Here are the timestamps. Please check out our sponsors to support this podcast. 0:00 - Introduction & sponsor mentions: - Shopify: shopify.com/lex to get free trial - Eight Sleep: www.eightsleep.com/lex to get special savings - InsideTracker: insidetracker.com/lex to get 20% off - LMNT: drinkLMNT.com/lex to get free sample pack 0:55 - Simulation 2:51 - NPCs 11:42 - Daggerfall and Arena 19:55 - Bethesda 28:19 - Video game graphics 34:38 - The essence of a video game 39:27 - Redguard 44:27 - Creating open worlds 52:06 - Superintelligent NPCs 57:00 - Starfield 1:16:42 - The Elder Scrolls 6 1:36:03 - Fallout 1:43:11 - Character creation 1:48:13 - Quests & items 2:01:58 - Xbox 2:07:24 - Greatest game of all time 2:17:40 - Day in the life 2:25:34 - Advice for young people 2:29:02 - Fallout TV show 2:33:34 - Indiana Jones game 2:39:46 - Meaning of life
I am the voice actress for female Khajiit in skyrim. Ask Todd to give me a call or something unless he doesn't intend to really release it. Also I feel he should show a little love to Gary at smart blue cat the creator of inigo the brave. Gary's dedication to follower AI is peerless and even the voice actor for she agorath gave me and Gary big kudos for our contributions to Skyrim and follower Ai and voices. Please pass this along to Todd have him get in touch with me through my TH-cam channel or my email address or anything or whatever but especially get in touch with Gary. Smart blue cat is brilliant and he deserves big money to complete His companion and follower code and projects and Todd I know you can spare a few hundred thousand dollars to make sure Gary doesn't go hungry ever again. How does that sound my friend?
OMGAH bro ask todd what new gameplay systems he decides to implement - maybe a daggerfall type procedural generated gameplay? skyrim already had autolevelling content, maybe expand on this idea. it can't be that hard to put sections of cave together. also bro we need good progression based content. make some spells very powerful make some spells very weak. maybe fire (edit: destruction) magic shouldn't be more of a damage modifier as much as a requirement to use a certain spell. gameplay is king.
@Waldel Martell The score is one of the best videogame scores of all time. Sometimes i play it when i'm walking outside, it truly elevates the experience of walking through nature.
@Waldel Martell Brother you definitely need to hear Skyrim score while playing its something that touches your soul, Jeremy Soule (the composer) did an outstanding job.
Todd seems so genuine and chill. I really appreciate how he mentioned he enjoys the "quiet moments" in his games because the serenity and atmosphere of Bethesda titles is what makes them so immersive to me.
Playing through Skyrim right now for the first time in 10 years and the atmosphere and immersion is still second to none. There are so few games that feel like living worlds quite like Bethesda games do.
This is the best interview Todd Howard has ever done. Because so many of us have only seen him in "corporate PR" mode at industry events, we've never gotten to see how he really is. He's actually really likable, and is just a big gaming nerd who is passionate about his company. It's nice to hear him talk about the things he really cares about. I wish more gaming figures would go on Lex Fridman's podcast, because it allows them to have an in-depth conversation without the distractions of the gaming industry looming over. I can't explain it fully, but there is just something refreshing about tech people going on a "non industry" podcast. I think it's because they get different questions they would normally get from Gaming journalists/personalities. Whereas this just feels like a sit down between two friends going over a wide-range of topics they are personally invested in. Anyways, I walked away from this interview having more respect for Howard, and at least understanding he really does care about his games.
BORING conversation. BORING taste in games. BORING person. Ha... No wonder I never took a liking to the TES series! ~_~ And guess what? He really only ever talks like he is "in "corporate PR" mode at industry events" , as you put it. That's exactly "how he really is" . ;]
@@UlyssesM "sad life" ? It's actually certainly *happier* now that this conversation has ended !! :D ahahaha it was just so bad, it actually depressed me... :P
You remember 79 metacritic score, Fallout online lawsuit. Pre war jet, tb1 prewar armor, extinction of potatoes, no water for ghouls from genius Fallout 4? Fallout 76? "Brilliant" main stories about DADS? You don't? Good for you man.
Why is anyone asking? Just look at the Bethesda track record. Oblivion - FO3, 2 years. FO3 - Skyrim, 3 years. Skyrim - FO4, 3 years. FO4 - FO76, 4 years. FO76 - Starfield, 4.5 years. As games get bigger and graphics more intense, the timeline shifts slightly longer. So 4-5 years after Starfield releases you can expect TES6.
@@Mustis1524Lmao yeah, well some are, some aren't. That's just how the market lives and breathes. Support the good ones, ignore the bad ones. That's all we can do.
I haven't seen every Todd Howard interview out there but I saw him talking about stuff in such a way I really hadn't before. Amazing interview and what a shame it wasn't longer.
I’m not a gamer but I love Skyrim. If there’s a way to remove all enemies, I’d spend a significant amount of time just being in the game as an escape. I love discussing games with my 28 year old son. He shared this interview with me because he knows I follow Lex. This conversation raised my appreciation for the value of games to a higher level. Thank you Lex and Howard for your brilliance!
If you have the game on a PC you can press the tilde key `/~ to bring up a command line. There just type "tdetect 0" and you will prevent enemies from detecting you. This is good if you don't want to engage in the combat itself but care about exploring the world. Alternatively you can type "tgm" to enable invincibility if that so floats your boat.
If you’re on pc you could definitely find mods that would not only remove all enemies but improve the areas and make skyim even more breathtaking to just walk around in. You could also remove enemies via console commands on PC. Not sure how much you can do on console tho.
Skyrim was perfect for non gamers. That’s why a lot of gamers are upset by the “dumbing down” of Skyrim as they lowered a lot of the RPG elements seen in Morrowind and even Oblivion. They’ve continued this direction even more with starfield which is upsetting
@@michaelfoley4182 yeah there are a lot of questions lex could have asked and criticism he could have made wich could have made Todd defensive and stand offish, this was a very casual yet fun and informative interview unique to Lex.
Todd felt so great hearing lex say Skyrim was his favorite game. I wish I could express to Todd how much his games mean to me. The elder scrolls and Fallout are legit the best games ever made
I love the Fallout lore but Fallout 4 is ass changed too much like voiced protagonist and the power armor 🤢, story was meh and the graphics felt very cartoony compared to FO3 and New Vegas where it was grainy and dark giving that post apocalyptic vibe. F03 was meh, New Vegas was awesome but that was actually made by Obsidian so I can't really give too much credit to Bethesda for the Fallout series I think Obsidian deserves it more. The Elder Scrolls however great games and lore all around so bravo to them for that.
@@brenyd fallout 4 is far from ass yall always go to the extreme is it the best fallout the hardcore will say no the casuals will say yes imo it's a solid game not the best the debate for the best imo is 3 or new vegas 3 is a lot better than new vegas imo
It's strange. I live in northern Ontario which has very long winters. I vividly remember taking my dog out for frequent walks while the weather was frigid due in part to the fact we didn't have a yard for him to play in. During this part of my life I was also playing a lot of Skyrim. I remember the atmosphere Skyrim created as you trek up to High Hrothgar, or to the College of Winterhold, or taking the first visit up to Dawnstar, making your way into a cave, escaping the cold behind you. In real life, usually around the beginning of winter, I'll first feel the cold air hit my face, or I'll see blowing snow that obscures the path, and for some strange reason my mind will bring me back to playing Skyrim and the feeling I had when I was in these virtual locations. Each winter I have the urge to play Skyrim. Love the interview. Very insightful!
Yeah i just recently got back into Skyrim. I love playing in the winter as well but mainly because there isnt as much to do in the winter here so thats when i feel less guilty sitting inside and gaming all day. This game just never loses its magic, i love just wandering and discovering new caves and dungeons or just chilling on my Hearthfire homes pimping them out and organizing my endless legendary items and weapons.
That's how I am with Morrowind. Living in the Philippines, and whenever it was raining in game and IRL at the same time, I would feel so immersed. My mind very much transported into the game. Sometimes if I just sit and look at rain droplets hitting the ground, I think about some place in Morrowind.
Skyrim saved my life. It came out at a time when I was at rock bottom. I was able to quit basically all of my vices by coming home to play Skyrim every night after work. Thank you Todd Howard! edit: why does it seem like Todd Howard never ages?
he did aged...you can look at his sagging skin..he didn't had much fat on his body , so this is why skin is not sagging alot. you could see the difference in todays video and skyrim E3 Showcase
Maybe when his voice breaks, and his left baw drops we'll be able to see the 45 year old man for the adult he actually is. I'm just playing, but I hadn't looked at him as I was reading the comments and you prompted me to look at him. I must say that 'Dark Knight' is correct, and I'll bet that his aging is going to catch up with him quickly. By the time the next game is released (not the 42nd remake/port of Skyrim) everyone will be thinking "whoa, why is Toddies grandfather on stage lying to us about the new game?"
@@DB-um2rb Nobody hates him, they're just disappointed. You also have to remember there are boomer higher-ups now in the gaming industry that have never touched a video game that control the direction and funding of these games and their monetization models and dev time. Everyone in his position has made flops. He even said himself in this interview he made a few flops. we're human
@@lethargicmosquito First and foremost to think about what your goal is. The styles of games are so different when it comes to complexity. When you know what your goal is, start small projects (really small) to learn whatever tool you want to use, for example Unity
@@CptUhudini I'm exactly on that stage, I'm waiting for a course to open up so i can enrol to it. Dabbled a bit with UE5 and Unity already. May your games travel far and wide my friend, see you down the line. Thanks for the tip
@@lethargicmosquito Just to add on to this but there are some really incredible courses for UE out there for free or very little money. Very professional and instructive. Once you learn some basics its amazing how quickly you can begin iterating.
I really truly think Todd Howard is as passionate a guy as you can get. He might have some missteps but that just means he’s really shooting for ambitious stuff!
Over the years he's got a rep as sort of the sleazy snake oil salesman of video games but I always thought that passion, creatitity and idealism that you could easily see in the Morrowind days had never really left
Same here Fall out 76 made me lose a lot of respect for him and Bethesda , I wish Lex pressed him harder on the loot box’s And the addiction to monetization of his games and games in general - if his new games fall down this trap I will refuse to give Bethesda another dollar
@@conradbr11 im personally pretty sure that fallout 76 was pushed out in the state it was simply because of zenimax and the shareholder pressure that created. Bethesda had not released an original title in 3 years so they most likely gave them an unrealistic hard deadline that forced them to release it in the state that it did. That is the only explanation i can see that would explain why bethesda would release a game in such ultra broken state because everybody and their mom could absolutely tell how that was going to backfire from a mile away. Why would any company do that? The only insentive for companies to release products is to make money and by releasing a bad product they were borderline guaranteeing that they wouldnt be getting that much of it. Its not like bethesda didnt have enough money to continue development and release it later down the line and at worst they risked a classaction lawsuit for misadvertisement. I cannot see why bethesda would be the one to bare all the blame for fallout 76
@@conradbr11 When you see consumer unfriendly but highly profitable strategies being pushed, almost all the time it's the shotcallers in the publisher and/or gamedev company forcing the devs to allocate their time away from things that'll make the game good in order to make it as profitable and addicting as possible, because they are beholden to their shareholders and legally obligated to maximize profit. Gamedev is an insane amount of work in general and devs have to use their time and resources very wisely to end up with a good result. Taking time to fine-tune these skinenrbox systems is going to force them to cut corners *somewhere.*
I remember playing Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim for the first time. I wish I could capture those moments and experience them again. Thanks for everything, Todd. You inspired an entire generation of growing boys.
I'm so happy elder scrolls games exist, but also sad that they stopped making them. Got to see like 3 different amazing elder scrolls games in 10 years and now I'm happy if I just see another one in my lifetime.
Yeah… Todd kinda tanked starfield on launch, the original lead developer for Skyrim was the lead developer for Starfield. Bruce Nesmith has plans to intricately develop a star system, 12 planets, while Todd “pulled 100 planets” out of thin air without any consultation with the lead developer. Bruce left, and the starfield on release was Todd Howard’s half baked attempt to make a few half developer worlds and 90 more barely developed worlds.
@@MrRight... "We develop games, not game engines.", I remember he's been quoted as saying. Todd Howard is the Steve Jobs of the games industry, but nicer 'cause he encourages the fans to fiddle with his stuff.
Damn, looked like Todd was about to tear up when Lex said Skyrim was the best game of all time. Say what you want about the man, nobody can deny he's passionate about his work.
I'd say it's top 10 for sure, but not best of all-time unless you're obsessed with fantasy realms like Skyrim. I have it like top 7 or so. Edit: Personal preference, history, and context play a part in everybody's top 5/10/15/25. I've only been playing Skyrim since Dec 20th of 2020, and have put somewhere north of 300 hrs on it, probably close to 400. It's one of the greatest games I have played, but I'm hard-pressed to put it above games like RDR2, GTA 4, Halo 3, and GTA:SA. I've been playing RDR2 since around Christmas of 2018, GTA 4 since late 2008, Halo since it's peak in 2007 onwards with my friend, and eventually the Halo: MCC since mid-2010's, and GTA SA since the mid-2000's. I know why Skyrim is so great, and while I don't try to have nostalgia as a factor, but there's something that those games have over Skyrim. Maybe if I had played Skyrim since the 360 days, I'd probably have it top 3.
@@a-a-rondavis9438 I mean top 10 is basically the best of all time when you consider most people have played hundreds in their life time. I think Skyrim is one of those out of body experiences a videogame is capable of bringing ANYONE including any age whether its a 11 year old or 30 year old. Id put it around 4-5th.
He's so different from how he's shown in the gaming media. I'm impressed with how passionate Todd still is about creating games. The guy is still a gigantic nerd and I mean that in the best possible way.
So genuine he was willing to take his series away from millions of players on Playstation that can't now enjoy the games they helped him make money off, real genuine.
@@TimeSplitterChimp you can say that about so many game series dude. God of War is my favorite game series like many others but as an xbox/pc player i know i wont be able to play most of them but thats just the way the industry is
@@Halvo45 that's not the same, GOW has always been exclusive to one audience, Elder Scrolls, Fallout had been sold to both and both have paid and invested and allowed Bethesda to grow and they are now taking it away from 1 group. They could have easily said to Microsoft that they wanted to remain multiplatform like Bungie did with Sony because they care about both audiences, Todd cares about money and that's it.
Yeah it was pretty great to see the "real" Todd when he's not on stage presenting their next game. It's rare to see this combination of pure passion, technical skill and vision in a game director. He's caught some flak in the past but that's expected when you're always pushing boundaries and innovating. Both Oblivion and Skyrim are two of my most memorable games and defined a part of my childhood, really excited for Starfield.
@@GS-tk1hk Not that I'm concerned about Bethesda as a company, but more like what they could do or can do for the RPG genre of gamming as proven in the past, unfortunately not so much in the recent years for obvious reasons. I really hope Todd nails it with Starfield, specially entering in a sci-fi genre, there hasn't been a good space opera game since EA's Mass Effect. Also, Bethesda's credibility is in the shadows atm.
I still play Skyrim to this day. No other game has the ability to soothe and immerse me in a fantasy world like it does. Just about every part of the game is enchanting. From the lore, the soundtrack to the gameplay elder scrolls is hands down the best work of art in my opinion.
@@harrydavey9884 i would also say the same of oblivion, but no disrespect of course I love every one of the “main 3” elder scrolls titles. I suppose it has to do with which game you spent more time with. They’ve done an amazing job with Skyrim considering it’s a cold land. You have mountains growing berries on them bordering to the west in the reach, you have these great plains in the center around Whiterun, to the east in the Rift you have geothermal lakes, to the very north you have spiky grass covered tundra and glaciers, the the south near the Jerrals you have forested areas reminiscent of Oblivion’s Cyrodiil. Each one of these areas have wildly different fauna and alchemical ingredients to collect I could keep going but I typed this all out to make my point and defend that aspect of the game, skyrim definitely isnt all snow covered treelands its just what people remember of it looking back. Still so visually appealing after more than a decade. Add northern lights to the scenery and its a whole another experience
This is the first interview I've ever seen with Todd OR Lex, and this was really really good. So real, so passionate, so insightful. So many interesting details about game development! For example, I like the fact that Bethesda has "clutter teams" whose only task is to add clutter into the games' ambients. I'm playing Fallout 4 at the moment, and clutter is very well done in that game. Kudos to the clutterers!
The fact that Todd almost cried at 2:08:39 shows that he still loves what he does, he still has that fire in him. Can't wait to see what he has to offer next!
Best interview of a game developer I have seen in far too long. We need more direct conversations like this in games journalism. Just a chat between two people who genuinely love playing games. Less big keynote live broadcast on stage announcements. Genuinely can’t wait for Starfield, glad it’s getting the time and attention it needs to be the game it deserves to be.
Todd Howard is the man! "Who's laughing now!" The games he makes are the kind where I stay up all night just trying to complete one more quest. I couldn't ask for more when it comes to games.
Bethesda games, to me, are the most liberating worlds when it comes to expressing oneself in a game. The only thing that would be nice is more flavor dialogue options to express your personality too.
@@FireCrack83 yeah. One thing that is liberating about Baldur’s gate 3 is being able to kill anybody. I have had a blast killing random people in BG3 with my friend. I think one of the things is that they spend most of their time on the gameplay systems and not as much on factoring whether every NPC is alive or dead and how to deal with that from a narrative perspective. To be fair though, most games you can’t kill the story characters either.
I could listen to Todd talk for days. You can really tell he has a passion for what he does. Just his description of Starfield alone makes me more excited for it than any trailer. Really awesome interview/podcast.
47:30 The first time NPCs picking up a weapon shocked me was in Gothic I and Gothic II. If you start a fight with someone and they kick your ass, they take the weapon you were using so you can't use it again on them. I loved seeing it happen in Skyrim too.
It used to be Joe Rogan for me, because of the guests he brought. But Lex has even better guests, and he knows how to ask the questions I'd like to hear answers to.
I was born physically disabled with weak bones and a messed up leg...but video games have brought this source of escapism I really appreciated in my childhood.
I'm glad they were able to make you happy, have to managed to get an xbox adaptive controller? I've always wanted to ask a disabled person that has one how they liked it
@@velvetchord. Xbox Adaptive controller, it's a controller specifically made for disabled people with a ton of different configurations to make gaming easier and in some cases possible where others wouldn't be able to
@@victorkreig6089 Wow you just hear disabled and imagine this person would need this Accessoire, even tho he said he has weak bones and a bad leg. Good job. Basically saying: "But you said you are disabled, so you are a cripple, right?" I know you meant no harm, but Jeez.
Todd is a gamer above all else. as someone who grew up playing the games hes made and worlds he created, i have high praise for the guy. He definitely fucked up some releases, but doesnt take away from a gamer bro
No he is a cold, calculating, lying businessman and snake oil salesman. He's just got the Ted Bundy gene, where he can sell you with a smile, get you into his car, then murder you.
I love Todd's personality and way of speaking, Finally I can hear him for over an hour lmao. He's got such a casual and calm take on things. He's like the ultimate friend I'd want to get wings with at a sports bar even though we're like 2 generations apart in age/culture and stuff. Dang. I felt so bad for him when he was catching flack this one time for... Fallout 76? IDK but it wasn't too many years ago but I remember seeing him on this stage talking the way he does, full of smiles that seemed so genuine and then you had this angry mob of gamers just crapping all over him in the comments section.
It's a shame Lex didn't play Fallout 4 before this interview, I would've love to see his reaction towards Todd about "synths" and 'The Institute'. Awesome interview! ♥
I watched this on Spotify and came all the way here just to say wow, what a great interview, what a cool dude. Way more personable and chill than what we get on stage. He needs to do more pods
I honestly just want to say this was probably one of my favourite interviews I've watched, very rarely will I sit down and just watch a almost 3 hour video, but I just found this interview so interesting I didn't want to stop watching.
I've just found lex, he's great. How have I not known about this guy so long?! His calm demeanor, his intriguing questions and his desire to let his guests get their point fully across, love it.
The part where Todd talks about spending the last year of game development on "game flow" at 1:29:10 is one of the most interesting things I've heard in a long time, and I wish that Lex had asked more follow up questions after Todd's brief description. Todd's key point was that once the content is mostly finished, such as harvesting flowers for alchemy, the very last piece is integrating it with the player's skill system and interface. "The skill system and the interface is party host. That's the person who says: Welcome! Do this! Go here! Check this out!. The skill system and the way it reacts on the HUD is leading you to the next thing. Once you get that down, and the rate at which the game is giving you activities, then you're in what we describe as a 'game flow'." WOW. That's such an elegant way of describing a process of taking all of the finished content and integrating it with the player's felt experience to produce the ultimate outcome: flow.
Nice comment to help sum up what they were talking about. I haven’t even made it that far in the podcast yet but I might have to fast forward and listen.
It turns out that the TES6 is almost finished, the studio is at the stage of gluing all the parts. Looking forward to a release in the next year or two? 😅
Todd is such a gamer. He humbly speaks about the potential weaknesses of his own IPs to talk up others. His PR department certainly won't be happy but that dude's a chad. Chad Howard.
I looooove his view on modding. It's the old Blizzard and Valse's take on it. Give the player the same dev tools we built the game with. I used to do maps for WC3 and CS, and it just speaks to me and makes my heart go dun dun dun.
@brainswashedthisways no way it's worse then starfield. They are probably being very careful with starfield to revive the communities respect for Bethesda.
@@sub-jec-tiv Basically confirmed that it's not gonna be worse since it's singleplayer. The essence of the everything that's bad in 76 was the multiplayer, everything stemmed from that
I haven't completed this interview yet, I'm 1 hour and 45 minutes in. This might be the best Todd interview available, it's given me some massive insight into the design philosophy behind some of my favorite games. I really liked the style of interview as well, it was more conversational and less like Todd was being grilled for a headline. This is more journalism than I've seen in years of gaming, I felt like I really got to know what makes Todd and his team at BGS tick and a deeper understanding of just why I love their games so much and what sets them apart from the pack in my eyes. To hear the things I've felt and known out into words by the man himself is just confirmation that BGS will probably remain in my top game studios for as long as Todd is in charge.
I agree. What i love about Bethesda is how they take 4-5 years to create these games. That shows in the immersion of the world and wonderful small stories a player encounters. Bethesda games are far superior than games from studios like Ubisoft or others who churn out games every year which have no depth and totally lack the immersive worlds of Bethesda games.
@@KamleshMallick Their games have much more soul than any game made by Ubisoft. They have a lot of similar flaws that most open world games share, but the dedication and care put into the world is felt in all Bethesda games. You can tell that time and passion were put into all of their worlds.
@@chrisrichfield8906 Agreed. I just could not get into Ubisoft’s Far Cry or Assassin’s Creed series. The characters don’t have depth in them, lore is virtually non existent, u don’t find the small stories. I could not get into Witcher 3 (many people say it’s the best) too because there is no freedom in the way you want to play. Elder Scrolls series gives you the freedom to be whoever you want. I value that a lot. When it comes to Open world’s, I only stick to Bethesda Softwork games these days.
@@donaldn5798did you listen to the 2 hours of him explaining how he is the literal visionary behind these games that has a hand in almost all aspects of creation? he is literally in charge of the entire thing. just the PR guy?
The fact that Todd's kid watches Elder Scrolls TH-camrs with him and they talk about lore is such a cool thing. Gotta make those creators' day to be acknowledged like that. Edit: Shoutout to FudgeMuppet, Drewmora, Camelworks, Memospore (Selectives Lorecast), Imperial Knowledge, and all the rest of the creators who's been making content about TES all these years!
@@sit-insforsithis1568 They're somewhat an acquired taste. Lots of deep, crazy lore and talks about metaphysical interpretations and stuff. A deep cut, but a good one.
@@BasePuma4007 why compare them to a 2011 game? skyrim is one of the all time greats that definetly left its mark in gaming history whether you like or not.
@@BasePuma4007 i agree that they are both better than skyrim but skyrim's impact and the enthusiasm for skyrim's sequel are not at all comparable to the examples you give
@@joa4613 Red Dead 1 was far more advanced technologically than Skyrim, which came out in 2010. The Witcher 3 came out in 2015, so not that long after Skyrim.
Todd is better for having been interviewed by Lex. The Game Informer made him weaker, and that has tracked with his performance. His passions have been rekindled.
@@socaljusticewarrior558 That's exactly right. I'd say the same for the conversation with Lex and Kanye. What a valuable voice to have out there mincing words for us.
Bro I did NOT intend to watch this entire interview, but here I am at 1am in the morning. Fantastic interview. I really enjoyed hearing a bit more about Todd. He seems like a really down to earth person.
While I love when Lex has on the heavy, more thought provoking guests, this was a fantastic and welcome distraction from all the seriousness in the world right now. Loved this interview.
The comment at the end about not letting yourself think your not good enough really spoke to me. As an aspiring want to be programmer in college I really really enjoy it but sometimes feel like I might not be smart enough and I wonder if I’m just wasting my time and money. Todd you spoke the manic words I just want you to know I will never forget that. You may have changed my life.
Good luck man. I’m sure you got it. I majored in programming for a little bit but ended up changing, found out that it really wasn’t for me. But in the future I’m going to apply to Bethesda.
Don't worry about feeling like you're not good enough when it comes to programming. You're not alone in those kind of thoughts, *especially* in programming. I've been in the field for 5 years now and I *still* learn new things every single day, possibly even more than I did in school
@@Rafael-oq9vu"throw away" yet you're commenting on that very same 3 hour video lmao. You're the type of dude who skips every cutscene in video games.
I get Lex when he talks about the nature in Skyrim. The music, ambient sounds, nature graphics combination and feeling of freedom where to go and what to do, really gives a special feeling, I love and don't find in other games to the same extent.
@@silverhost9782 You know, I didn't even think of that when writing the comment. NSFW modding is a whole another world. I find it disgusting and... very impressive, lol
@helmutsalvatore7989 I should "touch grass" for pointing out the proof that Todd is generally a liar? You should Google what "touch grass" means because that ain't it...
I think that Lex has kind of surpassed him overall as the best variety podcaster. He gets the same good variety of guests that Rogan has (maybe a few less comedians) but I find that the conversation doesn't circle back to the same topics that continually get rehashed on Rogan. Granted, that may be because I've listened to thousands of hours of rogan compared to maybe 60 of Lex, but I do enjoy that the conversation flows without inevitably finding itself intertwined with combat sports, DMT, or how nature is scary/wild.
I hate podcasters and these big media talking heads, they get funding from all kinds of evil companies to steer public opinion and ideas. This guy is no different im sure. Besides the fact that at least joe rogan doesn't always make me want to rip my eyes out when he talks. This guy is insufferable to listen to and just ruins every interview.
@@j123jna No need to say one is 'better' than the other, they both have different styles for different audiences or different 'moods' of listening. Spread love for both Joe and Lex guys
Never expected this crossover in my life. Really excited to watch the interview with the man that created some of my favorite games of all time, and is the sole reason I ever considered starting a YT channel. Thanks for this, Lex.
Everyone has already said it, but this was an incredible interview. As much as Howard is meme'd on, he's still very talented and caring, and always my favorite man in the gaming space. Need more of him for sure!
I have watched this interview three times now. This was wonderous interaction and I really enjoyed hearing one of my favorite creators talk about a world that he gets to poke around in.
@@viderevero1338 I have bad news for you, that's a fallout 3 reference so if you know it it actually means you know useless information about 2 betheseda game series.
Todd Howard is a visionary whetever he talks about his project he talks about vision he had for them which is nice to see but also can be misleading the prime example of negative is him talking about fallout 76. Briliant men that thinks in very interesting way.
Fallout New Vegas blows Fallout 3, 4, and 76 out of water in nearly every aspect. From game design choices to the music, feel, and overall atmosphere of the games. New Vegas truly is the most accurate representation of what makes a Fallout game fun, immersive, emotional, calming, stressful, and most of all inspired.
I'm a game designer and this is one of my favourite episodes ever!!! the discussion at about 1:12:00 to 1:13:00 where Todd talks about his games hopefully inspiring people to do things. Oblivion and Fallout 3 were two of the first games I'd ever played that made me feel like I was in a world, and they inspired me to get to where I am now. His work is absolutely inspiring people!!
I thought Todd handled Lex's sly questions with aplomb, its not easy to be having a wide ranging conversation while keeping a list of things you need to avoid discussing and sidestepping them fairly flawlessly... looking forward to Starfield its really my sort of game, great interview Lex much appreciated.
Nope. I can't imagine that. IGN would have spent the whole interview trying to extract headline-able details about Starfield and other upcoming games. Kotaku would have just grilled him about diversity. This is why Lex keeps getting big guests. They know he wants to have a conversation, not an interrogation.
I really agree with Todd; Fallout 4's "everything can be broken into a material" is a very fun mechanic. It feels like diving into a world where the play can apply curiosity, bringing true customization for what each of us may want to explore and create.
@@Chris-jt4pl It would be interesting to hear his side of that story. Especially since I've heard the game is a lot better now so they must have learned a lot.
@@grimey666 oh it is by miles now. Might not be for everyone, but I certainly have seen an increasing number new/returning players lately with the new massive update coming up, which means something is working.
@@DadsCigaretteRun i can attest that something is legendary before I watch it. Its Todd Howard and Lex Friedman. The simple act of it existing is what I am referring to.
@@casualgoats I suppose that’s fair and I’m being to critical of you. A lot of folks talk about how great the video is within 1 minute of it posting and it’s annoying like farming.
And btw they kept workin on 76, theres still a large very friendly community, and so much more to the game now. Like it legit feels like fallout but online now lol
@@stuartfury3390 I spent ~480 hours in that game and loved every second of it, also there are still 6000 average online players, according to Steam Charts. The game had an extremely rough start, but stop pretending it hasn't improved since.
@@KNSSSSSS it's also on game pass so there's a lot more too. i spent some time on it as well, it definitely got a lot better over time. worth playing for a few weeks for sure
He's also a bullshitter. He WAY overpromises and hypes things...which is not good when you are public facing....let's hope he learned his lesson from the last Fallout fiasco
@@JSRJS To play the other side a little, I’m sure that in the modern day Bethesda, parented by Microsoft, that Todd Howard isn’t single handedly making the decisions of what to say at media events, or to put into the games or what not. There are definitely others involved in telling him what to say at these events
@@JSRJS while he does overpromise and create too much hype over stuff that dosent exist.. he definitly isnt a bullshitter, also fallout 76 wasent made by the core bethesda team it was made by one in austin
@@andyc7747 Yeah I mean the guy doesn’t own Bethesda, he doesn’t single handedly make those decisions about what to say to the media. He’s an employee, he has to do what he’s told or he walks and I’m sure he loves what he does and giving it up wouldn’t be an option. He’s the face of the studio and they all hide behind him when things go wrong, it’s a tough job to have
LEX! Julian Le Fay was the lead programmer for Bethesda for a long time and is the one the divine Julianos is named after. He would make a great interview. He is also working on a new game inspired by Daggerfall, and hearing him talk in other interviews about the technology behind that game and others is a joy.
I think Michael Kirkbride would be even more interesting. He’s the mastermind behind all the crazy lore and a visionary for Morrowind. Also, there’s almost nothing with him on the web.
You could really see the appreciation Todd had for Lex’s questions. You could tell this is the best interview he has ever had and I would bet told him as much afterwards. Lex is just to humble to have let that tape roll lol
Well its more than likely they had some interview prep. After hte absolute disaster of Emil Pagliarulo basically outright saying bethesda is comfortable and expects for the modding community to fix their fuck ups in an interview theyve been very cautious about interviews
I'll never forget walking out of vault 101 for the first time. His comments about quiet moments in games really rings when I think about stepping out of the vault and shielding my eyes from sunlight, something I've never seen in my life sold the fuck out of this game i bought as an impulse buy in a bargain bin. Great interview.
Here are the timestamps. Please check out our sponsors to support this podcast.
0:00 - Introduction & sponsor mentions:
- Shopify: shopify.com/lex to get free trial
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0:55 - Simulation
2:51 - NPCs
11:42 - Daggerfall and Arena
19:55 - Bethesda
28:19 - Video game graphics
34:38 - The essence of a video game
39:27 - Redguard
44:27 - Creating open worlds
52:06 - Superintelligent NPCs
57:00 - Starfield
1:16:42 - The Elder Scrolls 6
1:36:03 - Fallout
1:43:11 - Character creation
1:48:13 - Quests & items
2:01:58 - Xbox
2:07:24 - Greatest game of all time
2:17:40 - Day in the life
2:25:34 - Advice for young people
2:29:02 - Fallout TV show
2:33:34 - Indiana Jones game
2:39:46 - Meaning of life
I’m pregnant
I am the voice actress for female Khajiit in skyrim. Ask Todd to give me a call or something unless he doesn't intend to really release it. Also I feel he should show a little love to Gary at smart blue cat the creator of inigo the brave. Gary's dedication to follower AI is peerless and even the voice actor for she agorath gave me and Gary big kudos for our contributions to Skyrim and follower Ai and voices. Please pass this along to Todd have him get in touch with me through my TH-cam channel or my email address or anything or whatever but especially get in touch with Gary. Smart blue cat is brilliant and he deserves big money to complete His companion and follower code and projects and Todd I know you can spare a few hundred thousand dollars to make sure Gary doesn't go hungry ever again. How does that sound my friend?
GAMERS RISE UP
I don't like you Lex. I'm here for Godd Howard.
OMGAH
bro ask todd what new gameplay systems he decides to implement - maybe a daggerfall type procedural generated gameplay? skyrim already had autolevelling content, maybe expand on this idea. it can't be that hard to put sections of cave together.
also bro we need good progression based content. make some spells very powerful make some spells very weak. maybe fire (edit: destruction) magic shouldn't be more of a damage modifier as much as a requirement to use a certain spell.
gameplay is king.
Canonically, Lex is a synth from The Institute.
Dima’s reserved delivery was based on the Gen 1 Lex model
@@zacharia1446 🤣🤣🤣
Best comment 😆👍🏼Well done! ✔️
successfully deleted his memory and got facial reconstructive surgery.
To be fair, 'Lex Valentine' is kinda hot. Just saying.
The music in Skyrim does a huge part of the magic in the game
@Waldel Martell The score is one of the best videogame scores of all time. Sometimes i play it when i'm walking outside, it truly elevates the experience of walking through nature.
Every Elder Scrolls game can thank Jeremy for what he's created
i would say sound desing in general!
@Waldel Martell Brother you definitely need to hear Skyrim score while playing its something that touches your soul, Jeremy Soule (the composer) did an outstanding job.
Wise Mystical Oak Tree
Todd seems so genuine and chill. I really appreciate how he mentioned he enjoys the "quiet moments" in his games because the serenity and atmosphere of Bethesda titles is what makes them so immersive to me.
Playing through Skyrim right now for the first time in 10 years and the atmosphere and immersion is still second to none.
There are so few games that feel like living worlds quite like Bethesda games do.
yes and todd howard knows good games since he praised the ultima games, particularly 5-7.5
@@croisaor2308 Very different setting, but Rdr2 singleplayer gave me a similar feeling to TES games when it comes to immersion.
I agree. There's no comparison at all
@@eduardgrutzner4455 True. If Rdr2 had better mod support, it'd be damn near perfect
Can we have more guests from the gaming industry? This is seriously the best Todd interview I’ve seen. Great episode! 🙌🏼
This is the best interview Todd Howard has ever done. Because so many of us have only seen him in "corporate PR" mode at industry events, we've never gotten to see how he really is. He's actually really likable, and is just a big gaming nerd who is passionate about his company. It's nice to hear him talk about the things he really cares about. I wish more gaming figures would go on Lex Fridman's podcast, because it allows them to have an in-depth conversation without the distractions of the gaming industry looming over.
I can't explain it fully, but there is just something refreshing about tech people going on a "non industry" podcast. I think it's because they get different questions they would normally get from Gaming journalists/personalities. Whereas this just feels like a sit down between two friends going over a wide-range of topics they are personally invested in. Anyways, I walked away from this interview having more respect for Howard, and at least understanding he really does care about his games.
IGN has a great one hour interview with him from a few years ago
2011/2014 was the best Todd Howard.
BORING conversation.
BORING taste in games.
BORING person.
Ha... No wonder I never took a liking to the TES series! ~_~
And guess what? He really only ever talks like he is "in "corporate PR" mode at industry events" , as you put it. That's exactly "how he really is" . ;]
@@kurzackd go back to your sad life
@@UlyssesM "sad life" ? It's actually certainly *happier* now that this conversation has ended !! :D
ahahaha it was just so bad, it actually depressed me... :P
Todd is one of maybe 3 people from the video game industry that I can recognize instantly from voice alone. I still remember the hype from old E3
Those were the days...
Fallout 4 E3 2015 was something else man...
You remember 79 metacritic score, Fallout online lawsuit.
Pre war jet, tb1 prewar armor, extinction of potatoes, no water for ghouls from genius Fallout 4? Fallout 76? "Brilliant" main stories about DADS? You don't? Good for you man.
Sadly for me one of those recognizable voices is the "Don't you guys have phones?" guy...
16 times the detail
Can't hear that without his voice
I love how Lex asks in about 4 different ways for an answer of when Elder Scrolls 6 is releasing
He’s a man of the people
That last one tho holy shit made me cry
Why is anyone asking? Just look at the Bethesda track record. Oblivion - FO3, 2 years. FO3 - Skyrim, 3 years. Skyrim - FO4, 3 years. FO4 - FO76, 4 years. FO76 - Starfield, 4.5 years. As games get bigger and graphics more intense, the timeline shifts slightly longer. So 4-5 years after Starfield releases you can expect TES6.
@@EccentricMeat wish that meant the games were getting better
@@Mustis1524Lmao yeah, well some are, some aren't. That's just how the market lives and breathes. Support the good ones, ignore the bad ones. That's all we can do.
Todd Howard really put 10 points into charisma
and 0 into game development- sorry not sorry
friggin loooooool truf, but we still play is his damn half developed games@@whereswarren3719
10 charisma. 10 theft.
@@whereswarren3719another mad starfield player
@@xdsethlaine I'd sooner waste my money on women of questionable repute
Cool interview. Never would have imagined to see Todd on Lex
Cool reply. Never would have imagined to see SparkleSparkleSparkle on Lex comment section.
Phrasing.
@@cuickoo1085 very cool
Rule 34 exists Karim
Your channel fell off
These guests lately are KILLER
Keep going further back! There are TONS of amazing conversations ❤️
Good guests, but I preferred the stronger focus on science tbh
Especially the former FBI agent...
Good one checkmark goblin
The only thing Todd Howard has killed is the company that he's responsible for.
I haven't seen every Todd Howard interview out there but I saw him talking about stuff in such a way I really hadn't before. Amazing interview and what a shame it wasn't longer.
@Max he's a good person, sometimes people do the wrong things for a right reason. He cares about Bethesda
It's so funny because I feel the same about the length yet this conversation was 3 hours long.
@@ConstantineIIIThats how u know it was a good interview
Except that if Tow Howard tells you water is wet, he's probably lying.
@user-yt4pe5jg3x should've stuck to your gut
I’m not a gamer but I love Skyrim. If there’s a way to remove all enemies, I’d spend a significant amount of time just being in the game as an escape. I love discussing games with my 28 year old son. He shared this interview with me because he knows I follow Lex. This conversation raised my appreciation for the value of games to a higher level. Thank you Lex and Howard for your brilliance!
If you have the game on a PC you can press the tilde key `/~ to bring up a command line. There just type "tdetect 0" and you will prevent enemies from detecting you. This is good if you don't want to engage in the combat itself but care about exploring the world. Alternatively you can type "tgm" to enable invincibility if that so floats your boat.
If you’re on PC (or maybe Xbox), you could probably find a mod to do that. PlayStation sucks for mods though
If you’re on pc you could definitely find mods that would not only remove all enemies but improve the areas and make skyim even more breathtaking to just walk around in. You could also remove enemies via console commands on PC. Not sure how much you can do on console tho.
I never removed enemies or people but I would always install overhaul mods on nexus for more lively areas
Skyrim was perfect for non gamers. That’s why a lot of gamers are upset by the “dumbing down” of Skyrim as they lowered a lot of the RPG elements seen in Morrowind and even Oblivion. They’ve continued this direction even more with starfield which is upsetting
This is legit the best interview with Todd.
Lex is probably the smartest person to have interviewed him so that could be a factor
@@michaelfoley4182 yeah there are a lot of questions lex could have asked and criticism he could have made wich could have made Todd defensive and stand offish, this was a very casual yet fun and informative interview unique to Lex.
If you're on the Lex Fridman podcast, it's the best interview you've ever done.
Do you still believe what comes out of Todds mouth? 16times the detail! It just works! He doesnt get the benefit of doubt from me anymore.
It's probably the only one that portrayed Todd as a person
Todd felt so great hearing lex say Skyrim was his favorite game. I wish I could express to Todd how much his games mean to me. The elder scrolls and Fallout are legit the best games ever made
Me too man
I love the Fallout lore but Fallout 4 is ass changed too much like voiced protagonist and the power armor 🤢, story was meh and the graphics felt very cartoony compared to FO3 and New Vegas where it was grainy and dark giving that post apocalyptic vibe. F03 was meh, New Vegas was awesome but that was actually made by Obsidian so I can't really give too much credit to Bethesda for the Fallout series I think Obsidian deserves it more. The Elder Scrolls however great games and lore all around so bravo to them for that.
@@brenyd fallout 4 is far from ass yall always go to the extreme is it the best fallout the hardcore will say no the casuals will say yes imo it's a solid game not the best the debate for the best imo is 3 or new vegas 3 is a lot better than new vegas imo
@@brenyd You take that back you heathen. Fo4 was amazing. It just works!
@@jerico9263 I love fallout 4, but there ain't no fucking way you just said fallout 3, the worst Bethesda game, is better than new vegas
It's strange. I live in northern Ontario which has very long winters. I vividly remember taking my dog out for frequent walks while the weather was frigid due in part to the fact we didn't have a yard for him to play in. During this part of my life I was also playing a lot of Skyrim. I remember the atmosphere Skyrim created as you trek up to High Hrothgar, or to the College of Winterhold, or taking the first visit up to Dawnstar, making your way into a cave, escaping the cold behind you. In real life, usually around the beginning of winter, I'll first feel the cold air hit my face, or I'll see blowing snow that obscures the path, and for some strange reason my mind will bring me back to playing Skyrim and the feeling I had when I was in these virtual locations. Each winter I have the urge to play Skyrim. Love the interview. Very insightful!
Yeah i just recently got back into Skyrim. I love playing in the winter as well but mainly because there isnt as much to do in the winter here so thats when i feel less guilty sitting inside and gaming all day. This game just never loses its magic, i love just wandering and discovering new caves and dungeons or just chilling on my Hearthfire homes pimping them out and organizing my endless legendary items and weapons.
Literally what I go through every winter. It’s a tradition of mine at this point. And I play a fallout game very fall, usually NV or 4.
That's how I am with Morrowind. Living in the Philippines, and whenever it was raining in game and IRL at the same time, I would feel so immersed. My mind very much transported into the game. Sometimes if I just sit and look at rain droplets hitting the ground, I think about some place in Morrowind.
I’m so glad there are more people that go through this yearly!
Thanks for sharing Mike.
Skyrim saved my life. It came out at a time when I was at rock bottom. I was able to quit basically all of my vices by coming home to play Skyrim every night after work. Thank you Todd Howard!
edit: why does it seem like Todd Howard never ages?
he did aged...you can look at his sagging skin..he didn't had much fat on his body , so this is why skin is not sagging alot. you could see the difference in todays video and skyrim E3 Showcase
He never ages because he takes his sweet sweet time releasing my favourite games
Maybe when his voice breaks, and his left baw drops we'll be able to see the 45 year old man for the adult he actually is. I'm just playing, but I hadn't looked at him as I was reading the comments and you prompted me to look at him. I must say that 'Dark Knight' is correct, and I'll bet that his aging is going to catch up with him quickly. By the time the next game is released (not the 42nd remake/port of Skyrim) everyone will be thinking "whoa, why is Toddies grandfather on stage lying to us about the new game?"
@@Bob-Jenkins he is actually 51 years old now
@@deanbadger7163 Wow okay. Thank you for the kick up the butt/correction. I would have lost the bet big time on that one.
Lex is giddy like a child during this interview 😂 I have never seen him so excited
You should look up him talking about Messi on JRE recently. Lex had a raging boner 😂
Yeah he blinked couple of times.
He is still a child inside 😆
Haven't watched the video yet.. Does Lex take an arrow to the knee at some point?
I’m living vicariously through him so I’m glad he’s as excited as I would be
Legitimately the most excited I’ve been for a podcast in so long.
Same
Damn I hope Starfield is good
Todd Howard speaks with the passion and humble of an indie dev, with the knowledge and meticulous approach of an accomplished triple A developer.
Yeah except his last few titles have way underdelivered and basically been beta tests. Lex has guts interviewing such a hated guy!
@@DB-um2rb right ? He actually called him one of the greatest game designers ever... Like really wtf. Todd Howard is borderline retarded.
@@DB-um2rb who hated?
@@whbig1848 todd is hated. With what happened in fallout 76 and with Skyrim being less developed then oblivion yeah he got some flack.
@@DB-um2rb Nobody hates him, they're just disappointed. You also have to remember there are boomer higher-ups now in the gaming industry that have never touched a video game that control the direction and funding of these games and their monetization models and dev time. Everyone in his position has made flops. He even said himself in this interview he made a few flops. we're human
Todd Howard inspired me to make games myself. I hope I will meet him some day and be able to thank him.
what would be your advice to someone who want to start walking on the same path?
@@lethargicmosquito First and foremost to think about what your goal is. The styles of games are so different when it comes to complexity. When you know what your goal is, start small projects (really small) to learn whatever tool you want to use, for example Unity
@@CptUhudini I'm exactly on that stage, I'm waiting for a course to open up so i can enrol to it. Dabbled a bit with UE5 and Unity already. May your games travel far and wide my friend, see you down the line. Thanks for the tip
@@lethargicmosquito Just to add on to this but there are some really incredible courses for UE out there for free or very little money. Very professional and instructive. Once you learn some basics its amazing how quickly you can begin iterating.
Cool, what kind of games you make? Where I can find them?
I really truly think Todd Howard is as passionate a guy as you can get. He might have some missteps but that just means he’s really shooting for ambitious stuff!
Your mom was passionate
I def agree. People love to point out his miss steps and has def had some big ones, but he has many more time where he has knocked it out of the park.
@@LcInfantrySr is** passionate
Over the years he's got a rep as sort of the sleazy snake oil salesman of video games but I always thought that passion, creatitity and idealism that you could easily see in the Morrowind days had never really left
14 times the detail!!! See that mountain? You can misstep there!
With this, I've realized that this man is much more lovable than the articles and memes make him out to be
Same here Fall out 76 made me lose a lot of respect for him and Bethesda , I wish Lex pressed him harder on the loot box’s And the addiction to monetization of his games and games in general - if his new games fall down this trap I will refuse to give Bethesda another dollar
@@conradbr11 im personally pretty sure that fallout 76 was pushed out in the state it was simply because of zenimax and the shareholder pressure that created. Bethesda had not released an original title in 3 years so they most likely gave them an unrealistic hard deadline that forced them to release it in the state that it did. That is the only explanation i can see that would explain why bethesda would release a game in such ultra broken state because everybody and their mom could absolutely tell how that was going to backfire from a mile away. Why would any company do that? The only insentive for companies to release products is to make money and by releasing a bad product they were borderline guaranteeing that they wouldnt be getting that much of it. Its not like bethesda didnt have enough money to continue development and release it later down the line and at worst they risked a classaction lawsuit for misadvertisement. I cannot see why bethesda would be the one to bare all the blame for fallout 76
@@conradbr11 When you see consumer unfriendly but highly profitable strategies being pushed, almost all the time it's the shotcallers in the publisher and/or gamedev company forcing the devs to allocate their time away from things that'll make the game good in order to make it as profitable and addicting as possible, because they are beholden to their shareholders and legally obligated to maximize profit. Gamedev is an insane amount of work in general and devs have to use their time and resources very wisely to end up with a good result. Taking time to fine-tune these skinenrbox systems is going to force them to cut corners *somewhere.*
*(((16 times the detail)))*
*(((it just works)))*
I remember playing Morrowind, Oblivion, and Skyrim for the first time. I wish I could capture those moments and experience them again. Thanks for everything, Todd. You inspired an entire generation of growing boys.
and gals!
I'm so happy elder scrolls games exist, but also sad that they stopped making them. Got to see like 3 different amazing elder scrolls games in 10 years and now I'm happy if I just see another one in my lifetime.
one thing i like about todd is his love of what he makes. He knows all of his games inside out and this shows the passion and love put into them.
I could give you many examples of him not knowing anything about his previous games, even within this interview…
Yeah… Todd kinda tanked starfield on launch, the original lead developer for Skyrim was the lead developer for Starfield. Bruce Nesmith has plans to intricately develop a star system, 12 planets, while Todd “pulled 100 planets” out of thin air without any consultation with the lead developer. Bruce left, and the starfield on release was Todd Howard’s half baked attempt to make a few half developer worlds and 90 more barely developed worlds.
I could listen to Todd Howard talk about anything for hours. I'm glad that this is almost 3.
@@thingsweshouldkno HAHAHAH😂
I love how the lamp behind Todd makes it look like Lex is interviewing an Angel.
lmao
boiii
God Howard
😂
I love lamp 😐
If you were ever stuck in Todd Howard's universe, just remember to always bring a couple of plates and a tall bucket with you.
And a bunch of modders to fix his broken shit
@@WayStedYou and yet they are some of the best games ever. Even with their stupid and ridiculous glitches and bugs.
And paint brushes.
@@MrRight... "We develop games, not game engines.", I remember he's been quoted as saying.
Todd Howard is the Steve Jobs of the games industry, but nicer 'cause he encourages the fans to fiddle with his stuff.
@@robotsix6268 that’s a damn good quote.
Artists and writers in video games deserve so much more recognition than they get.
nah they deserve less
Modern writers are absolutely awful. If you feel so strongly about it then go give them some of your money.
Programmers deserve more credit
Artists yes. Writers are really not that great lately.
Chat-gpt has already outperformed top notch movie writers. Doubt their services will be in demand soon.
Damn, looked like Todd was about to tear up when Lex said Skyrim was the best game of all time. Say what you want about the man, nobody can deny he's passionate about his work.
HIT ME UP 👆👆🔝
I'd say it's top 10 for sure, but not best of all-time unless you're obsessed with fantasy realms like Skyrim. I have it like top 7 or so.
Edit: Personal preference, history, and context play a part in everybody's top 5/10/15/25. I've only been playing Skyrim since Dec 20th of 2020, and have put somewhere north of 300 hrs on it, probably close to 400. It's one of the greatest games I have played, but I'm hard-pressed to put it above games like RDR2, GTA 4, Halo 3, and GTA:SA. I've been playing RDR2 since around Christmas of 2018, GTA 4 since late 2008, Halo since it's peak in 2007 onwards with my friend, and eventually the Halo: MCC since mid-2010's, and GTA SA since the mid-2000's. I know why Skyrim is so great, and while I don't try to have nostalgia as a factor, but there's something that those games have over Skyrim. Maybe if I had played Skyrim since the 360 days, I'd probably have it top 3.
Skyrim is def top 5 for me
Skyrim is definitely on my top 5. I make a new playthrough pretty much every year
@@a-a-rondavis9438 I mean top 10 is basically the best of all time when you consider most people have played hundreds in their life time. I think Skyrim is one of those out of body experiences a videogame is capable of bringing ANYONE including any age whether its a 11 year old or 30 year old.
Id put it around 4-5th.
And now I have the urge to play Skyrim for the 50th time
I never stopped in eleven years.
@@toslinked I give you permission to have one pee break
I played through once and it was enough for me. Not a big Bethesda fan I guess.
in vr
Yep, winter's here too, that's always the time to start a new run.
This guy, Sid Meier, John Carmack. Heroes from my childhood. I spent so much time in their games.
You play fallout 1 and 2?
sid meier pirates was the shit
Colonization, Civilization, Pirates, Covert Action 👍
Don't forget Gettysburg
But Lex isn't a game developer?!
He's so different from how he's shown in the gaming media. I'm impressed with how passionate Todd still is about creating games. The guy is still a gigantic nerd and I mean that in the best possible way.
I like how Todd isn't afraid to praise other games or studios he wasn't involved in. His love for games is so genuine.
My thoughts exactly!
*(((16 times the detail)))*
So genuine he was willing to take his series away from millions of players on Playstation that can't now enjoy the games they helped him make money off, real genuine.
@@TimeSplitterChimp you can say that about so many game series dude. God of War is my favorite game series like many others but as an xbox/pc player i know i wont be able to play most of them but thats just the way the industry is
@@Halvo45 that's not the same, GOW has always been exclusive to one audience, Elder Scrolls, Fallout had been sold to both and both have paid and invested and allowed Bethesda to grow and they are now taking it away from 1 group. They could have easily said to Microsoft that they wanted to remain multiplatform like Bungie did with Sony because they care about both audiences, Todd cares about money and that's it.
I think Todd was great in this interview, authentic, honest, and heartfelt.
@Mr Mills Gaming CEO’s are really some of the only CEOs that can just wear their clothes like they’ve just woken up from a year long nap.
Except for 2:28:23
you can practically hear the music
Yeah it was pretty great to see the "real" Todd when he's not on stage presenting their next game. It's rare to see this combination of pure passion, technical skill and vision in a game director. He's caught some flak in the past but that's expected when you're always pushing boundaries and innovating. Both Oblivion and Skyrim are two of my most memorable games and defined a part of my childhood, really excited for Starfield.
@@GS-tk1hk Not that I'm concerned about Bethesda as a company, but more like what they could do or can do for the RPG genre of gamming as proven in the past, unfortunately not so much in the recent years for obvious reasons. I really hope Todd nails it with Starfield, specially entering in a sci-fi genre, there hasn't been a good space opera game since EA's Mass Effect. Also, Bethesda's credibility is in the shadows atm.
I totally agree 😄 Refreshing to see someone on the top of the industry beings humble and in touch with their audience
Love his support and recognition of the modding community
Ikr. We modders love to see that. Us modders are like family
@@yolobro2071currently play testing my mods for fallout 4 lol. Nexus is my happy place
@@yolobro2071 bro, only reason he supports modding community is because modders are doing job for them for free :D
LOL idiot. He tried to exploit the modding community...
@@kambion that's a bold statement. Doesn't seem like most of the community agrees with ya.
Honor to hear both of you.
Audio level is high enough to hear it in a loud bus, unlike most of youtube podcasts.
I unironically love how todd goes into the technicals and project management side a bit. seems like he knows lex's audience
I get this feeling that Todd is a fan of Lex's podcasts haha
When Todd said "Have you read the book on Tetris?" I felt like I just heard the most Todd Howard thing possible.
Do you remember approximately where it was in the interview?
@@Frank_Lee_Terrible 2:07:35
@@goodfty Thank you a lot. I hoped Todd would discuss tetris and the book a bit more since I'm a big fan of it but unfortunately that wasn't the case
@@Frank_Lee_Terrible Yeah... seemed like Lex wanted none of it for discussion. Oh well.
I still play Skyrim to this day. No other game has the ability to soothe and immerse me in a fantasy world like it does. Just about every part of the game is enchanting. From the lore, the soundtrack to the gameplay elder scrolls is hands down the best work of art in my opinion.
Personally preferred Oblivion. Skyrim is awesome, but much of the world is visually dull. Wish there were more terrain variation.
@@harrydavey9884 i would also say the same of oblivion, but no disrespect of course I love every one of the “main 3” elder scrolls titles. I suppose it has to do with which game you spent more time with. They’ve done an amazing job with Skyrim considering it’s a cold land.
You have mountains growing berries on them bordering to the west in the reach, you have these great plains in the center around Whiterun, to the east in the Rift you have geothermal lakes, to the very north you have spiky grass covered tundra and glaciers, the the south near the Jerrals you have forested areas reminiscent of Oblivion’s Cyrodiil. Each one of these areas have wildly different fauna and alchemical ingredients to collect
I could keep going but I typed this all out to make my point and defend that aspect of the game, skyrim definitely isnt all snow covered treelands its just what people remember of it looking back. Still so visually appealing after more than a decade. Add northern lights to the scenery and its a whole another experience
@@harrydavey9884 I’m a Morrowind fan myself haha. The series is all gold though.
You have dogshit taste in games
New vegas and Skyrim for me.
This is the first interview I've ever seen with Todd OR Lex, and this was really really good. So real, so passionate, so insightful. So many interesting details about game development!
For example, I like the fact that Bethesda has "clutter teams" whose only task is to add clutter into the games' ambients. I'm playing Fallout 4 at the moment, and clutter is very well done in that game. Kudos to the clutterers!
so much of my childhood life was spent playing videogames this man helped create.
The fact that Todd almost cried at 2:08:39 shows that he still loves what he does, he still has that fire in him. Can't wait to see what he has to offer next!
If he did end up crying I’d never buy a Bethesda game again. Can’t support such softness
Also your mom
@@LcInfantrySr Okay tough guy. M-muh s-softness, I can smell your neckbeard from here.
@@LcInfantrySr wow what a tough guy
@@LcInfantrySr just stop buying them dumbass, they're not worth it.
Best interview of a game developer I have seen in far too long. We need more direct conversations like this in games journalism. Just a chat between two people who genuinely love playing games. Less big keynote live broadcast on stage announcements.
Genuinely can’t wait for Starfield, glad it’s getting the time and attention it needs to be the game it deserves to be.
Todd Howard is the man! "Who's laughing now!" The games he makes are the kind where I stay up all night just trying to complete one more quest. I couldn't ask for more when it comes to games.
Bethesda games, to me, are the most liberating worlds when it comes to expressing oneself in a game. The only thing that would be nice is more flavor dialogue options to express your personality too.
@@joker6558or maybe Just Not every Npc having plotamor? Thats not freedom when i cant kill any Story Charakter
@@FireCrack83 yeah. One thing that is liberating about Baldur’s gate 3 is being able to kill anybody. I have had a blast killing random people in BG3 with my friend.
I think one of the things is that they spend most of their time on the gameplay systems and not as much on factoring whether every NPC is alive or dead and how to deal with that from a narrative perspective. To be fair though, most games you can’t kill the story characters either.
I could listen to Todd talk for days. You can really tell he has a passion for what he does. Just his description of Starfield alone makes me more excited for it than any trailer. Really awesome interview/podcast.
Elder Scrolls Oblivion and Skyrim literally changed my life in my early to mid 20's. Now, in my early 30's, I will revisit that joy at long last.
@directmessages138 you're an awful entity
Let’s hope elder scrolls 6 is out before you’re 40!!!
@@anublsunder The dream
@@anublsunder 🤞😑🤞. I hear you, I hope so.
Try Morrowind in stead. Same pre-established world design philosophy.
47:30 The first time NPCs picking up a weapon shocked me was in Gothic I and Gothic II. If you start a fight with someone and they kick your ass, they take the weapon you were using so you can't use it again on them. I loved seeing it happen in Skyrim too.
Gothic I and II are masterpieces. It's what got me into PRGs. Skyrim comes closest to them, although on a much bigger scale.
Dude, these podcasts are becoming the only thing I need youtube for recently. Crushing it Lex . . . completely crushing it.
was just thinking that same thing
There's nothing currently releasing on television that I'd choose over a Lex Friedman pod.
It used to be Joe Rogan for me, because of the guests he brought. But Lex has even better guests, and he knows how to ask the questions I'd like to hear answers to.
I was born physically disabled with weak bones and a messed up leg...but video games have brought this source of escapism I really appreciated in my childhood.
I'm glad they were able to make you happy, have to managed to get an xbox adaptive controller? I've always wanted to ask a disabled person that has one how they liked it
@@victorkreig6089 What?
@@velvetchord. Xbox Adaptive controller, it's a controller specifically made for disabled people with a ton of different configurations to make gaming easier and in some cases possible where others wouldn't be able to
@@victorkreig6089 his hands are fine
@@victorkreig6089 Wow you just hear disabled and imagine this person would need this Accessoire, even tho he said he has weak bones and a bad leg. Good job. Basically saying: "But you said you are disabled, so you are a cripple, right?" I know you meant no harm, but Jeez.
Man Todd is a real gamer. For some reason i was thinking he is just a cold business man....man was i wrong, great guy.
We were all wrong about him
@@goodfty we can still be wrong, just saying
@@johnnymonsterrrr You just looking for a negative spin? Kind of seems like it.
Todd is a gamer above all else. as someone who grew up playing the games hes made and worlds he created, i have high praise for the guy. He definitely fucked up some releases, but doesnt take away from a gamer bro
No he is a cold, calculating, lying businessman and snake oil salesman. He's just got the Ted Bundy gene, where he can sell you with a smile, get you into his car, then murder you.
I love Todd's personality and way of speaking, Finally I can hear him for over an hour lmao. He's got such a casual and calm take on things. He's like the ultimate friend I'd want to get wings with at a sports bar even though we're like 2 generations apart in age/culture and stuff. Dang.
I felt so bad for him when he was catching flack this one time for... Fallout 76? IDK but it wasn't too many years ago but I remember seeing him on this stage talking the way he does, full of smiles that seemed so genuine and then you had this angry mob of gamers just crapping all over him in the comments section.
It's a shame Lex didn't play Fallout 4 before this interview, I would've love to see his reaction towards Todd about "synths" and 'The Institute'. Awesome interview! ♥
He can finally marvel at his own kind being included in a video game
lol imagine having not played fallout 4, this lex dude is pure cringe
@@Batnano Fallout 4 is cringe
Todd didn't make F4, that was Emil Pagliarulo
Hola, The.Taxidermist 😃
I watched this on Spotify and came all the way here just to say wow, what a great interview, what a cool dude. Way more personable and chill than what we get on stage. He needs to do more pods
I honestly just want to say this was probably one of my favourite interviews I've watched, very rarely will I sit down and just watch a almost 3 hour video, but I just found this interview so interesting I didn't want to stop watching.
@user-yc7vd6yk6k ??
I've just found lex, he's great. How have I not known about this guy so long?! His calm demeanor, his intriguing questions and his desire to let his guests get their point fully across, love it.
The part where Todd talks about spending the last year of game development on "game flow" at 1:29:10 is one of the most interesting things I've heard in a long time, and I wish that Lex had asked more follow up questions after Todd's brief description. Todd's key point was that once the content is mostly finished, such as harvesting flowers for alchemy, the very last piece is integrating it with the player's skill system and interface. "The skill system and the interface is party host. That's the person who says: Welcome! Do this! Go here! Check this out!. The skill system and the way it reacts on the HUD is leading you to the next thing. Once you get that down, and the rate at which the game is giving you activities, then you're in what we describe as a 'game flow'."
WOW.
That's such an elegant way of describing a process of taking all of the finished content and integrating it with the player's felt experience to produce the ultimate outcome: flow.
Nice comment to help sum up what they were talking about. I haven’t even made it that far in the podcast yet but I might have to fast forward and listen.
It turns out that the TES6 is almost finished, the studio is at the stage of gluing all the parts. Looking forward to a release in the next year or two? 😅
@@Oleg-y2s 2030
@@mikeymaiku probably 2028, maybe before depending on how many people they've had working on it all these years.
@@Oleg-y2s you don't know what you are talking about
Todd is such a gamer. He humbly speaks about the potential weaknesses of his own IPs to talk up others. His PR department certainly won't be happy but that dude's a chad. Chad Howard.
Godd Howard
@@mattias2576 Especially after the fiasco with *Mick Gordon.*
SiXteEN TiMeS tHE DeAiL
lies and memes aside he seems like a great project manager
@@yutro213 That was id Software. Under the Bethesda/Zenimax umbrella, but not Todd's team at BGS.
Lex needs to interview Tarn Adams the creator of Dwarf Fortress. That game will blow his mind!
Oh man! Yes!
thats the one
yessss
amazing idea
He can always get the developer of Rimworld to talk about his book
Todd Howard is one of the best gifts gaming has ever received. He hasn’t even retired yet and I’m already getting kinda sad thinking about it
I looooove his view on modding. It's the old Blizzard and Valse's take on it. Give the player the same dev tools we built the game with. I used to do maps for WC3 and CS, and it just speaks to me and makes my heart go dun dun dun.
Todd will never retire
@@jimlewis1992 he literally said ES6 was gonna be his last game
@texmexlink He'll be back. For guys like him, retirement will get boring after 2 weeks.
@@jimlewis1992 I don’t think so man. He’s already 50 something, game development is very tiring, and ES6 won’t be out for 8 years
I'm so excited for starfield, even if its not perfect I already know I will enjoy it a lot
I agree. Certainly won’t be worse than Fallout 76.
Agreed! Honestly, this interview made me more hyped for itthan the gameplay trailer.
@@sub-jec-tiv SURELY...
@brainswashedthisways no way it's worse then starfield. They are probably being very careful with starfield to revive the communities respect for Bethesda.
@@sub-jec-tiv Basically confirmed that it's not gonna be worse since it's singleplayer. The essence of the everything that's bad in 76 was the multiplayer, everything stemmed from that
I haven't completed this interview yet, I'm 1 hour and 45 minutes in. This might be the best Todd interview available, it's given me some massive insight into the design philosophy behind some of my favorite games. I really liked the style of interview as well, it was more conversational and less like Todd was being grilled for a headline. This is more journalism than I've seen in years of gaming, I felt like I really got to know what makes Todd and his team at BGS tick and a deeper understanding of just why I love their games so much and what sets them apart from the pack in my eyes. To hear the things I've felt and known out into words by the man himself is just confirmation that BGS will probably remain in my top game studios for as long as Todd is in charge.
I agree. What i love about Bethesda is how they take 4-5 years to create these games. That shows in the immersion of the world and wonderful small stories a player encounters.
Bethesda games are far superior than games from studios like Ubisoft or others who churn out games every year which have no depth and totally lack the immersive worlds of Bethesda games.
He's JUST the pr guy, Chill.
@@KamleshMallick Their games have much more soul than any game made by Ubisoft. They have a lot of similar flaws that most open world games share, but the dedication and care put into the world is felt in all Bethesda games. You can tell that time and passion were put into all of their worlds.
@@chrisrichfield8906 Agreed. I just could not get into Ubisoft’s Far Cry or Assassin’s Creed series. The characters don’t have depth in them, lore is virtually non existent, u don’t find the small stories.
I could not get into Witcher 3 (many people say it’s the best) too because there is no freedom in the way you want to play. Elder Scrolls series gives you the freedom to be whoever you want. I value that a lot. When it comes to Open world’s, I only stick to Bethesda Softwork games these days.
@@donaldn5798did you listen to the 2 hours of him explaining how he is the literal visionary behind these games that has a hand in almost all aspects of creation? he is literally in charge of the entire thing. just the PR guy?
The fact that Todd's kid watches Elder Scrolls TH-camrs with him and they talk about lore is such a cool thing. Gotta make those creators' day to be acknowledged like that.
Edit: Shoutout to FudgeMuppet, Drewmora, Camelworks, Memospore (Selectives Lorecast), Imperial Knowledge, and all the rest of the creators who's been making content about TES all these years!
I’m gonna check out selectieve lore cast thanks for a new TH-camr to follow
@@sit-insforsithis1568 They're somewhat an acquired taste. Lots of deep, crazy lore and talks about metaphysical interpretations and stuff. A deep cut, but a good one.
Similar to how Bethesda works with modders, it would be great to see if them work with these content creators on future lore.
Can't forget the godfather Zaric Zhakaron
@@domier8000 If he actually watches Zaric that would be so funny
Must be stressful as hell making ES6 after setting the bar so high on Skyrim lol
The Witcher 3 and Red Dead Redemption 2 have set the bar far higher than Skyrim lol. Skyrim is just inferior to both those games.
@@BasePuma4007 ermmmmmm
@@BasePuma4007 why compare them to a 2011 game? skyrim is one of the all time greats that definetly left its mark in gaming history whether you like or not.
@@BasePuma4007 i agree that they are both better than skyrim but skyrim's impact and the enthusiasm for skyrim's sequel are not at all comparable to the examples you give
@@joa4613 Red Dead 1 was far more advanced technologically than Skyrim, which came out in 2010. The Witcher 3 came out in 2015, so not that long after Skyrim.
Best Todd Howard interview ever. This is the Tetris of Todd Howard interviews.
Todd is better for having been interviewed by Lex. The Game Informer made him weaker, and that has tracked with his performance. His passions have been rekindled.
@@socaljusticewarrior558 That's exactly right. I'd say the same for the conversation with Lex and Kanye. What a valuable voice to have out there mincing words for us.
Underrated comment
Lex really be on the come up with these amazing guest recently
hasn't even dropped his ukraine podcasts
Lex is smaaaaaaashing the podcast world recently. He's always been good but has been on another level this year.
he has potential that's for sure
Imagine saying this guest is amazing what a clown.
@@mrX666-s9p when did i say that?
I've never ever heard of Lex before, but I am super impressed with this interview. Phenomenal conversation between Lex and Todd here.
Wow. Glad your here
He is the best
Lex is not good at this. He can not confront his guests even if they have basic facts wrong, hence his podcasts turn into PR pieces.
He bores me
I'm surprised Todd didn't fall asleep tbh, it sounds like he's reading him a bedtime story
My eyes got tired after listening for 4 minutes. Great guest, weird questions, boring host.
Bro I did NOT intend to watch this entire interview, but here I am at 1am in the morning. Fantastic interview. I really enjoyed hearing a bit more about Todd. He seems like a really down to earth person.
While I love when Lex has on the heavy, more thought provoking guests, this was a fantastic and welcome distraction from all the seriousness in the world right now. Loved this interview.
HIT ME UP 👆👆🔝
The comment at the end about not letting yourself think your not good enough really spoke to me. As an aspiring want to be programmer in college I really really enjoy it but sometimes feel like I might not be smart enough and I wonder if I’m just wasting my time and money. Todd you spoke the manic words I just want you to know I will never forget that. You may have changed my life.
You got it man keep pushing lots of programmers rely on other resources years into their careers
Good luck man. I’m sure you got it. I majored in programming for a little bit but ended up changing, found out that it really wasn’t for me. But in the future I’m going to apply to Bethesda.
Don't worry about feeling like you're not good enough when it comes to programming. You're not alone in those kind of thoughts, *especially* in programming. I've been in the field for 5 years now and I *still* learn new things every single day, possibly even more than I did in school
I absolutely adore Todd Howard. You can tell he's a genuinely good person. I'd love to sit in a relaxed setting and talk to him like this.
I hated Tetris, but I have probably 5k hours in Skyrim. Definitely the best game of all time. Todd needs the presidential medal of freedom.
What does Tetris have to do with anything?
@@jesusp.1344 did you actually listen to the podcast? Tetris is the main topic for a couple minutes.
@@kieranmaiden why do you expect everybody to throw away 3h listening to some dudes speak about games
@@Rafael-oq9vuthe video is right there
@@Rafael-oq9vu"throw away" yet you're commenting on that very same 3 hour video lmao. You're the type of dude who skips every cutscene in video games.
I get Lex when he talks about the nature in Skyrim. The music, ambient sounds, nature graphics combination and feeling of freedom where to go and what to do, really gives a special feeling, I love and don't find in other games to the same extent.
I didn’t realize how badly I wanted this interview till I saw who the guest is. I’m legitimately excited for this episode
Lex is so innocent when it comes to Skyrim modding... let's hope he doesn't go down the rabbit hole, hahaha
If he visits a site that rhymes with 'roversrab' he's gonna be in biiig trouble lol
And become a man of culture?
@@silverhost9782 You know, I didn't even think of that when writing the comment. NSFW modding is a whole another world. I find it disgusting and... very impressive, lol
There's no way he doesn't know.
@@britasha1194 His questions show he doesn't know
Todd is so chill and wholesome.
Oh yeah, SO wholesome...
"16 times the detail"
@@randomthings1293he has 16 times your dicksize tho
@helmutsalvatore7989 I should "touch grass" for pointing out the proof that Todd is generally a liar? You should Google what "touch grass" means because that ain't it...
I love that the mantle of premier TH-cam podcaster has essentially been passed to Lex after Joe left
he's boring af with zero charisma
He didn't leave. He's just on DMT.
I think that Lex has kind of surpassed him overall as the best variety podcaster. He gets the same good variety of guests that Rogan has (maybe a few less comedians) but I find that the conversation doesn't circle back to the same topics that continually get rehashed on Rogan. Granted, that may be because I've listened to thousands of hours of rogan compared to maybe 60 of Lex, but I do enjoy that the conversation flows without inevitably finding itself intertwined with combat sports, DMT, or how nature is scary/wild.
I hate podcasters and these big media talking heads, they get funding from all kinds of evil companies to steer public opinion and ideas. This guy is no different im sure. Besides the fact that at least joe rogan doesn't always make me want to rip my eyes out when he talks. This guy is insufferable to listen to and just ruins every interview.
@@j123jna No need to say one is 'better' than the other, they both have different styles for different audiences or different 'moods' of listening. Spread love for both Joe and Lex guys
Never expected this crossover in my life.
Really excited to watch the interview with the man that created some of my favorite games of all time, and is the sole reason I ever considered starting a YT channel.
Thanks for this, Lex.
Everyone has already said it, but this was an incredible interview. As much as Howard is meme'd on, he's still very talented and caring, and always my favorite man in the gaming space. Need more of him for sure!
"Incredible." - It was just an interview, and I wish Lex would challenge his guests mroe. He lets them all off the hook.
@@mdaniels6311you don’t get to talk to someone for 3 hours by challenging every other word.
@@mdaniels6311 it's just a conversation, not the 3rd degree
He's memed on because he's a likable guy, if he wasn't a good sport about it he wouldn't put himself out there enough to get memed on
@@mdaniels6311 lmao what did he “let off the hook” in this interview? also i don’t think you get the concept of a podcast.
I have watched this interview three times now. This was wonderous interaction and I really enjoyed hearing one of my favorite creators talk about a world that he gets to poke around in.
I was really amazed by the over 200 endings that lex made for this
And thanks to the Fridman Break lore they are all canon
@@memegazer Seeing this IN joke makes me feel somewhat less sad for knowing so much useless information about the Elder Scrolls lore.
@@viderevero1338 I have bad news for you, that's a fallout 3 reference so if you know it it actually means you know useless information about 2 betheseda game series.
It just works.
Classic reply b4 the the answer 😉👍🥔
Blown away by how amazing and inspiring this was. Was not expecting that.
Todd Howard is a visionary whetever he talks about his project he talks about vision he had for them which is nice to see but also can be misleading the prime example of negative is him talking about fallout 76. Briliant men that thinks in very interesting way.
IT JUST WORKS
Todd explains it perfectly. Nothing will ever give me the same feeling as leaving Vault 101 for the first time.
That was such a great feeling! Will never forget that!
wow, the memories... beyond awesome !
Still playing the game thanks to NexusM.M
Wrong, thats Vault 13
Fallout New Vegas blows Fallout 3, 4, and 76 out of water in nearly every aspect. From game design choices to the music, feel, and overall atmosphere of the games. New Vegas truly is the most accurate representation of what makes a Fallout game fun, immersive, emotional, calming, stressful, and most of all inspired.
I'm a game designer and this is one of my favourite episodes ever!!! the discussion at about 1:12:00 to 1:13:00 where Todd talks about his games hopefully inspiring people to do things. Oblivion and Fallout 3 were two of the first games I'd ever played that made me feel like I was in a world, and they inspired me to get to where I am now. His work is absolutely inspiring people!!
I thought Todd handled Lex's sly questions with aplomb, its not easy to be having a wide ranging conversation while keeping a list of things you need to avoid discussing and sidestepping them fairly flawlessly... looking forward to Starfield its really my sort of game, great interview Lex much appreciated.
I learned a new word, thanks.
"aplomb"
self-confidence or assurance, especially when in a demanding situation.
i dont like how he interrupts Lex in the middle of the speech. and quite frequently.
Im not surprised has been in the industry for almost 30 years
lmao this is one of the most deep and intense gaming interviews ever, can you imagine if all gaming journalism was like this?
Nope. I can't imagine that. IGN would have spent the whole interview trying to extract headline-able details about Starfield and other upcoming games. Kotaku would have just grilled him about diversity. This is why Lex keeps getting big guests. They know he wants to have a conversation, not an interrogation.
Lex is the GOAT in interviewing
The difference between conservative and woke podcasts.
I really agree with Todd; Fallout 4's "everything can be broken into a material" is a very fun mechanic. It feels like diving into a world where the play can apply curiosity, bringing true customization for what each of us may want to explore and create.
Just like you can in his latest game, starfield. Right? ...right?
@radumirceabunica7492
Fallout 4 was a few years earlier right? Just a few.
So cool to hear Todd and his son bond watching Skyrim TH-camrs and lore discussions :D
Lmao!
@@John-wc6lk 😂
Makes me wonder if they watched the PatricianTV 2 part behemoth.
I hope Todd took some notes if he did.
I'm surprised he didn't mention the amazing soundtracks of Skyrim and Oblivion
Jeremy Soule compositions are masterpieces!
because Soule got cancelled and is a no-name in the industry nowadays so you can't mention the man
@@herpderp9854 Even worse, got cancelled for no reason. Despite the allegations against him, no actual proof was found of them.
@@kamixakadio2441 They seem to have taken the chance to give him the boot, since he was supposedly a very hard man to work with
TESVI is gonna have some shoes to fill then…
This is legitimately one of the best interviews of all time
if he talked about the mistakes made from fallout 76 i’d agree
@@Chris-jt4pl It would be interesting to hear his side of that story. Especially since I've heard the game is a lot better now so they must have learned a lot.
@@jacobm1190 it’s not lol
@@grimey666 oh it is by miles now.
Might not be for everyone, but I certainly have seen an increasing number new/returning players lately with the new massive update coming up, which means something is working.
@@Chris-jt4pl you's still stroking yourself to that debacle huh, what has it been, like 6 years?
the ost for elder scrolls man was a huge convincing point for me. Jeremy Soule is a master of conveying emotion musically
Holy hell what a legendary episode.
God Howard is here to tell us that it works with 76 times the detail.
Godd Howard protec.
Legendary episode that you haven’t watched yet…literally just came out when you posted this
@@DadsCigaretteRun i can attest that something is legendary before I watch it. Its Todd Howard and Lex Friedman. The simple act of it existing is what I am referring to.
@@casualgoats I suppose that’s fair and I’m being to critical of you.
A lot of folks talk about how great the video is within 1 minute of it posting and it’s annoying like farming.
@@casualgoats I can't wait for the 11 different versions of this interview
This man is a genius. A spin off online game that didn’t go well with some people could never tarnish his legacy.
Todd is not going to leave the industry on the sour note of fo76, he's too passionate for that. He wants a swan song that blows people away
And btw they kept workin on 76, theres still a large very friendly community, and so much more to the game now. Like it legit feels like fallout but online now lol
"Some people" Come on man, that game was a horrific failure. Call a spade a spade.
@@stuartfury3390 I spent ~480 hours in that game and loved every second of it, also there are still 6000 average online players, according to Steam Charts. The game had an extremely rough start, but stop pretending it hasn't improved since.
@@KNSSSSSS it's also on game pass so there's a lot more too. i spent some time on it as well, it definitely got a lot better over time. worth playing for a few weeks for sure
Lets do this! Starfield could be amazing, Todd is always entertaining to and this entire conversation is 16x the detail.
ACG what's up man!
Hey Karak, I wish you had interviewed him for 2 hours.
😂🤣
@@flouserschirdLMAO yo chilll
so how was starfield dawg
Great interview. I'm an ex-Cop with PTSD. Todd's games have helped keep me alive. All hail the Todd-father.
Todd is an incredibly well spoken & introspective guy. Really interesting interview.
sometimes.... it just doesent work
He's also a bullshitter. He WAY overpromises and hypes things...which is not good when you are public facing....let's hope he learned his lesson from the last Fallout fiasco
@@JSRJS To play the other side a little, I’m sure that in the modern day Bethesda, parented by Microsoft, that Todd Howard isn’t single handedly making the decisions of what to say at media events, or to put into the games or what not. There are definitely others involved in telling him what to say at these events
@@JSRJS while he does overpromise and create too much hype over stuff that dosent exist.. he definitly isnt a bullshitter, also fallout 76 wasent made by the core bethesda team it was made by one in austin
@@andyc7747 Yeah I mean the guy doesn’t own Bethesda, he doesn’t single handedly make those decisions about what to say to the media. He’s an employee, he has to do what he’s told or he walks and I’m sure he loves what he does and giving it up wouldn’t be an option. He’s the face of the studio and they all hide behind him when things go wrong, it’s a tough job to have
LEX! Julian Le Fay was the lead programmer for Bethesda for a long time and is the one the divine Julianos is named after. He would make a great interview. He is also working on a new game inspired by Daggerfall, and hearing him talk in other interviews about the technology behind that game and others is a joy.
I think Michael Kirkbride would be even more interesting. He’s the mastermind behind all the crazy lore and a visionary for Morrowind. Also, there’s almost nothing with him on the web.
Not to mention the fact that his design philosophy is practically the opposite of Todd's despite having the same goals
Watched an interview with him. He is for sure a character I loved it
I love when game makers have the opportunity to go into so much detail about games I love and Todd gave 16 times the detail in this interview.
You could really see the appreciation Todd had for Lex’s questions. You could tell this is the best interview he has ever had and I would bet told him as much afterwards. Lex is just to humble to have let that tape roll lol
Well its more than likely they had some interview prep. After hte absolute disaster of Emil Pagliarulo basically outright saying bethesda is comfortable and expects for the modding community to fix their fuck ups in an interview theyve been very cautious about interviews
I'll never forget walking out of vault 101 for the first time. His comments about quiet moments in games really rings when I think about stepping out of the vault and shielding my eyes from sunlight, something I've never seen in my life sold the fuck out of this game i bought as an impulse buy in a bargain bin. Great interview.
Yes, a really unforgettable moment