be released in late 2013. David Gates, CEO and Project Manager at Osiris Studios, the creators of the game, took the time to answer some of our questions about their upcoming project. He was also kind enough to share some of the concept art used for the game. For more information on Mist of Stagnation, be sure to follow Osiris Studios on Twitter and like them on Facebook or check them out on Indie DB.
Please state your name as well as your official title with Osiris Studios?
David Gates – CEO, Project Manager and Environmental Artist
When were you guys founded?
Officially we were founded early this year as an LLC, but we have been Osiris Studios for about 2 years now.
Why make games?
To us, it’s the best part about gaming! Our goal is to make games that inspire, not require, team work. Most games today lack that quality, and I have always believed in leaving more than you take.
Tell us a little bit about Mist of Stagnation? How did the idea start?
Mist of Stagnation has gone through many different stages before it evolved to what it is today. It originally started out as a multiplayer RPG, with skill trees and vast environments and a unique world to explore. That is what would be considered the ‘prequel’ to Mist of Stagnation now. We decided to shift focus on a multiplayer game first, since building a strong community is our ultimate goal.
The art style is based on a number of things, ranging from Mad Max, to BioShock. We went with what we call Practical Steam punk versus the fantasy steam punk that you see so much of in games. It gives us more of a grounded design feel, and keeps it in a realistic realm.
Can you describe the setting for Mist of Stagnation? Is it set in our time or a parallel world?
This is a little bit of a tricky question, but Mist of Stagnation is set in the real world, at approximately our time, but in an alternate timeline (Kind of like what they did in Star Trek 2009). A lot of the back story dictates all of this, but to sum it up without giving away any spoilers is that in the early 1900’s, a cataclysmic event happened, that shifted the timeline. This allows us to have our own unique feel for steam punk that give the player some things they would expect to see from steampunk, such as airships, but in a way that combines some real world items.
Mist of Stagnation is a First Person Shooter and Real Time Strategy game. That being said, can you describe the playable characters in the game?
To start we have 4 characters, 2 for each team. We decided to go away from the standard class base system most games today use, but instead give each of our players their own personality that comes across in the gameplay. Two of the characters we have showcasing at RTX & PAX are Boris and The Fly Boy. Each will have their own set of voice acting, animations, and taunts that will make them feel more alive and an extension of who you are. Why tell someone in chat how you are gonna pwn them, when your character can do it for you in colorful ways.
I have to ask this because I’m a girl and the COD franchise recently stated that they are introducing a female playable character to their game. Can we expect a male-dominated Mist of Stagnation or will there be women in the game?
This is actually something we are very excited about. There has always been a stigma about female gamers and female characters in gaming. They are always portrayed unrealistically, and since we are all about realism, we took that on as one of our tasks. I think the game that pulled this off the best was Left 4 Dead, since Zoey was just another one of the bunch. When we started designing her, we went back and forth from a few ideas until we got what we wanted, making sure to keep the proportions in check. You will notice a difference from the concept art to the final design as we made these iterations.
What is the release date for Mist of Stagnation?
We are looking at doing some type of release in Q4 this year. We will be starting our Kickstarter a week after PAX Prime. We wanted to make sure that we have a full feature version of the game available for most reward tiers to get as soon as the Kickstarter campaign ends.
Any other future projects that Osiris Studios can tell us about?
At the moment we are focused completely on Mist of Stagnation, but depending on the feedback we get, we are considering doing a Single Player/Story mode for it, and then going back to the Prequel story as a Co-Op RPG.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
We are currently on Steam’s Greenlight and could use your vote! Look forward to our Kickstarter Campaign starting soon too; we will have some really great rewards. If you would like to learn more about the game, check out our website, along with our Facebook and Twitter accounts.
On a side note, I have said in multiple interviews that the two most important parts to game development are Design Documents and Concept Art. Concept artists are the muse that makes our jobs possible. Thank you all!