To say I have been excited to play Avowed would be an understatement. I’ll be honest, I was just excited about a new RPG that looked like it fit right in with some of my favourite franchises like The Elder Scrolls, Dragon Age and Fallout. Unbeknownst to me, Avowed takes place in the world of Pillars of Eternity, so it isn’t quite its own brand-new franchise, but it only exists in the same universe, and is not narratively connected, so at least I won’t be lost!
The makers of Avowed, Obsidian Entertainment, actually had a hand in two franchises I already loved, Fallout: New Vegas and Knights of the Old Republic II, though they didn’t make the original. During my short hands-on time with Avowed, I could see influences from so many games I already love, but we will get to that shortly.
Thanks to Xbox and Obsidian Entertainment I was able to play what was described as the first two hours of Avowed. I spent some time with the character creator first and foremost, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. It isn’t as intricate as some other games, but I found the sliders that adjust your characters face were clear and concise, where often I can’t tell what I am changing until it is too late, and for some reason can never seem to fix it.
There are feminine and masculine presets to choose from, but you are also able to choose your pronouns and voice to your liking. Once you choose your preset, you then use sliders to adjust the features. However, there are no individual presets to choose from like nose, mouth, eyebrows, etc. You have to mould things to look the way you want.
Something that is unique to Avowed is your “Godlike” design, which essentially marks you as a Godlike — an individual blessed or cursed with a connection to the gods. This appears on your character’s face as something similar to coral. It gave me Pirates of the Caribbean “Part of the crew, part of the ship” vibes, but so much brighter and more colourful.
What I really like, however, is the ability to hide this in game, much like hide helmet options, but have it remain a part of the story with NPCs reacting to it throughout the game. You can also hide most of your armour if you choose, too.
The character creator in Avowed is also where you get the first taste of what Obsidian has been boasting about, classless combat. You choose a background before you jump in, but not a class. You can choose from Arcane Scholar, Court Augur, Noble Scion, Vanguard Scout and War Hero. The game explains that this will determine your story/dialogue options and starting weapons, but that all weapons and abilities will be available to you regardless of your choice.
I feel like Dragon Age: The Veilguard dipped a toe into this, with every class having access to some sort of magic, but Avowed does away with classes completely, allowing you to customize your build. You will have a variety of attribute points to build with: Might, Constitution, Perception, Dexterity, Intellect, and Resolve, and you can reset them at any time for a price. As you level up, you can also choose from multiple skill trees, building up your Godlike as you see fit, which can also be reset if you want to switch things up.
Now, onto the actual gameplay! As mentioned, you are a Godlike, though you don’t know which God has touched you, so clearly that will play a part later in the story. To begin, I washed up on shore after being sent to investigate something called the Dreamscourge, a disease that is affecting people and creatures, causing them to turn violent and grow mushrooms and more out of their skin. It leads to some interesting reactions to your Godlike markings too.
Though I didn’t get too far into the story with only two hours of access, I can say the world of Avowed is absolutely stunning. NPCs are all different species, and I was surprised how unique each one looked. Even the character’s mouths look pretty on point, which is a complaint I have often in games.
“…the world of Avowed is absolutely stunning.”
In what should have been a two-hour preview period, I managed to spend five hours in the game, exploring the lush landscapes, accepting every side quest I could find, and chatting with my companion. Avowed has a Party Camp similar to Dragon Age, where you can connect with companions, train with them, enchant, upgrade, store items and more.
I chatted with my companion Kai for far longer than I should have given I wouldn’t be able to save my progress. The companions will clearly play a role in your adventures in The Living Lands. Kai was able to recommend things I should look for, and companions can help in the world, like burning brambles to get you to new areas. I look forward to seeing who else will come along, but am a bit disappointed that I won’t be able to romance any of them. It’s strictly business in Avowed.
My biggest concern diving into Avowed was that I would be stuck in first-person. I tend to prefer third-person now, after starting to experience some motion sickness in first-person. Luckily, Avowed actually has the ability to swap between first or third-person! I will say, though both look great, something about that third-person view is so much more breathtaking. It is also easier to aim and control your character. Something worth noting is that in order to switch between each mode, it isn’t a simple click of a button. You need to head into your settings to do so.
Combat in Avowed will definitely take more time to judge. In my hands-on preview I came across an axe, shield, sword, bow, gun, grimoire, plus a Godlike power and another magical ability. It’s a lot to take in, especially when you have access to everything. Things didn’t feel quite balanced to me yet, but I think once I have a handle on the style of gameplay I want to master it will smooth out a bit.
My issue at the moment was that the grimoire magic didn’t seem to work as well as say, the gun or the sword, and made me more vulnerable since I couldn’t hold a shield. Swinging a sword or axe felt like there was real weight behind it, and the arquebus gun quickly became my favourite as a heavy hitter. As you level, things like magic will get stronger, so I am looking forward to seeing how it all plays out.
Godlike powers will unlock throughout the game based on choices you make, the only one I was able to unlock was a healing ability. You are also able to spec your companions as you see fit, with four skill choices that will unlock. Under each, you will be able to choose one of three effects. For Kai’s first skill, you could choose that his Fire and Ire ignites, does more stun damage or happens more frequently. Companions also fall and can be revived during combat, and Kai himself was more of a tank, so I would imagine other companions will take on damage or support roles, too.
Judging by the menus and options, there will be no shortage of content in Avowed with main quests, side quests, companion quests, bounties and treasure maps available to take on. The map alone looks massive and the number of side quests and people I ran into without even making it to the main city gives me a lot of hope for the overall game.
In only a few short hours, I was able to see so many systems at play in Avowed. The game is said to take around 40 hours to complete it fully, with the main story sitting around 26 hours. However, if you’re anything like me, this will be another 60-hour game if you want to explore every inch there is to see. Avowed is shaping up to be a stunning and content-rich RPG, and February 18, 2025 can’t come fast enough.
