Avowed was announced back in 2020 when a brief teaser trailer made it look like Obsidian’s take on Skyrim. A gameplay trailer shown during this evening’s Xbox Games Showcase did little to contradict that notion, aside from the non-snowy setting, I suppose, making it seem like Obsidian’s take on Oblivion instead.
Here’s the video:
Avowed is set in Eora, the same world as Pillars Of Eternity, and specifically on an island beset by plague and covered in strange plant life called the Living Lands. Expect sentient mushrooms and angry lizard-like tribes, experienced through first-person combat rather than Pillars’ top-down perspective.
The narrator of the trailer above is Kai, one of Avowed’s companions. “Kai is a Coastal Aumaua currently residing in the Living Lands and is one of the only friendly faces you’ll find here,” says a post on Xbox Wire from Obsidian co-founder Feargus Urquhart. “He is a former soldier, and his idealistic and pragmatic temperament will help guide you as you venture out into this wild frontier.” His face isn’t that friendly when he’s pointing out no one likes you in the trailer.
Most of the trailer focuses on the combat, from Doctor Stranging fireballs into existence, leaping and bashing enemies with swords, and whacking things with swords, pistols, and other magical attacks. There’s nothing in the trailer that feels new – no story hook that demonstrates Obsidian’s chops at writing, no Elder Scrolls-style instance of “living, breathing” AI – but a straightforward fantasy adventure seems appealing next to Starfield’s promise to feature “over 1000” barren unsatisfying planets.
Avowed – which I will one day refer to as Unavowed by mistake – is aiming to release in 2024.
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