It has been confirmed by the team at Obsidian that Avowed will not be a massive open-world game like Skyrim, but rather, it is poised to be quite compact in comparison. Game Director Carrie Patel shared insights with Game Informer, emphasizing that players should anticipate a similar length to Obsidian’s previous title, the futuristic adventure, The Outer Worlds.
When gauging the scale of Avowed, The Outer Worlds serves as the most accurate reference point. Players can look forward to a similar experience akin to The Outer Worlds, contingent on the difficulty level chosen and the depth of exploration and engagement with content, as opposed to solely focusing on the main storyline quests.
Patel previously touched upon this topic, mentioning last year that Avowed would be more aligned in size with titles like The Outer Worlds or Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2. The latter notably boasted a lengthy gameplay duration, spanning over 30 hours for the primary narrative and exceeding 40 hours with additional side quests.
Comparatively, The Outer Worlds stands out as one of the shortest high-profile RPGs available. Completing the main storyline typically takes a little over 13 hours, while diving into side content extends gameplay to approximately 26 hours. For perspective, other non-open world RPGs such as The Witcher 2 and Dragon Age II entail between 24 and 37 hours to finish. During the development of The Outer Worlds, Obsidian had to navigate budget constraints, with the game published under Take-Two’s indie label, Private Division.
Transitioning to the present, Obsidian’s acquisition by Microsoft, a prominent conglomerate, naturally alters expectations. Despite not implying an unlimited budget, fans eagerly anticipated more substantial offerings from the studio moving forward.
Topical discussions around Avowed certainly emphasize its size concerning The Outer Worlds, yet its narrative aspects lean more towards one of Obsidian’s earlier works. Patel noted:
In terms of tone, Avowed draws closer to Deadfire, the second installment in the Pillars series, featuring a grounded and weighty political narrative. Beneath the surface lies a peculiar mix of metaphysical elements, creating a storyline rich in divine exploration. The experience encompasses moments of solemnity intertwined with lighter interludes to maintain balance, heavily orienting towards character-driven content. Consequently, the tonal comparison is not with The Outer Worlds.
Distinct from Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire, Avowed will not incorporate romance options for the four central companions. Addressing this exclusion, Patel elucidated:
We opted against including elaborate romance paths in Avowed. This decision was thoroughly debated within our narrative team. When committing to romance arcs, it is imperative that all writers are fully invested. This choice necessitates ensuring a parallel narrative path devoid of romance that is equally substantial and well-developed. The aim is to prevent players from feeling compelled to engage in a romantic bond to establish meaningful connections with characters, especially if that is not their preference. For these reasons, we chose to steer clear of implementing romances specifically in Avowed.
While a concrete release date for the game is pending confirmation, a recent blog post from Obsidian hinted at a potential launch on November 12. Avowed will be accessible on PC and Xbox Series S|X, with availability on Game Pass starting from its release day.
