Joel Burgess

But first, I encourage you to volunteer w/your area rescue. If you can’t volunteer, make a donation to @ASPCA, @HSIGlobal, or a local group. Consider rescue animals first when adopting, and choose responsibly when working with breeders. Please spay/neuter + vax your pets.

It wasn’t obvious at first that River would be our subject. We’d started by researching some “professional” dogs, with film and/or police training. Lots of games go this route, and for good reason. But in the end, we didn't.

I remember the catalyst; an eager new member had joined the Dogmeat team. I visited their desk a day or so later. Research covered the walls; countless images of German Shepherds snarling, all teeth and attack postures. Within a day or two, River started visiting the studio.

The Dogmeat team was just a handful of us early on - as River stole hearts around the studio, however, more and more folks found ways to pitch in and help bring her personality into the game. She was more than a mascot or an inspiration - she was part of the team.

To begin with the obvious; River's looks were almost directly replicated to the in-game model. Not just because of her beauty (but yes, that too), her markings happened to work really well for pose read + facial expression.https://twitter.com/MichelleBurgess/status/618870397275127809?s=20 …

For audio, we wanted to avoid stock libraries as much as possible. This was tricky, especially w/distress calls. The only way we could get these was to separate us - I'd have to stand in an adjacent room where she could smell but not reach me, until she started calling out.

(These sessions were a little heartbreaking, but they also turned out to be great references for happy little celebration yips as well)

We also crafted the dog's combat AI to focus on holding enemies in place. Direct damage and finishing moves are secondary. (He also HATES being too far from you) This didn't just give Dogmeat a distinctive combat style from other companion NPCs; it was a character choice.

You see, Dogmeat isn't primarily focused on killing your enemies. He's *protecting you*, often throwing himself directly in harm's way, giving you the time + opportunity to deal with the threat yourself. If you've ever had a German Shepherd, you understand.

And I suppose this gets at the Big Idea behind Dogmeat's relationship to you in Fallout 4. Like your character, Dogmeat is caught out of time. This dog doesn't belong here, and neither do you.*

(*anyone looking for confirmation of their preferred Dogmeat origin lore; sorry. There are several intentionally-conflicting clues to this in the game. I can't/won't tell you which theory is true.)

Fallout is all about exploring a world of bizarre creatures, places, scenarios, and characters. Companion NPCs are a rogues gallery running the gamut from a thespian Supermutant to an Android gumshoe. The strange thing about Dogmeat is that nothing's strange about Dogmeat.