Obsidian Entertainment is best known for its RPG titles, but the studio has branched out and covered numerous genres over the course of its history. Even its RPG titles have covered fantasy CRPGs, post-apocalyptic FPS RPGs, espionage-themed third-person RPGs, science fiction RPGs, and the comedic turn-based South Park: The Stick of Truth. Of course, Obsidian Entertainment has also ventured into survival games, action RPGs, mech games, tabletop conversions, and even MMOs.
With how many quality titles Obsidian Entertainment has released, there are many examples of what defines its games and makes the studio so successful. One of the biggest strengths of the studio is its writing. Games like The Stick of Truth, Fallout: New Vegas, and The Outer Worlds all feature vastly different themes, characters, tones, and voices. However, the writing stands out in all three for its creativity, engaging nature, and how deep characters. Obsidian Entertainment games also usually feature great mechanics with a lot of depth for players to explore and learn. Games like Grounded, Pillars of Eternity, and Tyranny all take their own spin on their associated genres and bring a lot of new options and ideas to it that players haven't experienced before. With these two elements in mind, there is hardly any genre that Obsidian seemingly couldn't tackle. However, there are a couple that make perfect sense.
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BioShock is a series well known for its philosophical themes, deep worlds, interesting combat, and fantastic dialogue. Obsidian Entertainment would flourish if it made a game that is similar to the BioShock series. Obsidian's writing prowess would excel greatly when fleshing out the game's world and characters. The studio has made plenty of fascinating and original settings for its games, and players venturing into a new dystopia from the studio would be fascinating to explore. Of course, video games are not new to dystopias at all, but Obsidian could bring a breath of fresh air to the genre.
It would also be interesting to see what themes Obsidian could explore in such a setting. There are many philosophies that BioShock has not explored yet, and seeing Obsidian Entertainment tackle one of these would be just as interesting. It also would be great to see what sort of combat mechanics Obsidian would put into the game. If it followed BioShock's blend of conventional weapons and mystical powers, Obsidian could greatly expand on the system and doubtlessly come up with great new combat features.
Whether or not the game would be set in the tabletop roleplaying game Cyberpunk's universe, similar to Cyberpunk 2077, Obsidian Entertainment would do great making a cyberpunk title. Of course, games like Deus Ex, Cyberpunk 2077, and Shadowrun have shown the potential for the genre, and Obsidian Entertainment is well equipped to meet that potential. Cyberpunk as a genre thrives on complicated worlds, gray morality, beautiful worlds, and mystery. It is easy to imagine Obsidian Entertainment making a fascinating futuristic world run by corporations and plagued by rampant crime. Of course, the studio did feature some similar themes in its sci-fi RPG The Outer Worlds, but a truly cyberpunk title from the studio would embrace the darker side of the genre to great effect.
The genre would also allow Obsidian Entertainment to introduce some really fascinating gameplay mechanics. Cyberpunk worlds feature a collision between humanity and technology that leads to humans having blades come out of their arms or integrating their consciousness with the internet to hack faster. The possibilities are limitless, and Obsidian could let its creativity fly free, allowing players to explore numerous playstyles while exploring a grim and detailed cyberpunk world. Many fans have been pining for Deus Ex to make a comeback, and Obsidian Entertainment may be the perfect studio to do so.
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There have been numerous live service looter games that have come and gone. The live service genre has become rather crowded, and the games industry can doubtlessly only support so many live services, but Obsidian Entertainment could very likely make one that sticks. Obsidian Entertainment is very skilled at making interesting worlds that players love to spend time in. The very nature of a live service title would allow the studio to make its deepest world yet, and to continue expanding it through updates and events while players explore and learn about it. It would also give the studio a chance to create a more livable world that changes as time goes on, and that players could have a real impact on through limited-time events.
Obsidian Entertainment would also be able to excel if the game was a looter shooter, similar to Warframe or Destiny 2. The studio's ability to make deep mechanics with a lot of player choice would allow for the game's loot and activities to be deeply engaging and challenging. Obsidian Entertainment has championed deep and unique RPG mechanics in games like Pillars of Eternity. Similar new features and fresh ideas could be exactly what the looter shooter genre needs to be refreshed now that it has found its identity in the established games that have already been released within the genre.
Of course, there are already many projects in development at Obsidian Entertainment, and there is no telling where the studio will want to go in the future. With the studio being acquired by Xbox it is in a great position to do just about anything that it wishes, and the possibilities for its future are seemingly limitless. The studio has enjoyed a fantastic track record throughout its history, and it will be fascinating to see where the studio goes in the future. It would be great to see the studio surprise its many fans, and, hopefully, those same fans will get some news on what the studio will do next sometime soon.
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