Obsidian’s narrative-based adventure game Pentiment was developed using a lot of resources for accuracy, including an Italian hand gesture consultant. The title, which launched on November 15, is set in 16th century Bavaria and was a passion project for the game’s director, Josh Sawyer.Players take on the role of Andreas Maler in Pentiment and can choose aspects of his background story, which will influence dialogue options and provide different routes to quest completion. One of these background choices is deciding where Andreas spent his Wanderjahre, or years spent traveling abroad. If the player chooses Basel or Italy, the protagonist will gain the ability to speak some Italian, and having traveled to the Mediterranean country will also provide Andreas insight into the cultures of Florence, Milan, and Venice.Given Pentiment’s 15-hour play time, many people have already completed the game, and some have noticed an interesting line in the end credits. Tucked in between nods to the people who assisted with Historical Consulting and Latin Translation Support is a mention for the title's Italian Hand Gesture Consultant, Giulia Zamboni, who is actually a lead producer at Supermassive Games.
With Pentiment focusing on accuracy in its depiction of a rich historical period, it’s not really surprising that the development team at Obsidian Entertainment took the extra step of asking somebody for input on Italian hand gestures. Those who sit through the credits will notice an extensive bibliography at the very end as well. The referenced material covers everything from Gothic and Rennaissance Art in Nuremberg 1300-1550 to Women as Scribes and Forbidden rites: a necromancer’s manual of the fifteenth century.
An impressive amount of research went into the action-adventure title, but not all of the game’s influences are historical. Obsidian also took cues from other games that have delved into recreating key moments in time. MicroProse's 1992 RPG Darklands has been credited as inspiration for Pentiment, with its setting during the Holy Roman Empire of the 15th century. But more modern adventure games like Oxenfree and Night in the Woods have also been listed as influences for Obsidian’s latest RPG.
When not helping out as an Italian hand gesture consultant for Pentiment, Supermassive’s Lead Producer Giulia Zamboni has likely been very busy at her day job. The British game studio released the newest entry in its ongoing The Dark Pictures Anthology on November 18, just three days after Pentiment came out. Overall, The Devil in Me has received positive feedback from players and is considered a strong end for the first season of the interactive horror series.
Pentiment is currently available on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.