Obsidian Entertainment Provides First Look at Project Eternity

The latest update on the Kickstarter campaign page for Obsidian Entertainment's Project Eternity features a video with a first look at what the game will actually look like. The four-minute video provides the first glimpse at the kinds of exterior environments we can expect to see in the game when it launches, with emphasis on things like the lighting and the water.

But first, an introduction from project director Josh Sawyer, who warns the viewer:

“You might want to pressurise the room that you're in because your head could explode from what you're about to see.”

He explains that the team has a very particular vision when it comes to the art style. The aesthetic of the 2D game world will be similar to that of Icewind Dale and Icewind Dale 2, though it'll obviously take advantage of more modern technology. The focus of the video is on dynamism. That means grass and trees that move in the wind, and water that rises and falls. Watch the video for an example of a river swelling and subsiding, and of a waterfall in constant motion in the background.

The lighting is dynamic too, Sawyer explains, and that goes beyond just a day/night cycle. Near the end of the clip, you can see a floating dot of light – like a firefly or maybe just something the lighting person threw in to show off this particular effect – that illuminates whatever falls within the sphere of its glow as it moves.

Project Eternity is due to launch for PC, Mac, and Linux next year.