Wizards of the Coast has revealed new details about its video game development studio, which is now called Archetype Entertainment, and it's working on a multi-platform science fiction RPG. The announcement of a video game studio owned by Wizards of the Coast was made last year when it was revealed that veteran designer James Ohlen would be in charge and that he would be working on something that wasn't associated with Dungeons & Dragons or Magic: The Gathering, which are the two biggest properties associated with the company.
Ohlen worked for Bioware for twenty-two years and was the lead designer/creative designer on such classic games as Baldur's Gate, Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn, Neverwinter Nights, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Dragon Age: Origins, and Star Wars: The Old Republic. He left BioWare in 2018 to found his own publishing company called Arcanum Worlds, but he was snapped up by Wizards of the Coast in 2019 to head their new video game development studio.
Wizards of the Coast has now issued a press release regarding Archetype Entertainment, the new name for the Austin-located studio, and it's developing a multi-platform roleplaying game that will be set in an all-new science fiction universe. Ohlen is the head of the studio, and Chad Robertson will be the general manager. Ohlen has discussed the type of game that the mysterious new property will be on the Archetype Entertainment website.
“Archetype is a chance for us to build the type of roleplaying game that we love to play. Video games are a uniquely interactive medium. They allow us to give the player powerful choices that have real consequences on how the story unfolds.”
It's strange to see Ohlan working with Wizards of the Coast again, considering that Baldur's Gate III is being developed by Larian Studios and he isn't involved in its development. There are also rumors that Lucasfilm is developing a Knights of the Old Republic project that could either be a TV show or a series of movies. It's clear that the games he worked on have left a huge impact on the industry and it will be interesting to see what he develops next.
Wizards of the Coast has confirmed that more Dungeons & Dragons games are in development and Magic: The Gathering Arena is making the card game a big presence in the digital space, so the company clearly has plans in place for its biggest properties. Wizards of the Coast is mostly known for fantasy-based properties and Archetype Entertainment could help the company develop its own multimedia science-fiction franchise. There are few people better suited to helming this project than the mind behind so many classic games and this is definitely a company that is worth keeping an eye on in the future.
Source: Archetype Entertainment