Biomutant – Stefan Ljungqvist Interview

Following the recent release date reveal for Biomutant, Experiment 101’s creative director Stefan Ljungqvist had a chat with IGN that mainly focused on the prolonged period of radio silence that accompanied the final stretch of the game’s development. There’s also a brief mention of the game’s next-gen console upgrade.

Here’s an excerpt:

Quality assurance isn’t the only thing that’s been happening at Experiment 101 over the last year, though. Biomutant has, well, mutated in that period, too. “If you look at the script, by the end of 2019 I think it was about 80-85,000 words. Pretty much a novel,” recalls Ljungqvist. “But in the final game, it’s closer to 250,000 words. That was a big thing, to wrap that script.”

Those new words are scattered across many different areas of the game, which in turn has demanded further development work on those features. Ljungqvist notes that, as a result of the expanded script, players can expect a reactive karma system called Aura, which will change NPC dialogue based on your light or dark allegiance. There’s also a better tutorial system, which more effectively communicates Biomutant’s overflowing toy box of ideas. On top of the additional script forming the basis of these features, the game will be available in 13 different languages, 10 of which are fully voiced, and so localisation is required on all those added words. It’s safe to say it’s been a busy year for Experiment 101.