LogIn"We were lucky we didn't break the game."
Black Isle Studios
Every CRPG lover has at least heard of Planescape: Torment and most likely played it. 25 years later, it is still an important page of video game history that can enchant even seasoned gamers with its story.
To make the said story happen, developers from Black Isle Studios had to nearly take Infinity Engine, BioWare's tech used in Baldur's Gate, apart, trying to make it work at 110%.
Speaking to PC Gamer (via GamesRadar+), Planescape's lead programmer Dan Spitzley said the team "ran roughshod over some of the standards that BioWare had put in place for the engine, probably for good reason."
They worked to take everything and then a little more out of the engine.
"We were lucky we didn't break the game," Spitzley added.
Other than its gripping story, Planescape: Torment had cinematics so great that they impressed BioWare's CEO Ray Muzyka. Black Isle Studios lead artist Tim Donley recalls that when Muzyka saw them, he was "silent for a while."
"Then he turns to his programmer," Donley said, "and goes, 'You guys told me we couldn't have that many frames of animation. How come the game looks so good?'"
Whether they aimed for it or not, Black Isle Studios managed to create an exceptional game – thanks to its incredible team. Donley shared that Eric Campanella, a 2D artist who designed and animated the companions, had zero 3D experience but created each character "in a day or less": "It was like fucking Da Vinci. The guy turned out to be one of the best 3D modelers I've ever seen."
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