Avowed is set in Pillars of Eternity's world, but Obsidian says you don't need to have played its older CRPG

Don't worry, you don't need to know anything about Obsidian's massive CRPGs before you dive headlong into Avowed.

GamesRadar+ just spoke to Avowed director director Carrie Patel and gameplay director Gabe Paramo, as part of our huge Avowed preview looking ahead at the CRPG. Thankfully, both senior developers have stood firm in the belief that you don't need to have played games like Pillars of Eternity to enjoy Obsidian's forthcoming game.

"You really don't need to know anything about the previous Pillars games, and you certainly don't need to have played them to enjoy Avowed," says Patel. "For players who have, they're certainly some familiar concepts, bits of world-building, and even a few returning characters that they might recognize, but we wanted to make sure that players coming to it for the first time will have a good time."

Those "familiar concepts" might include spells from the Pillars of Eternity games, for example, like Into the Fray, which pulls characters in different directions. It seems like Avowed is building on top of the magical lands of Eora from the Pillars series of games, but in ways that won't stop newcomers from enjoying it as a standalone experience.

"There's always a balance there, because you don't want to info-dump on the player just when they're really trying to get their feet wet in the world. But at the same time, you don't want them to feel adrift," Patel continues. The entire thing is a "delicate balance between introducing new concepts and pieces of the world to players," but Avowed does this in a way that lets players opt into the experience.

Avowed is still slated to launch near the end of 2024, and Paramo is keen to keep pushing for "transparency" like this right up until launch. Check back on GamesRadar+ later today, January 29, for the second part of our extensive look at Avowed.

Right now though, you can read up on our guide to all the upcoming Xbox Series X games like Avowed that you should be keeping an eye on this year.