When Avowed was first announced back in 2020, the internet latched on to one comparison that Obsidian's RPG hasn't been able to shake off since: a comparison to Skyrim. A first-person perspective, fantasy world, sword-and-magic dual-wielding - the surface-level similarities are certainly there, but Avowed's leads say the game has more in common with the studio's prior work.
Once again asked about the Skyrim comparisons, Avowed director Carrie Patel told Game Informer that "the best comparison is The Outer Worlds," Obsidian's satirical, anti-corpo space romp, because it "gives a much clearer idea of the scope of the game and also the design and layout." Rather than letting folks loose in an open world that you can walk across from one point to the other, Avowed follows its galactic sibling's footsteps with a "series of open zones that are connected and unlock over the course of the game... and yeah, in terms of the kind of the quest structure, the narrative structure, it's a lot closer to The Outer Worlds, as well," Patel adds.
Obsidian Entertainment CEO Feargus Urquhart previously pushed back on the comparisons last summer, when he revealed to PC Gamer that Avowed was initially pitched as the studio's take on Bethesda's giga-successful formula, but eventually reverted to what the team was good at. "I think over the course of time as we worked on it… Bethesda makes an awesome Skyrim. Mojang makes an awesome Minecraft, and Turn10 makes awesome racing games," Urquhart said, "What we do is we make our awesome RPGs, right?"
The Outer Worlds might have provided the framework for Avowed's structure, but the fantasy adventure definitely isn't gunning for the same biting humor. Patel explains that, tonally, Avowed takes the baton from its isometric predecessor, Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire, with a "very grounded and serious political story," plus a "very kind of weird and esoteric, metaphysical, and divine story beneath that... A lot of moments of seriousness, but also moments of levity to kind of to kind of break that up, and a lot of those things are very character-based. So yeah, I wouldn't compare it tonally to The Outer Worlds."
Avowed is due to launch on Xbox Series X|S, Game Pass, and PC sometime later this year. If you don't think you have the time to smash through both Pillars of Eternities beforehand, no worries - Obsidian assured you don't need to play its older CRPGs to catch up. (You should, though, they're real good.)
Check out Gamesradar+’s Avowed preview to learn everything you need to know before the RPG drops.
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