Legendary developer Obsidian Entertainment has been on a roll making well-received games that they seem to genuinely want to make. From the crowdsourced Pillars of Eternity, to the evil-tinged Tyranny and the wacky The Outer Worlds, Obsidian has been crafting unique experiences that have culminated in my favorite game from them to date, Avowed.
Originally conceived as a live service game way back in 2018, Avowed was re-imagined as a single-player narrative RPG experience in 2021 spearheaded by studio veteran Carrie Patel. Avowed is the first game release from Obsidian since they were purchased by Microsoft and the results are amazing.
Avowed takes place in the Pillars of Eternity universe, focusing on the area called the Living Lands that is both being eyed by the Aedyr empire for expansion and undergoing a plague called the Dreamscourge. The character we play is an Envoy from the Aedyran Emperor and a Godlike, touched by a God at birth causing them to not only have special attributes but also be vilified, feared and respected for those attributes.
Avowed kicks off with a robust character creator to make the Godlike Envoy as unique as possible. This is also where the real shift in progression and classes kicks in. While there is an option to choose essential archetypes like Fighter, Ranger and Mage, the classes are not locked in, thanks to a flexible skill system.
Character progression in Avowed is impacted by levelling and skill choices to an extent, but the real magic, and frankly joy, comes from the weapon choices and upgrading those weapons in camp. Weapons and armor can be levelled up from common to legendary status using loot found in the game. As you explore, the enemies get tougher, and upgraded items are the key to successful battles.
Thankfully the best part of Avowed, the exploration, helps you find mountains of crafting materials and better-quality gear to break down or use. The game’s secret sauce is not the great story, amazing look and feel or quick snappy battles, it is the joy of exploring the Living Lands and opening chest after satisfying chest.
The key magic is wandering around and finding new loot, shrines, temples and those glorious chests waiting to be opened. Sure, Avowed has a cohesive and structured story pulling you from area to area, and plenty of sidequests. But the plethora of unexplored nooks and crannies are a joy to visit thanks to plenty of loot to find on the way.
It breaks down this way: A quest or sidequest leads you to an area, you notice a waterfall nearby. Hmm, let’s check that out; then you hear the light tingling audio cue indicating a chest or loot, you find it with some light parkour or puzzle solving, and then see a house in the distance, hmm, let’s check that out.
This gets played out in a very organic way thanks to some amazing structures built into the game. First, it is gorgeous and colorful so there is always a fun spot to explore. Second, there is no stamina drain to run so you can head somewhere quick, and climbing is possible so hard-to-reach places seem accessible.
The exploration is further helped by the genuinely fun and quick combat. Your character can equip two weapon loadouts, so swapping between gun/shield and mace/grimoire (spells) happens quick, which leads to fun and varied battles. Your companions are there, I suppose, to draw you out and boost you, but generally the fighting is purely in your hands.
Because the upgrading of weapons unlocks new enhancements and better damage potential, the skills are a supplement to those essential weapon loadouts. Want to stop enemies cold, charge at them in a bull rush or cast a spell? There are skills for that.
The skill system is very flexible. At each level a new skill can be chosen from any of the archetypes. Want a Fighter that can fling spells, or a Ranger that can use two-handed weapons to devastating effect? All of that is possible and more.
Combining attacks, skills, spells, and commands to companions, as well as lobbing throwable explosive or elemental blasts, leads to combat that is fast-paced but somehow never confusing. Once the combat is done you can get back to the best part, exploring some more and collecting that sweet, sweet loot.
Playing Avowed was just such an enjoyable experience. The story can get a bit dour at times – there is a parasitic plague destroying the land and zombifying people after all – but the game’s presentation, banter and fun factor make this a rare triumph in modern RPG games.
The characters are all great, although romance options are annoyingly absent. The gameplay is fun and varied and while the story hits some clichés it has some bold strokes that make the game progress in a satisfying way. Avowed was not on my radar as a must-play RPG this year, but frankly it is one of the best I have played in a good long time.
Avowed is available right now for Xbox Series X|S and PC via Game Pass and Steam.
