Jonesy89: So, the combat wasn't the main focus of the game that this is a spiritual successor to? Then why does it even begin to matter how the combat works in Numenera if it is meant to be a spiritual successor, which seems to suggest that the combat in it will also not be the main focus?

sear: Wasteland 2 doesn't have much to do with it as, given the differences between technology (even though both games use Unity), they will have very different combat systems in the end indeed. In fact, since we're using much of Obsidian's tech from Pillars of Eternity, it'd be much easier for us to stick with RTwP. We didn't pick turn-based combat because it's "easier" to do.

Rather, turn-based combat gives us the opportunity to introduce far more complex encounters than what would generally be manageable in real-time - such as introducing conversations, non-combat actions, environment interaction, and so on that would be extremely chaotic and difficult to process. It also lets us be more faithful to the Numenera ruleset, which is of course also turn-based.

That's not to say it couldn't be done in real time, but as Torment is generally a very thoughtful, slower-paced game with complicated scenarios and characters, we wanted encounters (or Crises as they're known internally) to match that. Our goal is to have no filler combat, and a limited number of Crisis scenarios throughout the game, and turn-based is more in line with that for us.

Ultimately, TTON isn't a direct sequel to PST - it's built in the same foundations, but has entirely different characters, setting, and it explores different (but familiar) themes and ideas. We absolutely intend to make a game that fans of the original PST will enjoy, and we hope that a different (and, in our opinion, more appropriate to our vision) combat system won't change that for fans of RTwP.

groze: As a backer, I must say I'm not too happy with the fact they opted to go with turn-based combat, as I have always been more of an action-oriented type of player. To me, turn-based games ruin the immersion, I like things to be fluid and that every action I perform is intuitive and immediate, usually associated with a button click equaling an onscreen action. Combat was never the main focus of Planescape: Torment, and I can't quite understand why they went the route of turn-based, except for the fact these fads are cyclical and, as of now, turn-based games are experiencing somewhat of a comeback.

This fact alone has made me much less interested in the final product, and I haven't been keeping up with the project since they announced it.