Obsidian Entertainment has a long history of making stellar RPGs, with standout hits like Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic II, Fallout: New Vegas, South Park: The Stick of Truth, and The Outer Worlds. Sticking to a sub-genre that has served them well, Avowed is the latest RPG from Obsidian, which prioritizes player choice and puts an emphasis on role-playing over min-maxing loot and stats. Considering Obsidian’s track record, expectations have been high for Avowed, fueled further by the five-year wait between the game’s announcement and release. So, does it deliver? Ultimately, even though it plays things safe, Avowed is an entertaining adventure that’s reminiscent of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, but with a bit more fantastical flair.
Life in the Living Lands
Avowed has all of the character customization you’d come to expect in a modern RPG, including cosmetic sliders, unique narrative backgrounds, and a chosen “class”. However, in this fantasy tale, you’re not just some random schmuck, but rather a royal envoy of the Aedyran Emperor, sent to the tumultuous Living Lands to stop a blossoming plague. Separated from the rest of the world, the Living Lands is an island rich with diversity, but caught in fierce political upheaval. Arriving in the Dawnshore region, you set out to solve the mystery of the “Dreamscourge” plague, while simultaneously figuring out your origins as a rare god-like. Quite literally touched by the gods, your reputation precedes you, but not everyone in the Living Lands is so welcoming to your kind.
As you travel around the Living Lands, meeting new factions and judging the political temperature of the region, it’s not uncommon to run into people who plainly dislike Aedyrans or view you as an abomination. Since Avowed is set in the same universe as the Pillars of Eternity franchise, it’s a game that’s rich with existing lore, making the world feel lived in rather than tailored to your existence.
Like in other RPGs developed by Obsidian, there’s a lot of choice granted to the player in terms of narrative, so you’re free to be as altruistic or cruel as you please. In many quests, you’ll have to make an important choice, often affecting the rewards you receive or the outcome of the story at hand. Avowed is a game that revels in the complexity of your decisions and their greater consequences, where the seemingly “nice” choice isn’t always the “best” choice, so it’s better to stick to your gut. Characters are always nuanced, especially the companions that join your party along the way, who are always happy to offer advice.
The story in Avowed is focused and well-written, but like many great RPGs, it occasionally struggles with pacing. When you wind up in a major city, prepare to spend well over an hour yapping with random NPCs, many of whom are endlessly chatty and can’t wait to tell you their whole life story. Some dialogue sequences and cutscenes can feel exceptionally drawn out, but this is ultimately a matter of preference. Simply put, if you like reading a lot of text, whether through in-world notes or while reading subtitles during conversation, Avowed offers it. That said, you won’t be severely punished if you skip over non-crucial dialogue. It’s the type of story that rewards you equal to the amount of effort you put in. At the very least, the main quest is more intriguing than your average genre affair, so I can forgive Avowed for being heavy on the chatter.
Quest to Stop the Dreamscourge
Apart from its vibrant art direction, a few leveling mechanics, and a push for player choice in the narrative, Avowed doesn’t do much to differentiate itself from other games in the genre. That said, it’s still very, very fun to play. After you complete the tutorial, you’re free to run around the starter zone and pick up quests, hunt for loot, and all that good stuff.
The game is playable in both first and third-person, and while I stuck with the former throughout my playthrough, it’s nice to have the option. It’s also important to note that Avowed isn’t exactly open-world, but more zone-based, with several smaller, condensed regions to explore. So, despite the smaller map size, you can still expect to delve through caves, hunt down bounties, locate tons of hidden chests, and generally get lost in the feeling of exploration.
In both the combat and RPG leveling mechanics, Avowed seems designed for genre newcomers, or at least, players who like to experiment. Regardless of what class you pick during character creation, you’re free to use any weapon in the game, be it a two-handed battle axe, a wand for spell-casting, or a 15th-century arquebus long gun. Finishing quests, fighting enemies, and discovering areas rewards you with experience points to spend on various skill trees, where even more experimentation can be had. You’re free to unlock abilities from the Fighter, Ranger, and Wizard skill trees without restriction, letting you create the ideal move set for your envoy. The only aspect of combat that feels slightly stunted is stealth, as many encounters lead to chaotic action, regardless of how carefully you tread.
The majority of Avowed is well crafted, but there are a handful of areas that feel under-developed. Jumping from zone to zone, you’ll notice that a lot of characters look similar, as the game frequently reuses character models for multiple NPCs. Maps are functional, but pretty basic, and the lack of interior dungeon maps can be frustrating. There’s also a distinct lack of ancillary gameplay mechanics, with no lockpick mini-game, potion crafting, rideable mounts, etc. Instead, Avowed puts its combat, exploration, and storytelling at the forefront, and for the most part, these core elements carry the experience.
The Bottom Line on Avowed
Overall, Avowed is another solid title from Obsidian Entertainment that most RPG lovers should enjoy. It may not challenge genre tropes or flip the script on common gameplay mechanics, but it doesn’t need to do so to remain fun. Combat is hectic and controls feel responsive, with a particularly cool magic system, the narrative is compelling, and the player choice helps everything feel personalized. It’s not a super long game either, as you can wrap up the main quest in roughly 20 hours, but completing every quest and bit of side content will take around 60+ hours. Even with its occasionally slow pacing and handful of quirks, Avowed is a highly entertaining and immersive RPG that rarely feels overwhelming or unfocused.
