Why Are Epic RPG Cities So Rare? An Obsidian Dev Explains the Hidden Costs

Ever wondered why so many epic role-playing games drop you into vast wildernesses, ancient ruins, or sprawling dungeons, but truly dense, believable urban environments feel like a rare treat? It turns out there’s a very good reason, and it boils down to something many gamers might not expect: the sheer cost and complexity involved.

Recently, Josh Sawyer, the acclaimed design director at Obsidian Entertainment – the studio behind beloved titles like Fallout: New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity – shed some fascinating light on this topic. In a recent Q&A session, Sawyer delved into why contemporary urban settings are so uncommon in the RPG landscape, highlighting the monumental challenges developers face.

The Concrete Jungle: A Costly Endeavor

Sawyer’s core argument is straightforward but eye-opening: urban environments are significantly more expensive and difficult to construct than other common RPG settings. While a sprawling dungeon might seem complex, a bustling city cranks up the difficulty dial to eleven. The level of detail required for a city to feel alive and immersive is astronomical.

To put it into perspective, Sawyer revealed a striking figure: “Compared to a dungeon, generally speaking, a town is 4x the expense per square foot.” That’s a massive difference, underscoring why studios often opt for more manageable environments. Every alleyway, every building, every NPC with a routine adds layers of complexity and cost that quickly multiply.

Beyond Bricks and Mortar: Crafting a Living City

The challenges of building a believable RPG city go far beyond just asset creation. It’s about crafting a dynamic ecosystem. Think about what makes a city feel real: individual characters with unique dialogues and schedules, shops that open and close, quests that intertwine with the urban fabric, and a sense of history etched into the architecture.

Developers must contend with intricate systems for:

• Population Density: Filling streets with believable, non-repeating NPCs.
• Verticality and Navigation: Designing multi-layered cities with intricate pathways, interiors, and exteriors that flow naturally.
• Unique Assets: Minimizing repetition of buildings, props, and textures to maintain visual interest.
• Quest Integration: Weaving countless storylines seamlessly into the urban environment without breaking immersion.
• Performance Optimization: Ensuring the game runs smoothly despite the sheer volume of assets and active systems.

Contrast this with a dungeon, which can often rely on modular assets, simpler NPC logic (or none at all), and a more linear design. Wilderness areas, while vast, can often reuse flora and fauna assets and have less demanding NPC populations.

The Urban Legends (and Their Scars)

Despite the immense hurdles, some RPGs have absolutely nailed the urban setting, becoming legendary for their dense, immersive cities. Sawyer himself pointed to a few standout examples that managed to “land the plane” on believable urban environments:

• Baldur’s Gate 2’s Athkatla: A classic example of a sprawling, intricate city teeming with quests and characters.
• Disco Elysium: Renowned for its incredibly detailed and atmospheric fictional city of Revachol, where every corner tells a story.
• The Trails Series (e.g., Trails from Zero): Known for its meticulously crafted urban centers that evolve and feel lived-in throughout the series.

Sawyer noted that games like Disco Elysium and the Trails series had a slight advantage: their combat systems are less central to the experience, meaning developers could prioritize narrative and environmental detail without needing to design extensive, complex combat arenas within every urban space.

Other games have famously attempted ambitious urban settings, often with well-documented struggles. Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines, despite its cult status, had a famously troubled development. More recently, Cyberpunk 2077 promised a breathtaking Night City, and while visually stunning, its launch was plagued with performance issues and bugs, especially in its dense urban areas. Even Baldur’s Gate 3, a critically acclaimed masterpiece, saw its Act 3 city of Baldur’s Gate often cited as the part of the game with the most noticeable “seams” or performance dips, hinting at the sheer scale of the challenge.

What This Means for Players and Developers

For us gamers, Sawyer’s insights offer a deeper appreciation for the urban environments we do get to explore. They are not just pretty backdrops; they are monuments to incredible development effort and resource allocation. When we encounter a truly great RPG city, it’s a testament to a studio’s vision and perseverance.

For developers, it’s a constant balancing act between ambition and practicality. While new technologies like procedural generation and AI tools might help streamline some aspects of city building, the fundamental need for unique artistic direction, intricate quest design, and seamless player experience means the human touch will always be paramount. The dream of a truly living, breathing metropolis in an RPG remains a monumental task, but one that, when achieved, creates unforgettable gaming experiences.

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